Hawley Calls For Investigation Of Dianne Feinstein, Not Kavanaugh

ST. LOUIS, MO — Missouri Attorney General and Senate hopeful Josh Hawley called on Monday for a special counsel to investigate California Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein and her handling of sexual assault allegations against President Donald Trump's Supreme Court pick, Brett Kavanaugh. He did not call for an investigation of the claims themselves, calling them a "smear campaign."

The Republican candidate accused Democrats of delaying and obstructing Kavanaugh's nomination after Christine Blasey Ford, a California psychology professor, accused the judge of attempted rape at a high school party in the early 1980s. At least two other women have also accused Kavanaugh of sexual misconduct, claims the FBI is now investigating after a dramatic and last-minute change of heart from Arizona Republican Sen. Jeff Flake on Friday.

Flake's decision seems to have come shortly after he was confronted by two sexual assault survivors in a Senate elevator.

Hawley seems to have had no such change of heart.

"Senator McCaskill and her liberal pals in Washington were never going to give Judge Kavanaugh a fair shake," Hawley said in a statement, adding that "“Senate Democrats exploited Dr. Ford and smeared Judge Kavanaugh, all for political gain."

Hawley did not comment on the substance of the allegations or whether he believes Ford's testimony. Many, including President Trump, have called it credible. But Senate Republicans insisted for most of last week that an FBI investigation wasn't possible or necessary.

"I've never felt better about [Kavanaugh's nomination], quite frankly," South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham told The New York Times over the weekend.

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Hawley's Democratic opponent, Claire McCaskill, announced her plan to vote against Kavanaugh's confirmation slightly less than two weeks ago, citing not the sexual assault allegations but the judge's record on campaign finance.

"I have been thorough in examining Judge Kavanaugh's record," McCaskill explained. "And while the recent allegations against him are troubling and deserve a thorough and fair examination by the Senate Judiciary Committee, my decision is not based on those allegations but rather on his positions on several key issues, most importantly the avalanche of dark, anonymous money that is crushing our democracy."

While McCaskill has tried to walk a fine line between her base and the state's rural, more conservative bent — calling herself "authentically a moderate" — Hawley has tacked to the right, sticking close to President Trump, whose approval ratings are 10 points higher in Missouri than they are nationally.

Photo: Dr. Christine Blasey Ford is sworn in before testifying the Senate Judiciary Committee. A professor at Palo Alto University and a research psychologist at the Stanford University School of Medicine, Ford has accused Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh of attempted rape during a party in 1982 when they were both high school students in suburban Maryland. “They were laughing with each other... I was underneath one of them, while the two laughed..." she said of the alleged assault. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)