Tennessee Senate Dem hopeful says he supports Kavanaugh

NASHVILLE – Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Phil Bredesen says he would support Brett Kavanaugh’s nomination for the U.S. Supreme Court, a key choice in Tennessee’s tight race.

The ex-Tennessee governor announced his decision Friday in a news release, capping weeks of questions about whether he would back President Donald Trump’s high court pick despite accusations of sexual assault against Kavanaugh from high school that have thrown the nomination in doubt.

Bredesen said he was prepared to say “yes” to Kavanaugh’s nomination before Christine Blasey Ford came forward. He said that though subsequent events make it a closer call and he’s missing key pieces of evidence that senators have, he’s still a “yes.”

Bredesen called Ford a “heroine” and said he was “disgusted” by the Senate’s treatment of her.

Bredesen is in a tough contest against Republican U.S. Rep. Marsha Blackburn.