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Devlin Barrett
A journalist specializing in national security and law enforcement
Matt Zapotosky
National Security Journalist Covering the Department of Justice
Democrats and representatives of those who claimed to have been victimized by Brett M. Kavanaugh on Thursday denounced the FBI's background check on Kavanaugh, saying the office, surrounded by the White House, had not followed through. obvious leads that could have helped corroborate the allegations. the candidate for the Supreme Court faces.
The FBI interviewed nine people in the Kavanaugh newspaper, which lasted a week. The White House and Republicans relied on its findings to declare that the charges of sexual misconduct were still not corroborated. Senator Susan Collins (R-Maine), who envisioned a critical critical vote on Kavanaugh's appointment, said the survey appeared to be "a very thorough investigation".
[FBI background check of Kavanaugh appears to have been highly curtailed]
The Democrats, however, challenged these characterizations, saying that what was more important than what the office did not find was what his agents were not pursuing.
Senator Robert Menendez (D-N.J.), Who has been the subject of numerous FBI investigations, described the Kavanaugh office's work as "bull investigation". The reality is that it is not a complete and thorough investigation. . . . You do not get corroboration if you do not speak with witnesses to corroborate. "
Lawyers for two of Kavanaugh's accusers said the FBI did not interview dozens of people whose information they had provided and who would have supported the accounts of their clients.
"The investigation over the past five days is a blot on the process, the FBI and our ideal of American justice," said Christine Blasey Ford's lawyers, who claim that Kavanaugh sexually assaulted her when they were both in high school. in a letter to the FBI director, Christopher A. Wray.
An FBI spokeswoman declined to comment.
The FBI spent the better part of the last two years at the center of a maelstrom of supporters as it investigated Hillary Clinton's use of a private messaging server, and then on President Trump's election campaign. Officials knew that when they were involved in the Kavanaugh case, their work was destined to get bogged down in politics and leave many of them feeling unsatisfied.
Since officers were responsible for background checks rather than conducting a criminal investigation, the scope of their work was defined by the White House, which appeared to receive significant instructions from Senate Republicans. The FBI never intended to draw conclusions about the credibility of the allegations or the value of Kavanaugh as a judge – questions that remain in the White House and Senate.
[FBI navigates political minefield and deadline in Kavanaugh inquiry]
Initially, the FBI had been questioned by four witnesses. Three – Mark Judge, Peter Smyth and Leland Keyser – were at the meeting where Ford stated that Kavanaugh had pushed her onto a bed and had her fumbled. The fourth, Deborah Ramirez, had separately claimed that Kavanaugh had exposed her penis while they were both students at Yale.
The limited scale, however, sparked significant controversy, and the White House soon allowed the FBI to expand its investigation – albeit modestly. The White House, for example, has prevented Kavanaugh's juvenile drinking from being watched closely and knowing he had misled the Senate by testifying, said people familiar with the process. Some Republican senators insisted Thursday that the FBI be allowed to question those the agency deemed appropriate.
"The FBI has obtained all the necessary permissions to interview anyone deemed necessary," said Sen. John Cornyn (R-Tex.) At a news conference.
Officers also spoke to two other men, Tim Gaudette and Chris Garrett, enrolled on a schedule as being with Kavanaugh at a rally in a house on July 1, 1982.
The inscription on the calendar had fueled some speculation that the rally would have been one where Ford allegedly assaulted, although the list of participants was not the same as the one she remembered when she was at home. she stated that the attack had occurred.
The office also interviewed three other people whose names have not yet been made public, according to the White House. However, the agents did not speak to Ford itself, nor did they interview more than a dozen people whose names were provided by Ford's legal team at the office. The legal team stated that they would have questioned the credibility of Senator Kavanaugh's testimony in the Senate or provided other information to support Ford's story.
A member of Ford's legal team told the Washington Post that the agents had interviewed these people, but they might have learned that Ford was never focused on July 1, when the assault took place. place.
Similarly, Ramirez's legal team stated that it provided the FBI with a list of more than 20 possible witnesses and was not aware that the FBI would have followed up with them. Several Yale alumni said they had contacted the FBI proactively, offering various information without being formally interviewed.
William Pittard, Ramirez's lawyer, wrote to Wray Thursday, claiming that these people were still available to speak.
"There may be other witnesses who could offer further corroboration (if additional corroboration was needed, which is not the case). But we will probably never know, since your agents have not been allowed to investigate, "wrote Pittard.
The FBI spoke with the judge about the claims of a third woman, Julie Swetnick, who stated in an affidavit that Kavanaugh was physically abusive towards girls in high school, but not towards Swetnick herself. His lawyer, Michael Avenatti, high-ranking rival at Trump, tweeted Thursday that the bureau's investigation was "not at all an investigation".
Senator Dianne Feinstein (California), the highest Democratic leader on the Senate Judiciary Committee, said the FBI report appeared to be "the product of an incomplete investigation that was limited, perhaps by the White House". Minority Senate Leader Charles E. Schumer (DN.Y.) called for the release of the FBI's findings, a copy that senators were taking turns examining in a secure area of Capitol Hill on Thursday.
The frustration of the Democrats, however, may not represent much. While Collins called the investigation "apparently thorough", Senator Jeff Flake (R-Arizona), who considered another key vote, said he had "seen no corroborating information".
Emma Brown and Tom Hamburger contributed to this report.
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