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But Kavanaugh is not the only one to feel political heat. Sen. Democrat Dianne Feinstein, who became aware of the allegations in a letter dated July 30, takes fire from Kavanaugh's funders who see the controversy as a smear of characters and progressives her party's charges.
The episode has caused tensions between the two parties and within both parties, about an appointment that could reshape the court for decades. The discomfort was already deep after the Democrats complained that the GOP is precipitating Kavanaugh without scrutiny by holding back tens of thousands of documents.
The confirmation confrontation also offered key democrats considering a presidential race in 2020 a first forum, with California Senator Kamala Harris and Senator Cory Booker of New Jersey, both Republican winners.
The Liberals are using accusations against Kavanaugh to undermine the White House's efforts to portray him as a family man and defender of women and girls, in part to blunt democratic accusations that he would vote to overturn the right to freedom. 39; abortion.
But the crucial importance of opening the seat of the Supreme Court means that the controversy will only get worse before an expected vote by the Judiciary Committee on Kavanagh's candidacy next week.
"The reluctance of anyone to come forward shows that even in the #MeToo era, it is extremely difficult to report harassment, abuse or assault of people in power," said Hill.
"The Senate Judiciary Committee should put in place a process that allows anyone with a complaint of this nature to be heard." I saw first-hand what happens when such a process is armed against an accuser and no one should be subjected to it again. "
At this point, there is no indication that Kavanaugh's nomination is threatened, because of the GOP Senate majority and the strong incitement of Republicans to cement a conservative majority at the top of the country.
The woman who made the allegations refused to come forward publicly after publishing them in a letter that was forwarded to Feinstein. The lawyers say that his anonymity should be respected, that it deserves to be heard and that the claims must be examined.
But in the absence of new developments, perhaps at the height of an official public accusation against Kavanaugh, it is difficult to see Republican senators bowing to democratic pressure to act. Democrats may seek new public or private sessions in the Judiciary Committee to respond to the allegations. But every effort to shape the confirmation process has been repelled by Republicans.
As soon as rumors of the allegations were made public on Thursday, the White House accused Democratic Senate leader Chuck Schumer of using them as a delaying tactic of the 11th hour to try to slow down Kavanaugh's confirmation. Public.
On Friday, as more and more media reported the allegations, the office of the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Chuck Grassley, issued an 11-point statement that was unusually personal in his review of Feinstein.
He said the California senator did not attend a closed session of the committee where sensitive documents were discussed and the letter was not referenced.
Grassley's office also sent a letter signed by 65 women who have known the candidate for 35 years and who says he has always acted honorably and treated women with respect.
Another key Republican member of the Judiciary Committee, Senator Orrin Hatch of Utah, complained that the charges had not been verified in the last 25 years, including interviews with families, friends and knowledge. problems.
"I do not intend to let Judge Kavanaugh's confirmation be blocked because of an 11-hour charge that the Democrats have not seen fit to stand up for longer." of a month, "Hatch said in a statement.
On the political front, the only threat to Kavanaugh's confirmation seems to lie in the votes of two Republicans, Senator Susan Collins of Maine and Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, who are under intense pressure from pro-lawyers. -choice to reject it. likely to support cases that could overturn the right to an abortion.
Kavanaugh continued with a planned call with Collins that lasted one hour on Friday. The Maine senator's staff declined to give details of the conversation.
If the controversy intensified, it could also change the political terrain for the Red Democrats who are under pressure from the party's liberal base to reject Kavanaugh and their own Conservative voters to vote to confirm it.
The political ramifications of the allegations were not limited to Kavanaugh's questions.
Feinstein has faced a new unwelcome aggression from his progressive challenger in California's primary jungle system, state senator Kevin de León, who frames him as a Washington veteran who lost the contact with his constituents.
He demanded to know why Feinstein had "waited nearly three months" to deliver the letter to the federal authorities and why she had "politely protested" through confirmation hearings without talking about it.
Questions about why Feinstein has not acted on information that could at least be seen as a way to slow down or disrupt Kavanaugh's appointment are also a headache for Capitol Hill's Democrats.
Feinstein's staff tried to block the political controversy that took hold of the building on Friday afternoon.
A spokesman for the California senator said that she took the allegations seriously and thought they should be made public, but that they were constrained by the accuser's wish to remain anonymous.
"In matters of sexual misconduct, it is essential to protect the identity of the victim when she wishes to remain anonymous, and the senator has done so in this case."
The fury provoked by the letter highlighted the delicate situation that Feinstein encountered in Kavanaugh's investiture. During the hearings, she posed specific legal questions to the candidate on issues such as his attitude to abortion and the interrogation of terrorism suspects during the Bush administration.
But his interventions lacked the partisan energy of Senators like Booker and Harris.
Progressive groups quickly responded to the Kavanaugh allegations. The group of activists "Rise up for Roe" said that he should "immediately withdraw".
The Leaders' Conference on Civil and Human Rights stated that allegations should be taken seriously while respecting the privacy of the woman who made the allegations.
"Once elected, Senators can not resume their vote, they must be sure to have Kavanaugh's full file before proceeding to his appointment to the Supreme Court," said Vanita Gupta, president and chief of the group direction.
CNN's Vane Ariane, Maeve Reston and Philip Mattingly contributed to this story
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