In a bizarre and rare press conference on Wednesday, President Donald Trump defended embattled Judge Brett Kavanaugh ahead of a high-profile hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee. Christine Blasey Ford, one of three women who has accused Kavanaugh of sexual misconduct, will testify on Thursday about an instance in high school when Kavanaugh allegedly sexually assaulted her.
During the wide-ranging press conference, Trump called the Democrats “obstructionists” and claimed they had “destroyed a man’s reputation.”
“It’s not going to change the Democrats’ minds,” he said. “They know it’s a big, fat con job. They go into a room and I guarantee you, they laugh like hell at what they’ve pulled off.”
The focus briefly turned to Trump’s past. Since 2016, more than a dozen women have accused him of sexual misconduct, harassment, or assault—allegations Trump’s White House has dismissed in the past. “When you say does it affect me in terms of my thinking with respect to Judge Kavanaugh? Absolutely. Because I’ve had it many times,” Trump said.
Trump also told reporters he could delay a meeting with Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein so that it didn’t coincide with the Kavanagh hearing. “I don’t want to do anything that gets in the way,” he said.
When asked whether he thought the three accusers were liars, Trump replied that he couldn’t say, but he called one of the accuser’s lawyers, Michael Avenatti, a “lowlife.” He went on to call Kavanaugh “one of the most respected people in Washington.” If Trump thought his nominee “was guilty of something like this,” he said, he would reconsider his choice.
He rejected the idea of meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and claimed America would be at war with North Korea had he not been elected. He accused China of interfering in US elections but refused to elaborate when asked for evidence. “I can’t tell you now.”
