The woman who has accused Judge Brett M. Kavanaugh of an attempted sexual assault while in high school has yet to agree to testify to Congress, upending the plans Republicans made to give both sides a chance to tell their story.
Christine Blasey Ford has not answered repeated inquiries from Senate Judiciary Committee staffers attempting to set up a hearing for Monday, nor has she spoken with committee investigators to detail her accusations, Republicans said.
Democrats, meanwhile, a day after convincing the GOP to hold hearings, objected to the schedule and the lineup, saying they want a full FBI investigation before any hearing and they want to hear from a number of witnesses beyond Ms. Ford and Judge Kavanaugh.
“While the committee unquestionably needs to hear from both, there are other relevant witnesses who should be questioned under oath, in a public setting,” Judiciary Committee Democrats said in a letter laying out their demands. “This includes Mark Judge, who Dr. Blasey Ford identified, and others that might be identified through the FBI’s investigation or subsequent due diligence by the committee itself.”
Mr. Judge was a school chum with Judge Kavanaugh at Catholic boys school Georgetown Prep in the Washington suburb of Montgomery County, Maryland. Ms. Ford said he was in the room during the incident, when she says Judge Kavanaugh attempted to strip off her clothes and stifled her cries for help during a party.
But Mr. Judge rejected being part of any hearing, saying in a letter from his lawyer that he has no idea what Ms. Ford is talking about and he doesn’t want to speak publicly.
“I have no memory of this alleged incident,” Mr. Judge told the Judiciary Committee. “Brett Kavanaugh and I were friends in high school, but I do not recall the party described in Dr. Ford’s letter. More to the point, I never saw Brett act in the manner Dr. Ford describes.”
The allegations have swamped Republicans’ hopes of a speedy and uneventful confirmation of Judge Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court seat left vacant this summer by Justice Anthony M. Kennedy.
Democrats on Monday demanded a hearing to air out the matter, and Republicans agreed.
They laid plans to call both the judge and Ms. Ford, a professor in California, to testify Monday.
Republican senators said they offered either an open or closed session to Ms. Ford, saying they wanted to give her a forum she was comfortable with.
But GOP staffers said she has not answered their inquiries.
“We want her to appear and she said before we made the decision that she wanted to appear, so that’s what we want,” said Sen. Jeff Flake, Arizona Republican, who had pushed for a delay in a planned committee vote this week to give her a chance to be heard.
Sen. Lindsey Graham, South Carolina Republican, told Fox News the committee could vote as early as Wednesday on Judge Kavanaugh following Monday’s hearing.
Committee Democrats say they feel the process is still stacked against Ms. Ford in an attempt to shield Judge Kavanaugh.
They sent a letter Tuesday complaining that next week’s hearing was set without checking her availability.
They also objected to the GOP’s plans to hear from only the two principals.
They suggested the hearing be more like the 1991 case involving confirmation of Justice Clarence Thomas, when more than 20 people testified about allegations he engaged in sexual harassment of former colleague Anita Hill.
“This is another attempt by Republicans to rush this nomination and not fully vet Judge Kavanaugh,” said Sen. Dianne Feinstein, the top Democrat on the committee.
Sen. Susan Collins, Maine Republican and a key vote on the Kavanaugh confirmation, proposed that in addition to senators on the committee, lawyers for Judge Kavanaugh and Ms. Ford cross-examine the other.
“Such an approach would provide more continuity, elicit the most information, and allow for an in-depth examination of the allegations,” she said.
Judge Kavanaugh says he’s ready to testify and has vehemently denied the accusations.
He spoke Monday by phone with Judiciary Committee staffers, who interviewed him about the allegations. Democratic staff declined to be part of the call, a committee spokesman said.
Ms. Ford was invited to participate in a similar call, but her lawyer has not responded to the committee’s request, Republicans said.
• Alex Swoyer can be reached at aswoyer@washingtontimes.com.
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