Mazie Hirono: “In addition, Robert Carlson, president of the American Bar Association, the ABA, issued a letter urging the Judiciary…”

“In addition, Robert Carlson, president of the American Bar Association, the ABA, issued a letter urging the Judiciary Committee of the Senate to not vote on Judge Kavanaugh's nomination until there is an FBI investigation into Dr. Ford's account of sexual assault. The ABA explained that ``deciding to proceed without conducting an additional investigation would not only have a lasting impact on the Senate's reputation, but it will also negatively affect the great trust necessary for the American people to have in the Supreme Court.'' I agree. Brett Kavanaugh does not have the credibility, candor, character, or, I would say, as we saw yesterday, the temperament to be on the Supreme Court. His presence on the Court under this kind of cloud will weaken the Court. I cannot support this nomination. I would like to end the remarks I would have given at the markup but am giving on the floor now. I would like to say that my colleague Senator Jeff Flake has said that he would not be able to vote on the confirmation of Judge Kavanaugh without an FBI investigation into the current allegations. I support that. I have no idea whether the Republican leadership is going to allow a timeout for that kind of investigation to occur--an investigation that I and other Democratic members of the Judiciary Committee have been calling for, for what seems like months. Of course, I would want an FBI investigation to be thorough.…”