Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) called for a “full-scale investigation” of the “despicable process” the Senate Judiciary Committee Democrats followed regarding Christine Blasey Ford’s allegation that Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh sexually assaulted her in the early 1980s, when both were high schoolers in suburban Maryland.

“I’m [going to] call for an investigation of what happened in this committee, who betrayed Dr. Ford’s trust, who in Feinstein’s office recommended Katz as a lawyer, why did Ms. Ford not know that the committee was willing to go to California, [and] who released the anonymous letter given to the committee by Cory Gardner,” Graham told ABC’s “This Week” host George Stephanopoulos.

Graham said that the referral of Ford to the first of her attorneys, Debra Katz, was “illegal” and “inappropriate.”

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He said he believes Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s (D-Calif.) denial of personal involvement in leaking Ford’s identity to the press.

But Graham limited his belief solely to Feinstein, saying that he “likes” and “respects” the 85-year-old ranking minority member of the committee, which referred Kavanaugh’s nomination to the full Senate on Friday.

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The Intercept’s Ryan Grimm, whose publication was first to receive Ford’s letter describing her allegation in detail, has denied that either Feinstein or her staff was his source.

“We’re gonna do a wholesale, full-scale investigation of what I think was a despicable process to deter it from happening again,” Graham told Stephanopoulos. “If the shoe was on the other foot and the Republicans had done this, we would be destroyed. I’m gonna make sure, when this debacle’s over, that we look at what happened to deter it in the future.”

Graham added that he believes “a lot of people believe it’s a noble cause to take down Kavanaugh. A lot of people in [the media] business will never give scrutiny to people who try to take down a conservative. That’s too bad.”

“Whoever betrayed her trust to remain anonymous, I hope we find you.”

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“But I’m gonna give it the scrutiny. She was as abused as he was … My problem is not with Dr. Ford. I really believe she was horribly treated. Whoever betrayed her trust to remain anonymous, I hope we find you.”

Kavanaugh and Ford appeared before the judiciary panel on Thursday. During the hearing, Ford told Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) that she had a “100 percent” degree of certainty that Kavanaugh committed the assault against her.

In his opening statement and at multiple points prior to, during and since the hearing, Kavanaugh categorically and unequivocally denied ever assaulting Ford or any other woman.

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But all 10 of the panel’s Democrats repeatedly called for an FBI investigation of Ford’s allegation and those of two other women.

At times, they implored Kavanaugh himself to call on White House counsel Don McGahn to urge President Donald Trump to instruct the FBI to initiate an investigation.

On Friday, Sen. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) agreed to support the committee’s sending the nomination to the full Senate, but he encouraged Republican leaders to agree to a new FBI investigation “limited in scope and time.”

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and Trump agreed — and the president directed the FBI to examine “all credible allegations” against Kavanaugh.

It seems Sen. Graham’s viral remarks at Thursday’s hearing portended decisive action.

A fiery Graham accused the Democrats on the panel Thursday of victimizing Ford and Kavanaugh in what the senator called the “worst unethical sham I’ve ever seen in politics.”

Given Graham’s bid today for an investigation into several questionable aspects of the process, including the leaking of Ford’s identity to the press, it seems his viral remarks at Thursday’s hearing portended decisive action.

Michele Blood is a Flemington, New Jersey-based freelance writer and a regular contributor to LifeZette.