U.S. Sen. John Kennedy speaks with Kavanaugh, calls for due process in sexual assault hearing

BATON ROUGE, LA (WAFB) - U.S. Sen. John Kennedy, R-Louisiana, said Wednesday he spoke with Judge Brett Kavanaugh on the phone about allegations that Kavanaugh forced himself on Christine Blasey Ford when they were teenagers in the 1980s.

“He was resolute and said, ‘Absolutely not. This did not happen,'" Kennedy said. “He could not be more unequivocal. He’s not angry. He didn’t have anything bad to say about anybody. He’s ready to testify."

Ford’s attorneys say she was willing to testify in public, but Ford changed her mind Tuesday. She and her attorneys are asking the FBI to investigate her claims so Senate Judiciary Committee members might be more likely to believe the allegations.

The Senate Judiciary Committee, which has already completed its confirmation hearings, shirked precedent and scheduled another hearing next Monday. It could hear Kavanaugh’s testimony whether Ford chooses to testify.

Kennedy, who is on the committee, says Ford or her attorneys are “moving the goalposts," but says the committee is taking the allegations seriously.

“I want to hear Dr. Ford’s story. We’re really trying to accommodate her,” he said. “These accusations are at the eleventh hour, and we’re trying to be fair to both sides.”

In the interview, Kennedy said a sexual abuser should not sit on the Supreme Court, but would not speculate how his vote might change in the event Ford’s allegations are confirmed.

“This is no country for creepy old men, or creepy young men, or creepy middle-aged men,” Kennedy said. “But at the same time, this is no country for denying people due process.”

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