MSNBC "All in with Chris Hayes" - Transcript: Interview with Sen. Richard Blumenthal

Interview

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HAYES: Joining me fresh from that protest tonight, Senator Richard  Blumenthal who serves on the Senate Judiciary Committee. Just in the last  few minutes, The Wall Street Journal`s op-ed page, notoriously conservative  op-ed page publish an op-ed by Judge Kavanaugh in which he appears to  express some regret and apologize a bit for his behavior on Thursday. I  was emotional last Thursday. I hope everyone can understand I was there as  a son, husband, and dad. Is that good enough for you?

BLUMENTHAL: Not good enough by any means, Chris, because that performance  was so filled with arrogance and acrimony rage and revenge literally  threatening senators. It was a kind of unmasking a revelation and it is  the reason that John Paul Stevens a former Justice of the Supreme Court  said it was disqualifying. For -- other judges and lawyers around the  country have said that they believed that it was disqualifying. No judge  should threaten a potential litigant.

And by the way in Blumenthal versus Trump, a lawsuit on the emoluments  clause, I am a potential litigant threatened potential lawyers who may  appear before him. That issue of temperament is now front and center. And  that so-called apology it was really a non-apology, more like an  explanation is far from good enough for me.

HAYES: Republicans who were briefed on that FBI report that interviewed we  think around 10 witnesses say basically it clears their guy. They`re  forging ahead. What`s your response to that?

BLUMENTHAL: That FBI report was abysmally incomplete and inadequate  tantamount to a cover-up, a real whitewash because they failed to follow  leads, they failed to interview important witnesses who were potential  eyewitnesses and corroborating witnesses and they failed to answer  questions. In fact, it left more questions unanswered than answered. And  the review that I did in fact indicated in the FBI tip line the records  their calls from people who were never then contacted with information  offering to come forward and provide that information about the relevant  issues here.

We are barred from going into the contents of that file. But here`s the  other part. They never interviewed Dr. Blasey Ford, they never interviewed  Judge Kavanaugh, they never interview Carrie Bertram who is from  Connecticut and also has relevant information.

HAYES: Has -- is there any explanation for not talking to the two  principals here?

BLUMENTHAL: There has been no official explanation. But clearly what  happened was the White House set parameters, circumscribe the numbers of  people and who would be interviewed as well as the time and in fact  straitjacketed this investigation.

HAYES: Final question. One of your colleagues John Cornyn from Texas  compared Judge Kavanaugh`s plight to the man accused in to kill a  Mockingbird. A black man falsely accused of rape in the Jim Crow South,  and compared the Republicans to Atticus Finch standing up righteously for  him. What do you think about that analogy?

BLUMENTHAL: I think that analogy is very unfortunate, a disservice to  Atticus Finch who has always been one of my heroes as a litigator and a  lawyer standing up for someone who needs a defense. And I believe that survivors, the sexual assault survivors who came forward like Dr. Blasey Ford, the real profiles encouraged here and they`re the ones who should be supported and applauded and really uplifted and they have come forward all around the country to my office and my colleagues offices. And to mock or ridicule them as the President did the other night to subject them to public shaming and character assassination as some of my Republican colleagues have done to call them confused or mixed up is a real disservice and I believe those survivors.

HAYES: Final question. Chuck Schumer and Dick Durbin hinted that the  Judiciary Committee`s tweets about the background investigation having no  hints of inappropriateness in the background of the judge were false.  What`s the deal with that? What can you tell us about that?

BLUMENTHAL: I can tell you within the limits of what I can say here that  the claim, there`s no kin of misconduct in that report is untrue. There`s  plenty there that would support claims of wrongdoing and misconduct and  unfortunately for now at least we are barred from talking about the details  but that`s why the facts are so important, why seeking those witnesses who  can corroborate the survivors should have been done.

We presented a list of 25 including Dr. Blasey Ford and Judge Kavanaugh and  just to give you one small example, Carrie Bertram from Connecticut had  information about outreach by Judge Kavanaugh before the New Yorker story  appeared about Deborah Ramirez which reflects potentially witness tampering  and certainly knowledge --

HAYES: Couldn`t someone -- couldn`t someone from the Senate just make the  file public in some way or talk about it. Who`s -- what`s stopping you?

BLUMENTHAL: Well there are rules and so far we have followed the rules  even though there is potentially a breaking of those rules by our  colleagues. But at some point --

HAYES: Wait, what do you mean by that?

BLUMENTHAL: Well, I think that their claim that there was no hint of  conduct and also some of the tweets yesterday, but here`s the important  thing, Chris. That report should be made public at some point. The  American people deserve it. It was done by the FBI. Way fewer witnesses  were even contacted and should have been a fraction of the ones who were  suggested by the survivors here Deborah Ramirez and Dr. Blasey Ford as well  as us as members of the Judiciary Committee. The American people deserve  to see it.

HAYES: All right, Senator Richard Blumenthal, thank you.

BLUMENTHAL: Thank you.

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