A range of women connected to the Brett Kavanaugh sexual assault scandal are receiving threats against their safety.
Two of the most prominent are Senators Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) and Susan Collins (R-ME).
“Since the allegations about sexual assault became public, we’ve been getting a significant number of calls and emails, mostly from other parts of the country, that have been disrespectful and ugly,” a Feinstein spokesperson told McClatchy. “Calls have included threats of bodily and sexual harm against staff. Emails have come in with threats and highly offensive insults to specific staff members by name.”
Feinstein sits on the Senate Judiciary Committee; in July, she received a letter from constituent Christine Blasey Ford claiming that Kavanaugh had sexually assaulted her back in high school. Collins has said Ford should be allowed to testify before the committee and is a potential swing vote should Kavanaugh’s nomination proceed to the Senate floor. (Republicans only have a 51-49 Senate majority, so two Republican “no” votes could kill the nomination.)
On Wednesday, Collins said in a radio interview that her office has been receiving “pretty ugly voicemails, threats, terrible things said to my staff.”
According to the Wall Street Journal, Kavanaugh’s wife, Ashley, has received threatening emails.
And lawyers for Ford have told the Judiciary Committee that she has received “vicious harassment and even death threats,” prompting her to go into hiding with her family. The attorneys continue to negotiate with the committee over terms of Ford’s potential before the Senate next week. One of their conditions is an assurance of Ford’s “safety and security.” Ford, a California professor, has no professional security detail. Her lawyer said she was scheduled to talk with the FBI about the threats today.
Kavanaugh has been provided round-the-clock security by U.S. Marshals since he was nominated to the Supreme Court in July.
