Kavanaugh Accuser Julie Swetnick 'Disgusted' By How She's Been Treated

Julie Swetnick, one of the women who accused Supreme Court  justice Brett Kavanaugh of sexual misconduct, spoke out about the backlash she has faced since coming forward. 

“I am disgusted and appalled by the way that I have been re-victimized over the last two weeks after I had the courage to come forward,” she said Sunday in a statement. Members of the media and various senators, she added, have urged her to “shut up” because her allegations were unhelpful.

She alleges that Kavanaugh was present at parties during the 1980s where “gang rapes” took place. She didn’t accuse Kavanaugh of assaulting women during these sessions, but did claim he used to spike girls’ drinks to make them more inebriated. 

She blamed the Senate Judiciary Committee and the White House for preventing the FBI from interviewing her or any corroborating witnesses in its investigation of the claims against Kavanaugh. 

“How can they say the claims were not credible when they made no effort to discover whether they were or not?” she wrote.

After she came forward, her story was subsequently questioned, causing some Democrats to worry that it undermined the strength of other accusations against the judge and fuel the Republican effort to push through his nomination. Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) called Swetnick’s accusations “outlandish .”

“Well you know at some point there were a lot of folks coming forward making all sorts of accusations,” said Sen. Gary Peters (D-Mich.) told CNN . “It turns it into a circus atmosphere and certainly that’s not where we should be.”

The Senate narrowly confirmed Kavanaugh on Saturday following weeks of partisan back-and-forth. The accounts of three women, including Swetnick, cast doubt on Kavanaugh’s denials of any past misdeeds. His emotional, aggressive response to the allegations also caused many to question his temperament and fitness to serve on the nation’s highest court.

Ultimately, all Republican senators except Lisa Murkowski (Alaska) voted to confirm him. Only one Democrat, Sen. Joe Manchin (W.Va.), voted in favor. Kavanaugh was sworn in during a private ceremony later in the day.