The FBI has concluded its report on Brett Kavanaugh regarding allegations made against him by Dr. Christine Blasey Ford, who said that the Supreme Court nominee assaulted her when the two were both in high school. And while Republicans seem to be content with the findings, many Democrats have openly expressed qualms with the investigation itself
One of those Democrats, Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island, explained in a Twitter post on Thursday that the research compiled by the FBI was not satisfactory in his view. Whitehouse, a former United States Attorney, explained his misgivings about what was discovered — and what, he felt, had been missed.
“If I had received a report like this when I was serving as a US Attorney, I would have sent it back for more work,” Whitehouse wrote.
The senator squared the blame on restrictions that he said were placed on the investigation. “Clearly, there were considerable constraints on the @FBI, and those constraints have hampered the sincere and thorough investigation we need,” he added.
Within the same tweet, Whitehouse — a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee — shared an image of a longer official statement he made on Thursday regarding the release of the FBI investigation to U.S. senators earlier in the day. That statement mirrored his tweet, with one additional line:
“This incomplete investigation does a tremendous disservice to survivors, who are bravely seizing this moment to tell their stories in an effort to effect much-needed and long-overdue change.”
Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse: “If I had received a report like this when I was serving as a United States Attorney, I would have sent it back for more work.” pic.twitter.com/HjrDgjO4f7
— Ryan J. Reilly (@ryanjreilly) October 4, 2018
Whitehouse isn’t the only person who has expressed dismay with the investigation that was supposed to clear up any concerns about Kavanaugh. “The FBI investigation was no investigation at all,” Michael Avenatti, tweeted earlier in the week, per reporting from Inquisitr . Avenatti represents a third woman, Julie Swetnick, who claims that Kavanaugh and his friends in high school regularly hosted parties with the intention to “spike” the punch, and inebriate teenage girls in order to have sex with them.
He elaborated on his discontent with the investigation, which never questioned his client on the matters she brought about. President Donald Trump, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, and Senate Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley “ensured that numerous key witnesses, including six very damaging witnesses I am aware of, were never even interviewed. Their conduct is a disgrace – they never wanted the truth,” Avenatti wrote.
The vote to end debate is scheduled in the Senate for Friday. If successful, the final vote to confirm or deny Kavanaugh a seat on the Supreme Court could come as soon as Saturday, according to reporting from CBS News .