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Harris Refuses to Reveal Source for Alleged Conversation Between Kavanaugh and NY Law Firm

September 7, 2018

Sen. Kamala Harris (D., Calif.) would not reveal her source Thursday for information about a supposed conversation between Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh and someone at the law firm Kasowitz Benson Torres.

During an appearance on MSNBC’s "The Rachel Maddow Show," Harris refused to share anything about the evidence for her allegation when asked by the show’s host. "I'm sorry, I can’t. I guess I feel like a journalist at this moment," she said. "I received it as confidential information [inaudible] to prompt the question."

The senator asked Kavanaugh on Wednesday during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing whether he discussed special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election with anyone at the firm. Kasowitz Benson Torres was founded by Marc Kasowitz, President Donald Trump’s personal attorney.

Kavanaugh responded that he couldn't recall a specific conversation and asked the senator to clarify if there was someone in particular she had in mind. Harris continued to press the nominee, and he requested more information about everyone who works at the firm. "I'm not remembering anything like that, but I want to know a roster of people and I want to know more," he said.

When Harris brought it up again on Thursday, Kavanaugh said no conversation with anyone at the firm took place.

The law firm told CNN, "There have been no discussions regarding Robert Mueller's investigation between Judge Kavanaugh and anyone at our firm."

During her appearance on MSNBC, Harris implied Kavanaugh could be hiding something. "He wanted clarification about who exactly at the firm. He wanted a list of the people who are at the firm. He wanted to know what is the subject matter."

"It leads me to believe that there is more to this than he’s letting on, and I frankly think that when we look at his whole record, there’s a lot about his record that should leave us with a lot of questions," Harris continued.

Later, the California Democrat claimed Kavanaugh has to further explain his response. "But the burden is on him, frankly, to explain why he has equivocated for 24 hours and still seems to want to parse out the question [inaudible] answer," she said.

During the 2016 election cycle, Harris took $5,070 from employees of Kasowitz’s firm. Hillary Clinton received the most money from the firm that year, receiving over $34,000, while Trump received less than half that amount.