Trump defends Supreme Court nominee as accuser faces deadline
US President insists professor must attend hearing on Monday to answer questions about her allegations of sexual assault against Supreme Court pick
WASHINGTON US President Donald Trump piled pressure on the woman accusing his Supreme Court pick of sexual assault by insisting that she testify next week if she wants to be heard.
On Wednesda,yMr Trump echoed Republican leaders in suggesting that time is running out for Ms Christine Blasey Ford, the California psychology professor whose allegation that she was assaulted as a teenager threatens to derail confirmation of conservative Judge Brett Kavanaugh to the nation's highest court.
Ms Ford has backtracked from earlier statements that she is ready to face a grilling in the Senate Judiciary Committee. Instead, she is calling for an FBI probe into her allegation that Mr Kavanaugh pinned her to a bed and muffled her cries as he tried to pull off her clothes when she was 15 and he was 17.
Mr Kavanaugh, now 53, denies any such incident took place and no other direct witnesses have come forward.
Mr Trump told journalists at the White House that he retained full faith in the judge, saying it was "very hard for me to imagine that anything happened." He pushed hard for Ms Ford to take her chance at the committee hearing set for Monday, where Mr Kavanaugh is likewise invited to explain his side of the story.
"We continue to give her a lot of time. We've held up the whole hearing," Mr Trump said.
' VERY INTERESTING'
"If she shows up and makes a credible showing, that will be very interesting and we'll have to make a decision."
The Republican chairman of the Senate committee, Mr Chuck Grassley, wrote to Ms Ford's lawyers, ruling out any FBI role and saying that the sole venue for airing the allegations would be the Senate hearing.
"You have stated repeatedly that Dr Ford wants to tell her story. I sincerely hope that Dr Ford will accept my invitation to do so, either privately or publicly, on Monday," Mr Grassley said.
Mr Trump said it would be "unfortunate" if Ms Ford didn't show.
Ms Susan Collins, a Republican senator seen as potentially voting against party lines, also said that Ms Ford needed to testify.
"I think it's not fair for Judge Kavanaugh for her not to come forward and testify," she said.
The scandal, erupting just before the Senate Judiciary Committee had been due to vote on Mr Kavanaugh, ignited an uproar fuelled by the #MeToo movement against sexual harassment.
For Democrats hoping to hurt Mr Trump before November congressional elections, when they hope to retake at least one house of the Republican-dominated Congress, the row is a godsend.
And Mr Trump - who faces a raft of serious allegations of sexual impropriety and was once caught on tape boasting of being able to "grab" women's genitals whenever he wanted - has had to tread a fine line.- AFP
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