Grassley Slams Sanders’ Request for More Kavanaugh Investigations: Review the Facts

Grassley, Sanders
Getty/AP Images
Penny Starr

Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA), chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, slammed Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) for a letter that raised concerns about Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh and called for more investigations into whether he has been truthful in testimony before Congress.

Sanders flagged long ago hearings and Kavanaugh’s recent appearance to respond to Christine Blasey Ford’s claim that he sexually assaulted her decades ago at a high school party.

Sanders posted the letter on Twitter along with the tweet: “Lying to Congress is a federal crime. The FBI must examine the veracity of Kavanaugh’s statements under oath in addition to the sexual assault allegations against him. Kavanaugh’s truthfulness with the Senate goes to the very heart of whether he should be confirmed to the court.”

Sanders also included the talking point being used by other Democrats that the supplemental FBI investigation should not be limited:

The Senate should not constrain the FBI to one week and must allow time for a full investigation. I would request that you inform the FBI that you will not consider their work complete until they examine the truthfulness of Judge Kavanaugh’s statements under oath while testifying before the Senate throughout his career, given the very serious fact that lying to Congress is a federal crime.

Grassley’s responding letter pointed out that Sanders opposed Kavanaugh’s nomination long before Ford’s accusations and suggested Sanders is not really interested in finding the facts and offered to inform him of those facts if he wanted to have a conversation.

Thank you for your letter today. As you know, on July 10, 2018, you stated “we must mobilize the American people to defeat” Judge Kavanaugh. This happened less than 24 hours after Judge Kavanaugh’s nomination was announced. As you know, all Senators have had access to 307  judicial opinions Judge Kavanaugh wrote during his twelve years on the bench, over 500,000 pages of documents, over 40 hours of live testimony, and answers to more written questions tan every prior Supreme Count nominee combined. Nevertheless, you made a decision on this nomination in less than 24 hours.

Your public statements clearly reveal how unimportant it is to you to review any facts related to this nomination. So you can imagine my surprise at receiving your letter regarding the supplemental FBI background investigation. This supplemental FBI background investigation was requested by undecided members of both parties. Am I to take from your letter that you are now undecided and willing to seriously engage with the Senate’s advice-and-consent constitutional duties related to the nomination of Judge Kavanaugh to serve as an associate justice on the Supreme Court of the United States? If so, we should have a conversation about what information you need to assist you in making your decision, and I look forward to that conversation.

Grassley concluded by telling Sanders his last-minute complaint was not unique.

“I appreciate your raising concerns, which others have already raised, at this eleventh hour,” Grassley wrote.

Follow Penny Starr on Twitter

COMMENTS

Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.