Bar Association asks judiciary committee to delay Brett Kavanaugh vote: media

The American Bar Association has called on the Senate Judiciary Committee to delay the confirmation of Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh so that the FBI can investigate the sexual assault accusations against him, the Washington Post reported.

Association President Robert Carlson requested the delay in a letter sent to the committee on Thursday evening, the Post reported, after a day of testimony by university professor Christine Blasey Ford who accused Kavanaugh of sexually assaulting her 36 years ago, and by Kavanaugh who denied it.

“The basic principles that underscore the Senate’s constitutional duty of advice and consent on federal judicial nominees require nothing less than a careful examination of the accusations and facts by the FBI,” Carlson wrote to Chairman Charles Grassley and ranking committee Democrat Dianne Feinstein that, the Post reported.

Kavanaugh, a conservative federal appeals court judge chosen by President Donald Trump, said he was the victim of “grotesque and obvious character assassination” orchestrated by Senate Democrats.

The Judiciary Committee, on which Republicans hold an 11-10 majority, was to meet on Friday morning and several senators said they expected it to vote then. The full Senate, controlled 51-49 by Trump’s fellow Republicans, could vote within days.

Kavanaugh was nominated by Trump and his confirmation would cement conservative control of the Supreme Court with disputes over abortion rights, immigration, gay rights, voting rights and transgender troops possibly heading toward the justices soon.

Ford’s allegation emerged last week and has been followed by other allegations. Some Democrats have called on Kavanaugh to withdraw in light of the allegations and have said an FBI investigation is needed before any Senate confirmation vote.

“Each appointment to our nation’s Highest Court (as with all others) is simply too important to rush to a vote,” Carlson wrote.

“Deciding to proceed without conducting an additional investigation would not only have a lasting impact on the Senate’s reputation, but it will also negatively affect the great trust necessary for the American people to have in the Supreme Court,” he added, the Post reported.

Reporting by Brendan O'Brien in Milwaukee; Editing by Peter Graff