A.G. Gancarski
The Supreme Court nomination of Judge Brett Kavanaugh appears increasingly imperiled Monday, in the wake of allegations of sexual assault against him.
Sen. Bill Nelson on Monday joined a bipartisan consensus that the allegations need to be investigated.
I’m still waiting for a meeting with Judge Kavanaugh I’ve requested four times. I have a number of questions for him. Meantime, I agree there should be an investigation of the new allegations against him. I believe the people involved should appear before the Judiciary committee.
— Bill Nelson (@SenBillNelson) September 17, 2018
Republicans, including Sens. Jeff Flake and Susan Collins, have made similar calls, effectively putting the push for a vote in Judiciary Thursday on pause.
Even Pres. Donald Trump seemed reconciled to the reality.
“If it takes a little delay, it’ll take a little delay,” Trump said Monday, advocating for a “full process” to White House reporters.
Kavanaugh denies that he committed sexual assault: “This is a completely false allegation. I have never done anything like what the accuser describes — to her or to anyone. Because this never happened, I had no idea who was making this accusation until she identified herself yesterday.”
Sen. Nelson had been harangued by Republican operatives for not committing to a position on Kavanaugh. The campaign of his general election opponent, Gov. Rick Scott, likewise put the pressure on.
“I have taken the time to learn about Judge Brett Kavanaugh’s record and it is clear he has the experience and objectivity to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court,” Scott said earlier this month. “Judge Kavanaugh has the highest possible rating from the American Bar Association and will work to uphold our Constitution – not legislate from the bench.
“Unfortunately, Bill Nelson has failed to do his job, pledging to vote against the nominee without knowing who it was and refusing to even meet with Judge Kavanaugh – choosing instead to ask rhetorical questions to reporters when he could have reviewed the judge’s record face to face,” Scott added.
Before that, onn Aug. 20, Scott’s camp released a statewide ad, “Fair Hearing,” which dinged Nelson for not meeting with Kavanaugh.
