Engel on Yesterday’s Senate Judiciary Hearing with Dr. Ford & Judge Kavanaugh

Congressman Eliot L. Engel issued the following statement:

“The contrast between Dr. Ford and Judge Kavanaugh’s testimonies yesterday could not have been more striking. Dr. Ford was poised, earnest, and carried herself with incredible dignity under very difficult circumstances. Judge Kavanaugh was unhinged, undisciplined, and during his opening remarks ranted about a vast leftwing conspiracy that has worked to derail his nomination. It was a performance designed entirely to please the President, and while he may have succeeded in that goal, his conduct and temperament were not befitting of a Supreme Court Justice.

“There is no conceivable way members of the United States Senate can properly consider all of the information they heard yesterday in less than 24 hours, while also seeing to the litany of other outstanding issues surrounding Judge Kavanaugh’s nomination. Republican leadership should have immediately postponed any further proceedings until a thorough FBI investigation was called and completed. But, in addition to what we heard from Dr. Ford, there are also serious concerns about whether or not Judge Kavanaugh was truthful in other areas of his sworn testimony before the Senate earlier this month. Clearly, this is a Supreme Court nominee who deserves far more scrutiny than he has received from members of Senate leadership, and he should not be whisked through the nomination process. Yet judging by today’s Judiciary Committee vote, Senate Republicans simply don’t care.

“When President Trump announced his selection of Judge Kavanaugh for the Supreme Court, I thought he was an unacceptable nominee, and that was before we even knew who Dr. Ford was. Now it should be clear to everyone that his appointment to our nation’s highest court would be a disaster for the country. A vote on Judge Kavanaugh’s nomination by the full Senate tomorrow would be completely irresponsible and further expose this process for what it truly is: a blatant, highly partisan power grab of the Supreme Court by members of the GOP. This is a pivotal moment for our country. I urge Senate leadership to do the right thing, delay tomorrow’s vote, and call for the FBI investigation.”