US President Donald Trump said on Friday he has ordered the FBI to reopen its investigation into Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh over sexual misconduct allegations, but said the work must be done in less than a week.
“Ive ordered the FBI to conduct a supplemental investigation to update Judge Kavanaughs file. As the Senate has requested, this update must be limited in scope and completed in less than one week,” Trump said in a statement.
Earlier on Friday the Senate Judiciary Committee said it would ask Trump to initiate a supplemental background investigation into “current credible allegations” against Kavanaugh, limited to a week.
Senate Republican leaders agreed on Friday to delay a final vote on Kavanaugh to allow time for an investigation by the FBI at the request of Arizona Sen. Jeff Flake.
Judge Brett Kavanaugh says in a statement released by the White House that he “will continue to cooperate after senators asked President Donald Trump to open a supplemental background investigation of the embattled Supreme Court nominee.
Kavanaugh says hes been interviewed by the FBI during his confirmation process and conducted “background” calls with the Senate. He says he answered questions under oath Thursday “about every topic the Senators and their counsel asked me.”
Kavanaugh says, “Ive done everything they have requested and will continue to cooperate.”
Kavanaugh accuser Ford welcomes new probe
Christine Blasey Ford, the woman who has accused Kavanaugh of sexual assault, welcomes an FBI investigation into the allegations, one of her lawyers said on Friday.
“No artificial limits as to time or scope should be imposed on this investigation,” Debra Katz, an attorney for Ford, said in a statement.
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Last Update: Saturday, 29 September 2018 KSA 00:33 – GMT 21:33