Trump says Kavanaugh accuser was 'drunk' and Democrats 'are playing a con game'

The president is unleashing attacks against the second woman to claim his Supreme Court nominee made unwanted sexual advances towards her

Chris Riotta
New York
Tuesday 25 September 2018 21:33 BST
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Donald Trump says Deborah Ramirez was 'drunk' in fiery defence of Brett Kavanaugh

Donald Trump has lashed out against one of several women accusing Brett Kavanaugh of sexual assault, saying “she admits that she was drunk” when the alleged incident took place.

The comments arrived during a bilateral meeting with the president of Colombia on Tuesday at the United Nations General Assembly. Mr Trump described Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee as “con artists” who were unnecessarily urging a delay in his Supreme Court pick’s nomination process.

“The second accuser has nothing,” he said of Deborah Ramirez, who has alleged Mr Kavanaugh exposed himself to her during a dormitory party in college and forced her to touch his penis without her consent. “She admits that she was drunk. She admits time lapses.”

“They’re really con artists,” the president continued, referring to the Democratic Party. “They don’t believe it themselves. They’re playing a con game, and they play it very well.”

Ms Ramirez was the second woman to come forward with accusations of misconduct against Mr Kavanaugh, who is expected to receive a vote in the coming days that will determine whether or not her receives a lifetime appointment to the Supreme Court.

Mr Kavanaugh was previously accused by Christine Blasey Ford last week of making unwanted sexual advances towards her in high school. Shortly after, Ms Ramirez provided her account to the New Yorker about the alleged incident from Mr Kavanaugh’s college years — an account numerous Yale alumni have supported, including the judge’s former roommate, James Roche, who told the outlet, “Is it believable that she was alone with a wolf group of guys who thought it was funny to sexually torment a girl like Debbie? Yeah, definitely. Is it believable that Kavanaugh was one of them? Yes.”

The president has repeatedly appeared unconvinced of any wrongdoing on the part of Mr Kavanaugh, who defended himself against the accusations in an unprecedented Fox News interview.

“Now a new charge comes up and she says it may not be him and there are gaps. And she was totally inebriated and all messed up, and she doesn’t know,” Mr Trump said. ”It might have been him, or it might have been him.”

Donald Trump says allegations about Brett Kavanaugh are 'totally political' after second accuser comes forward

“Gee, let’s not make him a Supreme Court judge,” the president continued. “This is a con game being played by the Democrats.”

Dr Ford and Mr Kavanaugh are expected to provide public testimony about the alleged high school incident on Thursday. Several Republican officials have expressed a willingness towards Ms Ramirez also speaking during those testimonies, though it remains unclear whether she will be provided that opportunity.

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