Trump attacks second Kavanaugh accuser, saying she 'has nothing,' admits she was drunk

WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump on Tuesday attacked the second woman who has accused Judge Brett Kavanaugh of sexual misconduct, dismissing her account because she was "totally inebriated and all messed up," and accused Democrats of playing a "con game" in an attempt to derail his Supreme Court nominee.

In comments to reporters following a speech at the United Nations, Trump took aim at Deborah Ramirez, a classmate of Kavanaugh's at Yale University, who told the New Yorker magazine that said he exposed himself to her at a party when they were both first-year students.

"The second accuser has nothing," Trump told reporters. "The second accuser thinks maybe it could have been him, maybe not. She admits she was drunk. She admits time lapses."

The president dismissed the notion that the allegation could be disqualifying, saying sarcastically: "Oh, gee, let's not make him a Supreme Court judge because of that."

Kavanaugh has denied the allegation as well as Christine Blasey Ford's accusation that he sexually assaulted her when they were high school students in Maryland.

Trump blamed the accusations, which arose late the confirmation process, on Democrats.

"I think it is horrible what the Democrats have done," he said. "It is a con game, they are really con artists."

Trump's latest comments came amid growing acrimony among Democratic and Republican senators as they prepare for a high-stakes Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on Thursday featuring testimony from Ford, a professor in California, and Kavanaugh.

In a speech on the Senate floor on Tuesday, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., promised a vote on Kavanaugh's nomination shortly after the hearing and cast the judge as a victim of "the weaponization of unsubstantiated smears." He argued that Democrats have scuttled any presumption of innocence for a distinguished jurist.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., responded in unusually personal terms, criticizing McConnell for a promise last week to "plow through" the proceedings despite the drama over Kavanaugh's accusers.

"Does that sound like someone who's treating these allegations with respect and fairness and evenhandedness?" Schumer asked. "Does that sound like someone who wants to get the real facts no matter where they fall? Certainly not to me. Not to the American people."

Schumer also said McConnell had brought the process to "a new low" with a floor speech Monday in which he called the allegations against Kavanaugh a Democratic smear job.

"They were not," Schumer said, demanding that McConnell apologize to Ford.

The New Yorker reported Sunday that in her initial conversations with the publication, she was reluctant to characterize Kavanaugh's role in the alleged incident with certainty.

After six days of assessing her memories and consulting with a lawyer, Ramirez said that she felt confident enough of her recollections to say that she remembers Kavanaugh had exposed himself at a drunken dormitory party, thrust his penis in her face, and caused her to touch it without her consent as she pushed him away, the magazine said.

Earlier Tuesday, White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders indicated that the White House is open to the idea of hearing testimony from Ramirez at that hearing.

"Certainly we would be open to that, and that process could take place on Thursday," Sanders said during an appearance on ABC's "Good Morning America." She also reiterated Trump's view that the confirmation process should wrap up soon.

In a Fox News interview on Monday night, Kavanaugh vigorously denied Ramirez's and Ford's allegations and said he would not "let false accusations drive us out of this process."

It remains unclear whether Ramirez will testify and how quickly that could occur, given her more recent accusations. Several Republicans on the committee have said they want to vote on Kavanaugh's nomination shortly after the Thursday hearing.

Though Sanders said the White House is open to testimony from Ramirez, she also stressed Tuesday that the confirmation process needs to come to a close.

"I do think it's unfair to continue to drag the process out and continue to put good people through the wringer for the sake of political games the Democrats want to play," Sanders said in a separate interview on Fox News.

During his remarks on the Senate floor on Tuesday, McConnell did not mention Ramirez.

"I look forward to hearing from both Dr. Ford and Judge Kavanaugh under oath this Thursday morning," he said. "I'm glad we'll be able to hear testimony from both. And then I look forward to and up-or-down vote on this nomination right here on the Senate floor."

Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, has reached out to Ramirez through her lawyer, but there has been no indication that he is preparing to invite her to testify publicly at this point.

Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, considered a key vote on the Kavanaugh nomination, has said she would like to see Ramirez speak under oath to the committee but has not specified when she would like to see that happen.

Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, another potential swing vote, said that it was hard to assess Ramirez's credibility at this point.

"If the are allegations out there, then Ms. Ramirez needs to be willing to come forward with them, just as Dr. Ford has been willing to come forward, albeit reluctantly and understandably so," Murkowski said. "And so in order for us to take them under consideration, she needs to take the next steps."

Earlier in the day, Murkowski told reporters that an FBI investigation could help clear up the facts in the case. Republicans have resisted calls by Democrats for the FBI to investigate the claims of Kavanaugh's accusers. She later said the Judiciary Committee could handle the investigation for now.

Sen. Bob Corker, R-Tenn., said Ramirez's accusations seem "pretty thinly sourced" to him. As to whether it should be explored, he said he leave that to the Judiciary Committee. "Whatever they decide is fine with me," Corker said.

Some senators on the Judiciary Committee have already cast doubt on Ramirez's claims.

Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, among those pressing for a quick vote on Kavanaugh's nomination, on Monday referred to Ramirez's allegation as "phony." When pressed on why he characterized it that way, Hatch responded: "Because I know it is. That's why."

Ford has alleged that Kavanaugh drunkenly pinned her to a bed, groped her and put his hand over her mouth to stifle her screams as he tried to take off her clothes at a house party in the early 1980s. Kavanaugh has denied being at the party.

By the time the Judiciary Committee holds its hearing on Thursday, there could be a third Kavanaugh accuser.

Lawyer Michael Avenatti has said he is representing a woman who has accusations about Kavanaugh's behavior in high school. In a Tuesday morning tweet, Avenatti said the woman would come forward only when she is ready but said he expects that to be within 36 hours.

Avenatti also represents Stormy Daniels, the adult film actress who was paid money by a personal lawyer for Trump to remain silent about an alleged decade-old affair.

Asked Tuesday if he can envision any scenario where the White House withdraws Kavanaugh's nomination, deputy press secretary Raj Shah said: "Absolutely not."

"We firmly believe in Judge Kavanaugh," Shah said during an appearance on MSNBC. "We believe in his nomination. We think that he's going to make a fantastic Supreme Court justice ... We're moving forward."

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The Washington Post's Gabriel Pogrund and Seung Min Kim contributed to this report.