WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump on Tuesday expanded his criticism of the woman who has accused Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh of sexual assault and used his strongest words yet to question women coming forward to report abuse.

Speaking to a packed hall in Mississippi, Trump also openly mocked Christine Blasey Ford, Kavanaugh’s accuser, remarking on her difficulty remembering aspects of the alleged attack 36 years ago when the two were in high school.

Trump described the nation's current political climate as "an important time for our country." Though he did not mention the #MeToo movement directly by name, he went on to suggest that men like Kavanaugh are under siege from accusations of assault.

"It's a damn sad situation, okay?" Trump said to the Southaven, Miss., crowd. "And we better start as a country getting smart, and getting tough."

Trump laid out a scenario in which a man gets a job at General Motors but then is faced with accusations of sexual assault from a woman.

"This is a time when your father, when your husband, when your brother, when your son could do great," Trump said, who then changed the inflection of his voice to dread as he intoned a conversation between the accused and his mother.

"Mom, a terrible thing just happened," Trump said. "What do I do, mom?"

Trump's remarks came hours after he told reporters at the White House that it was a "scary time for young men."

More:Trump: It's a 'very scary time for young men in America'

More:Even if Kavanaugh confirmed, fight over sex assault allegations unlikely to end

Trump also mocked last week's testimony of Ford, the California professor who accused Kavanaugh of assault. Trump noted that she did not remember during her testimony how she got home following what she described as a sexual assault by Kavanaugh.

Kavanaugh has denied the allegations.

“I had one beer, that’s all I remember,” Trump said, mocking Ford.

“I don’t know – over and over,” he said, framing Ford’s testimony. “And a man’s life is in tatters.”