Her attorneys are still negotiating the specifics.<\/b>
\nLawyers for Christine Blasey Ford \u2014 the Palo Alto University professor who has accused Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh of sexual assault \u2014 say she will testify about the allegations in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee next week, according to an email sent to committee staff on Saturday afternoon. Certain specifics about the testimony \u2014 including the exact timing \u2014 still appear to be under negotiation.
\u201cDr. Ford accepts the Committee\u2019s request to provide her first-hand knowledge of Brett Kavanaugh\u2019s sexual misconduct next week,\u201d write Debra Katz and Lisa Banks, two of Ford\u2019s attorneys. \u201cAlthough many aspects of the proposal you provided via email, on September 21,2018, at 2:33 pm, are fundamentally inconsistent with the Committee\u2019s promise of a fair, impartial investigation into her allegations, and we are disappointed with the leaks and the bullying that have tainted the process, we are hopeful that we can reach agreement on details.\u201d
Republicans have said that they are interested in hearing from Ford, but negotiations over what that will look like have grown increasingly contentious in the last few days. Grassley had given Ford until 2:30pm on Saturday to offer the committee a more definitive response about her testimony. Democrats, meanwhile, have accused Republicans of bullying Ford and continuing to rush the process.
Grassley has signaled that the committee is open to holding a hearing with Ford and Kavanaugh on Wednesday, even though Ford had said the earliest that she is able to commit to an appearance is Thursday.
After coming forward in a Washington Post article last weekend in which she accused Kavanaugh of forcing himself on her while they were at a party in high school, Ford said she wanted to cooperate with lawmakers and is interested in having her story heard. Kavanaugh has unequivocally denied the accusations.
But several days of uncertainty about whether she would appear before the committee followed.
Grassley had previously issued three earlier deadlines (Friday at 10am, 5 pm, and then 10 pm) for a response from Ford, which Katz argued were \u201caggressive and artificial\u201d and ran counter to claims that the panel wanted to genuinely consider Ford\u2019s perspective.
\u201cYou have been tasked with pressuring Dr. Ford to agree to conditions that you find advantageous to the nominee,\u201d Katz wrote. Grassley ultimately extended that deadline to Saturday afternoon.
Grassley didn\u2019t appear to be happy about the extension, despite granting it. In a tweet on Friday, he complained that he feels like he\u2019s \u201cplaying 2nd trombone in the judiciary orchestra and [Senate Minority Leader Chuck] Schumer is the conductor.\u201d
Ford\u2019s attorney had said Thursday that she was still negotiating the terms under which she would testify in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee. She had said that it was \u201cnot possible\u201d for her to attend the public hearing originally scheduled for Monday, but that she \u201cwishes to testify, provided that we can agree on terms that are fair and which ensure her safety,\u201d according to an email obtained by the Washington Post.
An unnamed Republican senator told Politico the committee has agreed to some of Ford\u2019s requests, which include ensuring that she and Kavanaugh are not in the same room. \u201cWe\u2019ll do it on Wednesday, we expect the accuser before the accused and we do intend to have the counsel do the questioning,\u201d the senator said.
Republicans on the committee have indicated that they were interested in moving ahead with a vote on Kavanaugh\u2019s nomination if Ford didn\u2019t testify. Grassley appeared to follow through on this threat by scheduling a committee vote on Kavanaugh for Monday, which would have taken place if Ford declined to appear.
\u201cIn the event that we can come to a reasonable resolution as I\u2019ve been seeking all week, then I will postpone the committee vote to accommodate her testimony. We cannot continue to delay,\u201d Grassley said in a Friday statement before the extension.
One of the major sticking points was the committee\u2019s proposed structure for the hearing.
\u201cThe Committee\u2019s stated plan to move forward with a hearing that has only two witnesses is not a fair or good faith investigation; there are multiple witnesses whose names have appeared publicly and should be included in any proceeding,\u201d Banks wrote in a statement earlier this week.
Ford and Kavanaugh are currently the only two witnesses expected to testify. Democrats have argued that others, including Mark Judge, whom Ford implicated in the assault as part of her accusation, should speak as well. Ford had said that Judge helped Kavanaugh push her into a bedroom at the party and was intermittently encouraging Kavanaugh during the alleged assault. Judge has said he has no recollection of this incident and that he never saw Kavanaugh act in this way.
Ford and her lawyers also threw up breaks over (the lack of) an FBI investigation: Ford had said she wouldn\u2019t testify unless the FBI first conducted an investigation into the allegations, but it doesn\u2019t look like that\u2019s going to happen anytime soon.
Judiciary Republicans, the Department of Justice, and President Donald Trump have all thrown cold water on the idea of an FBI investigation. Grassley on Wednesday said it was not the job of the FBI to weigh the \u201ccredibility\u201d of these allegations.
Ford\u2019s call for an FBI probe echoes one that Democrats have been making ever since she came forward. The review they are pushing wouldn\u2019t be a new criminal investigation but a reopening of Kavanaugh\u2019s existing background check. The FBI may not be responsible for determining how seriously to consider allegations, but the agency plays a pivotal role in fact-finding and interviewing witnesses, they argue.
In the wake of Anita Hill\u2019s sexual harassment allegations against Clarence Thomas in 1991, President George H. W. Bush directed the FBI to open an investigation. The agency interviewed Hill, Thomas, and at least one other witness, after which the White House determined that Hill\u2019s allegations were \u201cunfounded.\u201d
It\u2019s well within Trump\u2019s ability to do the same, but thus far, he\u2019s shown little inclination that he\u2019s interested in doing so. Ford\u2019s decision to testify suggests she\u2019s accepted the outcome and remains ready to speak out on her own rather than let the process continue without senators hearing what she has to say.<\/p>\n

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