President Donald Trump, who earlier described Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh accuser Dr. Christine Blasey Ford as “credible,” mocked her Senate Judiciary Committee testimony at a campaign rally in Mississippi Tuesday.
Trump, while discussing Kavanaugh’s treatment, began rehashing Ford’s testimony.
“I had one beer!” he said, which Blasey Ford testified regarding her alcohol consumption at the Maryland party where she alleges Kavanaugh assaulted her. “Well, you think it was — Nope! One beer,” he said, imitating someone questioning Blasey Ford and a quick response.
“How did you get home? I don’t remember. How’d you get there? I don’t remember. Where is the place? I don’t remember. How many years ago? I don’t know,” he continued, as the audience from DeSoto County — a heavily conservative region — applauded. Trump continued in this vein, mocking the gaps in Ford’s memory regarding specific details of the assault that allegedly took place some 36 years ago.
“But I had one beer! That’s the only thing I remember,” he said, waving a finger in the air.
“And a man’s life is in tatters, a man’s life is shattered,” Trump continued.
He also touched on the allegations brought forward by “sleazebag” lawyer Michael Avenatti. He referred to Avenatti’s client, Julie Swetnick, who says Kavanaugh was present during a gang rape in the ’80s, as having “no clue” what was going on during a Tuesday NBC interview.
Michael R. Bromwich, a lawyer for Blasey Ford, called Trump’s comments a “vicious, vile and soulless attack” on her.
The statement represents a reversal from Trump’s earlier stance on Blasey Ford. On Friday, he told reporters, “I thought her testimony was very compelling, and she looks like a very fine woman to me, very fine woman.”
The Senate has delayed a confirmation vote on Kavanaugh while the FBI conducts a background investigation into Blasey Ford’s allegations. The investigation, which was intended to restore order to the confirmation process, has sown more discord among senators, with debate regarding what evidence will become public, how wide-ranging the investigation will be, and how long it will last.