Trump is reportedly furious that Christine Blasey Ford 'seems credible'


If President Trump was hoping for a slam dunk, this was not it.
Trump complained that Christine Blasey Ford "seems credible," Vanity Fair's Gabriel Sherman reported Thursday. The president is watching as Ford testifies before the Senate Judiciary Committee that Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh sexually assaulted her when they were in high school in the 1980s.
Trump had told reporters Wednesday that he planned to listen to Ford's allegations, saying that he "can be persuaded" into pulling Kavanaugh's nomination if Ford is "convincing" enough. Apparently, he wasn't expecting to be convinced. He was reportedly "furious" that White House aides didn't have advance notice that Ford would seem so credible, and has been "raging" over how bad the hearing has been for Republicans so far.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Over on Trump's favorite channel, Fox News, pundits were equally impressed and concerned. Host Chris Wallace said Ford's testimony was "extremely emotional, extremely raw, and extremely credible," while Judge Andrew Napolitano said on the network that "all of us agree that this witness is exceptionally credible." Napolitano predicted that Trump "cannot be happy with this" hearing so far.
Ford told the committee that she felt it was her "civic duty" to come forward despite being "terrified." Kavanaugh, who has denied any wrongdoing, is scheduled to testify after Ford.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Summer Meza has worked at The Week since 2018, serving as a staff writer, a news writer and currently the deputy editor. As a proud news generalist, she edits everything from political punditry and science news to personal finance advice and film reviews. Summer has previously written for Newsweek and the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, covering national politics, transportation and the cannabis industry.
-
Gabbard fires intelligence chiefs after Venezuela report
speed read Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard has fired the top two officials leading the National Intelligence Council
-
Trump vows to lift Syria sanctions
speed read The move would help the new government stabilize the country following years of civil war
-
Senate rejects Trump's Library of Congress takeover
speed read Congress resisted the president's attempts to control 'the legislative branch's premier research body'
-
Hamas frees US hostage in deal sidelining Israel
speed read Edan Alexander, a 21-year-old soldier, was the final living US citizen held by the militant group
-
White Afrikaners land in US as Trump-declared refugees
speed read An exception was made to Trump's near-total ban on admitting refugees for the white South Africans
-
Qatar luxury jet gift clouds Trump trip to Mideast
speed read Qatar is said to be presenting Trump with a $400 million plane, which would be among the biggest foreign gifts ever received by the US government
-
Trump taps Fox News' Pirro for DC attorney post
speed read The president has named Fox News host Jeanine Pirro to be the top federal prosecutor for Washington, replacing acting US Attorney Ed Martin
-
Trump, UK's Starmer outline first post-tariff deal
speed read President Donald Trump and British Prime Minister Kier Starmer struck a 'historic' agreement to eliminate some of the former's imposed tariffs