Before The New York Times blew up the internet over the weekend, reports quietly infiltrated the media that Christine Blasey Ford’s father supposedly supported Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh’s confirmation.
This may explain Ford’s family silence during the circus caused by her sexual assault allegations against Kavanaugh.
Letters of support for Ford poured out in September 2018. These came from former high school classmates, colleagues at Stanford University, and her neighbors in Palo Alto.
One letter started, “As members of Christine Blasey Ford’s family…,” but none of her blood relatives signed it. Her husband’s family signed the letter.
Her father Ralph Blasey only said:
Reached by phone on Tuesday, Ford’s father, Ralph Blasey Jr., offered a brief endorsement of his daughter. “I think all of the Blasey family would support her. I think her record stands for itself. Her schooling, her jobs and so on,” he said before hanging up. Moments later, after picking up the phone a second time, he added: “I think any father would have love for his daughter.”
Last week, Mollie Hemingway and Carrie Severino reported last week:
Privately, however, it appears the Blasey family had significant doubts about what Ford was trying to accomplish by coming forward and making unsubstantiated allegations against Brett Kavanaugh. Within days of Kavanaugh’s confirmation to the Supreme Court, a fascinating encounter took place. Brett Kavanaugh’s father was approached by Ford’s father at the golf club where they are both members.Ralph Blasey, Ford’s father, went out of his way to offer to Ed Kavanaugh his support of Brett Kavanaugh’s confirmation to the Supreme Court, according to multiple people familiar with the conversation that took place at Burning Tree Club in Bethesda, Maryland. “I’m glad Brett was confirmed,” Ralph Blasey told Ed Kavanaugh, shaking his hand. Blasey added that the ordeal had been tough for both families.
As I noted in an earlier piece, Ford’s close lifelong friend Leland Keyser did not believe the allegations. Other friends conspired against Keyser, who endured her own smear campaign:
The national drama played out on a decidedly local scale as the D.C.-based family and friends of Ford’s quietly apologized to friends and family of Kavanaugh, even as the toxic political environment made it punitive for them to speak up publicly.One friend who was subjected to both public scrutiny and private pressure because she cast doubt on Ford’s story was Leland Keyser, one of Ford’s closest friends at the time of the alleged attack. Keyser wanted to support her but nevertheless had no recollection of the event.Keyser’s son noted on a GoFundMe page for his mother that she put “everything in her life at risk” in order to tell the truth about Ford’s allegations. Son Alex Beckel wrote that his mom “resisted immense personal pressure and courageously came forward with the truth,” adding that she “stood up and did what was right when she had everything to lose and nothing to gain.”
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