September 28, 2018 11:15 AM UTC

Republican Senate Blowing Off Deborah Ramirez

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• by: Colorado Pols

UPDATE: USA TODAY:

Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley disputed accusations from Democrats that he and his staff have tried to brush away allegations against Brett Kavanaugh from a second accuser, Deborah Ramirez.

During Friday’s committee meeting, the Iowa Republican said he “acted immediately” to investigate her charges and that his staff “repeatedly” tried to accommodate Ramirez as long as she provided evidence to back up her claim…

“It seems the Republican strategy is no longer attack the victim. It is ignore the victim,” [Sen. Dianne] Feinstein said at Friday’s hearing. [Pols emphasis] “It is, in fact, a real test for the United States Senate and for our country to see how we treat women – especially women who are survivors of sexual assault. I believe we can do better.”

You know what would help right now, a lot? A strongly worded statement from Deborah Ramirez’s Republican Senator.

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After yesterday’s riveting all-day hearing featuring the testimony of Dr. Christine Blasey Ford and her allegation of attempted violent sexual assault by U.S. Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh, observers in Colorado might expect the next logical step in the process to be to hear from the other women who have come forward with their own stories of sexual misconduct. The second woman to go public with her story about Kavanaugh was Deborah Ramirez of Boulder, who attended Yale University in the 1980s where the alleged incident took place.

Recall that in the immediate aftermath of Ramirez’s story being published last weekend, Sen. Cory Gardner of Colorado was seemingly unequivocal that his constituent should be heard and her claims properly investigated:

“Senator Gardner was first made aware of these allegations when the New Yorker story was published Sunday evening,” Gardner spokesman Casey Contres said in an email Monday morning. “Investigators from Chairman Grassley’s staff immediately contacted Ms. Ramirez’s attorney to gather more information about what allegedly occurred.

“Senator Gardner absolutely supports efforts by the Senate Judiciary Committee to gather more information and investigate these claims.” [Pols emphasis]

But as 9NEWS’ Kevin Vaughan reported last night, communications between Ramirez’s attorney and the Senate Republicans who are supposed to be taking her allegations seriously have broken down:

The attorney for a Boulder woman who has accused Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh of sexual misconduct released a series of e-mails Thursday morning detailing his attempts to open a discussion with the Senate Judiciary Committee over her assertions.

Repeatedly, the e-mails show a member of the committee’s Republican staff requested that Deborah Ramirez provide “evidence” supporting her allegation “before we discuss a phone call or any other next steps.” [Pols emphasis]

As readers know, the Senate Judiciary Committee has scheduled a vote for today to advance Kavanaugh’s nomination to the full Senate. With Senate Republicans now stalling Ramirez instead of working out the logistics of a swift hearing to receive the testimony she is by all accounts willing to provide, it is a safe assumption that GOP leadership does not intend to allow a fair hearing for Ramirez as was given to Dr. Ford.

With Senate leaders having backtracked on their previous lip service to giving Ramirez’s allegation proper consideration, the onus now falls squarely on Sen. Gardner to intervene in this situation on behalf of his own constituent. We realize this suggestion will be received cynically by many of our readers, and Gardner’s actions may well bear out that cynicism. But if Gardner were to call for a pause in the headlong rush to vote on Kavanaugh following yesterday’s hearing so he can keep his promise to Ramirez, it would be a very smart political move for him in the long term.

If the vote goes forward without Ramirez’s testimony it’s a political disaster for Republicans generally, but Cory Gardner personally. This is Gardner’s constituent–our neighbor–to whom Gardner made a promise. And this is a terrible promise to break.