A report by the Republican-controlled Senate Judiciary Committee concluded that no evidence supported the “numerous allegations” of misconduct against Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh that surfaced during his confirmation process.
“This was a serious and thorough investigation that left no stone unturned in our pursuit of the facts,” said committee chairman Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) in a statement on Saturday as the panel’s Republican majority released a 414-page report. “In the end, there was no credible evidence to support the allegations against the nominee.”
In the accusation that gained the most public attention, California professor Christine Blasey Ford testified to the committee that when they were both teenagers, a drunk Kavanaugh pinned her to a bed, tried to remove her clothing and pressed his hand over her mouth when she attempted to scream at a house party.
Yale University classmate Deborah Ramirez also said that a drunken Kavanaugh exposed himself to her at a party and thrust his penis into her face. Additionally, high school and college classmates said publicly before Kavanaugh was confirmed that he was a heavy drinker.
Kavanaugh in his testimony denied all of the allegations of sexual misconduct and disputed characterizations that he had a drinkng problem.
According to the Senate Judiciary Committee report, six FBI reports on Kavanaugh over the course of his career in politics and on the bench ― probes that included interviews with nearly 150 individuals who knew him ― “did not reveal any alcohol abuse or inappropriate sexual behavior.”
The report included speculation by two men that Ford may have mistaken them for Kavanaugh during innocent encounters decades ago. The names of the men were redacted.
Before Ford’s testimony, conservative lawyer Ed Whelan suggested in a strange series of tweets that a classmate of Kavanaugh’s who looked like him may have assaulted her. President Donald Trump also gave credence to the theory. Ford said in her testimony that she was “100 percent” certain she was assaulted by Kavanaugh.
Generally, interviews in the committee report concerning Kavanaugh were glowing while questions were raised about Ford’s credibility.
One person interviewed who claimed to know Ford said she did drugs on occasion. The type of drugs were not specified.
Another woman said she had seen an old photo of Ford with billionaire Democratic donor George Soros. Another said Ford had a “robust” social life and did not seem to be suffering from the effects of a sexual assault.
The report concluded: “Committee investigators found no verifiable evidence that supported Dr. Ford’s allegations against Justice Kavanaugh. The witnesses that Dr. Ford identified as individuals who could corroborate her allegations failed to do so, and in fact, contradicted her.”
In the Ramirez case, the report took note of a public statement by James Roche, who was Kavanaugh’s roommate at Yale. He “characterized Justice Kavanaugh as a ‘notably heavy drinker, even by the standards of the time’ who ‘became aggressive and belligerent when he was very drunk,’” the report said.
But an unidentified classmate said Kavanaugh’s drinking was “within range of what was normal at the time.” That classmate added that those who accused Kavanaugh of heavy drinking “were engaged in the same behavior.”
Committee investigators “found no verifiable evidence to support Ramirez’s allegations,” the report stated.
As for Julie Swetnick, who told NBC that Kavanaugh was present in a house during high school when she said she was sexually assaulted, the committee “found no verifiable evidence to support” her allegations.
The report added: “Indeed, the evidence appears to support the position that Julie Swetnick and [her attorney, Michael] Avenatti criminally conspired to make materially false statements to the Committee and obstruct the Committee’s investigation.”
Their names have been forwarded to the Department of Justice and FBI for further investigation, according to the report.
Other allegations with few details and largely unknown to the public were also dismissed by the committee. Judy Munro-Leighton admitted that she falsely claimed to have authored an anonymous letter alleging that Kavanaugh and a friend raped her. The true author of the letter remains unknown and Munro-Leighton admitted she had never met Kavanaugh. Her name was also forwarded to the Justice Department for investigation.
Committee investigators spoke with 45 individuals and took 25 written statements.
Ford, Ramirez, Avenatti and Swetnick could not immediately be reached for comment.
