CHARLESTON, W.Va. — U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito says she’s “very uncomfortable” with the way sexual assault allegations have come forward against Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh.
Speaking Friday on 580-Live with Charleston Mayor Danny Jones on MetroNews affiliate 580-WCHS in Charleston, Capito said one of her Senate colleagues should have treated the allegations she received in a letter from accuser Christine Blasey Ford differently.
“I think that’s the unfairness of it. (California Senator) Diane Feinstein’s had this since July 30. She’s had opportunities for private questioning. Why didn’t she assert herself there and then? I think that just adds fuel to the fire to make it more divisive than ever,” Capito said.
Attorneys with the Senate Judiciary Committee were in negotiations Friday with Blasey Ford’s attorneys about certain things she’s seeking in connection with her possible testimony before the committee next week. Among those conditions, she wants Kavanaugh to testify first before the committee and she wants him out of the room when she does.
“I don’t imagine that (Kavanaugh being in the room) was going to occur anyway,” Capito said. “And she wants to go first. I’m not a lawyer and I don’t know what the processes are here but I think it has to be fair to both.”
Capito said the allegations are very serious and judiciary committee members will have some very important decisions to make.
“We have to be sensitive to what she’s accusing him of, I think that’s important. I am,” Capito said. “But at the same time, there’s two sides of the story. People say it’s just going to boil down to he said, she said. It probably will. I think the senators on judiciary committee are going to judge the veracity on that point.”
Capito supports the Kavanaugh nomination. She met with him in mid-July.
“We talked about his judicial philosophy, his commitment to the rule of law and to the text and history of the Constitution. Beyond his judicial philosophy, we talked about what kind of person he is,” Capito said after that meeting. “I think he is an excellent choice by the president.”