Brett Kavanaugh’s nomination process reflects the bitter partisanship of the age

Kavanaugh has said that he is willing to testify on this matter "if the Senate is willing to hear him", according to White House spokesman Raj Shah.

"Nothing of substance and nothing legitimate can happen by Monday", Lisa Banks, an attorney for Ford, told CNN. She could not be reached for comment Tuesday morning.

But as the Senate judiciary committee moved on Tuesday to prepare for the hearing, several questions remained.

The remarks by McConnell, R-Ky., seemed aimed at signaling that while Ford will be given her opportunity to detail her allegations under oath, party leaders - certainly for now - were not easing off their support of Trump's nominee. She said there are still a lot of questions, and "we need to know what happened". "In modern times Supreme Court nominees generally have been confirmed, " said Stephen Wermiel, a professor at American University Washington College of Law and co-author of the definitive biography of the late Supreme Court Justice William Brennan, "It's unusual to have a situation where the nominee doesn't make it".

As both sides contemplated the hearing, Republicans were thinking through the optics of a nationally televised showdown between Kavanaugh and his accuser at which all 11 GOP Judiciary Committee members are men.

Hill is withholding her judgment on Kavanaugh until she hears the testimony. She said President George H.W. Bush had asked the FBI to investigate Anita Hill's allegations against Thomas.

At a minimum, given the allegation and the stakes, the senators who have to decide whether Kavanaugh is fit to sit on the court should not only get to hear directly from both Ford and Kavanaugh, but also to ask questions of both of them as well.

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"This is different circumstances, occurring in a whole different time", says Manley, warning about "blowback" if Republicans try to overreach and impugn Ford's motives for coming forward.

Democratic Sens. Dianne Feinstein and Patrick Leahy (seated) with Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley.

President Donald Trump said he's open to a delay in order to keep the process going and eventually confirm Kavanaugh. "There was a witness there - and that was this fellow (Mark) Judge".

That incident inspired a record number of women to run for federal office that cycle, including Murray, who was elected the following year. "It was really a disservice to every one of us - not just on behalf of sexual harassment victims but also on behalf of those people who believe in the integrity of the court and that it should be protected by the Senate, whose role is to advise on judicial nominations". "This is another attempt by Republicans to rush this nomination and not fully vet Judge Kavanaugh".

All 10 Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee urged FBI Director Chris Wray and White House Counsel Don McGahn on Tuesday to reopen Kavanaugh's background investigation and provide a complete report before the hearing. However, the Department of Justice has said in regard to this topic that "the Federal Bureau of Investigation does not make any judgment about the credibility or significance of any allegation", so it is not clear that the Federal Bureau of Investigation would have the jurisdiction to get involved. "They can't say this is the last minute when they jammed this thing through and asked for a vote long before all the information is in". "The Senators will do a good job".

He added that he doesn't believe the FBI should reopen Kavanaugh's background investigation, as Democrats have demanded. ". Dr. Blasey Ford's experience is all too consistent with stories we heard and lived while attending Holton". Nominated by President George H.W. Bush to fill the vacancy created by the resignation of Thurgood Marshall, his confirmation almost was derailed by charges he sexually harassed Anita Hill.