What we know about the sexual misconduct allegations against Brett Kavanaugh

Two women publicly came forward after Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh's initial confirmation hearings before the Senate Judiciary Committee to accuse him of sexual misconduct. 

Kavanaugh is scheduled to appear before the committee Thursday to defend himself against an allegation of sexual assault against him by Palo Alto University professor Christine Blasey Ford. 

Here is what we know about the allegations against Kavanaugh, what it means for his nomination and how politicians are reacting to the accusations. 

What are the allegations? 

The accusations against Kavanaugh involve incidents that allegedly occurred when he and his accusers were heavily drinking as teenagers. 

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Psychology researcher and Palo Alto University professor Christine Blasey Ford, 51, alleges that Kavanaugh and his Georgetown Preparatory School classmate Mark Judge locked her in a bedroom at a party in 1982. She said Kavanaugh held her down, put his hand over her mouth to silence her, and tried to remove her clothes. Ford's attorney Debra Katz said her client considers the alleged incident to be an "attempted rape." 

Ford initially made the allegation in a letter sent to Senate Democrats and hoped to remain anonymous. She came forward publicly in The Washington Post on Sept. 16, two days after an article in The New Yorker outlined her claim without identifying her. 

Deborah Ramirez, a Yale University classmate of Kavanaugh's, said that he exposed himself to her and shoved his penis in her face at a dorm room party in their freshman year at the Ivy League school. She said they were playing a drinking game at the time and admits there are gaps in her memory of that night. 

Her story first appeared in The New Yorker on Sunday. 

More:What we know about Deborah Ramirez, the second woman to accuse Kavanaugh of sexual assault

Kavanaugh strongly denies the accusations

After Ford's story surfaced, Kavanaugh said he "categorically and unequivocally denied" the allegation and added that he did not even attend the party she described. 

Kavanaugh went further after Ramirez's allegation surfaced Sunday, and said her claim was "a smear, plain and simple." He said he looks forward to testifying before the Senate Judiciary Committee about the accusations where he said he hopes to have the chance to tell the truth and defend his reputation.

On Monday, Kavanaugh sent a letter to Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, and the Judiciary Committee's ranking Democrat Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., in which he said Ramirez had made "a false and uncorroborated accusation." He denounced a "frenzy" to block his confirmation and a "coordinated effort to destroy my good name."

Kavanaugh said the allegations "debase our public discourse" and are "a threat to any man or woman who wishes to serve our country." 

"Such grotesque and obvious character assassination – if allowed to succeed – will dissuade competent and good people of all political persuasions from service," he wrote. "I will not be intimidated into withdrawing from this process."

What the alleged witnesses say

Three people, in addition to Kavanaugh, who Ford said were at the house where the alleged assault occurred, denied any recollection of the incident or the party Ford described. 

Two male classmates who Ramirez said were at the dorm party where she alleges Kavanaugh exposed himself, said they had no memory of anything like what Ramirez described. They joined four other classmates of Kavanaugh and Ramirez in issuing a statement disputing her allegation and defending Kavanaugh's character. 

One Yale student, who chose to remain anonymous, told The New Yorker that he was not at the party, but recalled being told about the alleged incident. He said he was "100 percent sure" that the person who told him about it identified Kavanaugh as the student who exposed himself. 

Another classmate at Yale, now-emergency room doctor Richard Oh, remembered a tearful female student describing the incident but he could not say with certainty that it was Ramirez. 

Kavanaugh's roommate at the time of the alleged incident, James Roche, said he never witnessed Kavanaugh commit any act of sexual misconduct but he told The New Yorker that Kavanaugh was "frequently incoherently drunk." 

Ford said she never told people about the alleged incident with Kavanaugh until she confided in a therapist in 2012. Notes from that therapy session were given to The Washington Post. 

How Republicans reacted

Grassley has tried to balance the desire of his fellow Republicans to confirm Kavanaugh ahead of the midterm elections with the need to give Ford a chance to share her story with the committee. After contentious negotiations with Fords' lawyers over the terms of her testimony, Grassley's team reached an agreement Sunday that both Ford and Kavanaugh will speak to the committee on Thursday. 

Many Republican lawmakers, including Judiciary Committee member Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., slammed Democrats for not releasing Ford's letter sooner and expressed skepticism about her story ahead of her testimony. 

On Sunday, Graham said that barring more evidence he is "not going to ruin Judge Kavanaugh's life over this." And in a tweet Monday, he said "there seem to be no boundaries" in President Donald Trump's opponents' efforts to block his agenda. Graham also implied witnesses against Kavanaugh are being coached. 

How Democrats reacted 

Senate Democrats have said the allegations require a longer delay of Kavanaugh's confirmation vote and have called on Trump to order an FBI investigation into the alleged incidents. 

Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, slammed Grassley's push to move forward with a hearing without an FBI investigation and said it was time for the men of America to "shut up and step up" when it comes to sexual misconduct. 

Other Democratic members of the Judiciary Committee told Senate Republicans that they were on a path to repeat the mistakes the committee made in its handling of professor Anita Hill's sexual harassment allegation against Supreme Court nominee Clarence Thomas in 1991. 

More:6 moments from the 1991 Anita Hill and Clarence Thomas hearings and what may await Ford

More:Senators 'failed' in 1991, Anita Hill says. But she thinks they can do better this time

Georgetown Prep in the spotlight 

"What happens at Georgetown Prep, stays at Georgetown Prep," Kavanaugh joked during a 2015 speech, referring to a saying he said was held among his friends. 

Video of that quip went viral in light of Ford's allegation and amid increased scrutiny of student life at the elite school in the affluent Washington suburb of Bethesda, Maryland. 

Kavanaugh's classmate Judge, who Ford alleges was the other boy in the room when she was assaulted, told The New York Times that the students there were raised Catholic and would not have engaged in the behavior Ford described. 

But a look at his books, "Wasted: Tales of a Genx Drunk" and "God and Man at Georgetown Prep: How I Became a Catholic Despite 20 Years of Catholic Schooling," by The Washington Post depicted a school where the students studied hard and partied hard. 

Judge's attitudes toward women in his writings drew particular attention, including a blog post in which he celebrated "the awesome power, the wonderful beauty, of uncontrollable male passion." 

More:Kavanaugh's prep school culture nurtures high achievers, fosters darker impulses, grads say

More:Buy Kavanaugh classmate Mark Judge's book about Georgetown Prep for $550

How Trump responded 

Trump initially had an uncharacteristically reserved public reaction to Ford's accusation, expressing a willingness to delay the confirmation and saying he "really would want to see what she has to say." But he also defended Kavanaugh's character and denounced Democrats for not bringing Ford's allegation to light sooner. 

But the president eventually lashed out at Ford, tweeting Friday that if the assault occurred as she said, she or her family would have contacted law enforcement. 

In another tweet, he criticized "radical left lawyers" for calling for an FBI investigation now, rather than 36 years ago when the alleged incident took place. 

After the news of Ramirez's allegation broke, White House spokeswoman Kerri Kupec said her claim was part of  "a coordinated smear campaign by the Democrats designed to tear down a good man." She added that the White House "stands firmly behind Judge Kavanaugh." 

On Monday, Trump said that Kavanaugh is "a fine man with an unblemished past" and that "these are highly unsubstantiated statements from people represented by lawyers." He told reporters those lawyers should be looked into. 

"There is a chance this could be one of the single most unfair, unjust things to happen to a candidate for anything," the president added, He dismissed the allegations as "totally political."