Brett Kavanaugh's confirmation chances are starting to unravel

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• Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh has come under fire for a sexual assault allegation from when he was a teenager.
• The burgeoning scandal has prompted Democrats and even several Republicans to call for additional hearings, which would delay any confirmation vote.
• Kavanaugh has emphatically denied the allegation.

WASHINGTON - Days after allegations surfaced that Judge Brett Kavanaugh sexually assaulted a teenage girl while he was in high school, President Donald Trump's Supreme Court nominee is in limbo as lawmakers contemplate additional hearings and delaying procedural hurdles and votes necessary to advance the confirmation process.

When Kavanaugh's accuser, Dr. Christine Blasey Ford, came forward as the alleged victim, it sent the Senate committee tasked with vetting Kavanaugh's nomination into a tailspin.

All 10 of the Judiciary Committee's Democrats signed a letter to Republican Chairman Chuck Grassley asking to delay the Thursday vote to shepherd Kavanaugh out of the committee. Later Monday morning, Maine Sen. Susan Collins, one of the few undecided Republicans on confirmation, called for both Kavanaugh and Ford to testify under oath before the Judiciary Committee.

Coupled with calls for delaying the vote by retiring GOP Sens. Bob Corker and Jeff Flake, what Republicans thought would be a swift confirmation is now hanging by a thread.

Grassley said in a statement Monday afternoon that he was attempting to establish follow-up calls with Judiciary Committee ranking Democrat Dianne Feinstein, but that her office is refusing to comply.

"The standard procedure for updates to any nominee's background investigation file is to conduct separate follow-up calls with relevant parties," Grassley said. "In this case, that would entail phone calls with at least Judge Kavanaugh and Dr. Ford. Consistent with that practice, I asked Senator Feinstein's office yesterday to join me in scheduling these follow-ups. Thus far, they have refused. But as a necessary step in evaluating these claims, I'll continue working to set them up."

Grassley also chastised Democrats by noting that Republicans were kept in the dark about the letter Ford sent to Feinstein via California Rep. Anna Eshoo.

"Unfortunately, committee Republicans have only known this person's identity from news reports for less than 24 hours and known about her allegations for less than a week," he added. "Senator Feinstein, on the other hand, has had this information for many weeks and deprived her colleagues of the information necessary to do our jobs. The Minority withheld even the anonymous allegations for six weeks, only to later decide that they were serious enough to investigate on the eve of the committee vote, after the vetting process had been completed."

The more Republicans start to call for delayed votes, the more likely it is going to happen, as the GOP's Senate majority is slim.

Republicans are concerned about what action the White House might take, as well. There is an expectation among GOP aides that Trump will go after Ford for accusing Kavanaugh of sexual assault. If Trump were to do so, it could make things even more difficult for Republicans.

White House is sticking by Kavanaugh

Regardless, the White House is standing by Kavanaugh, who has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing about the allegations dating back to the early 1980s.

"This is a completely false allegation," Kavanaugh said in a statement Monday morning. "I have never done anything like what the accuser describes-to her or to anyone."

Kavanaugh also said he would be willing to cooperate with the Judiciary Committee on any additional material or testimony they might want from him.

"Because this never happened, I had no idea who was making this accusation until she identified herself yesterday," he added. "I am willing to talk to the Senate Judiciary Committee in any way the Committee deems appropriate to refute this false allegation, from 36 years ago, and defend my integrity."

On Monday, CNN reported that Kavanaugh had hired Beth Wilkinson as an attorney from the prominent Washington, DC, firm Wilkinson Walsh and Eskovitz. Ford is represented by Debra Katz, who has often specialized in sexual misconduct cases.

Conservative activist groups are rallying to Kavanaugh's defense, as well. The Judicial Crisis Network announced on Monday it would be launching a $1.5 million advertisement campaign to combat what it called attacks on Kavanaugh's character.