Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.) said Sunday that Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh's testimony in which he lashed out at Democrats should disqualify his nomination.

Nadler, the top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, said on ABC's "This Week" that if Kavanaugh were confirmed to the Supreme Court, the "proper thing" would be for the judge to recuse himself from cases involving congressional Democrats.

"On the one hand, the hearing was inspiring," Nadler said. "I was really inspired to see Dr. [Christine] Blasey Ford have the courage and the fortitude to go through what she did, to bring forth these charges, to tell what happened to her in a very credible way."

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Nadler said he was "astonished" at Kavanaugh's testimony, arguing that the judge needed to be nonpartisan, regardless of whether he felt he's been falsely accused.

"His evident animus toward the entire Democratic party, toward people associated with it, like the Clintons, should be disqualifying," Nadler said. "He showed no judicial temperament."

.@GStephanopoulos: "Would Justice Kavanaugh have to recuse himself from cases involving congressional Democrats?"



Rep. Jerrold Nadler: "I think the proper thing would be, yes ... I was astonished at his rant ... he's supposed to be non-partisan" https://t.co/dPn1hGcw6I #ThisWeek pic.twitter.com/CCI4qbPmsA — This Week (@ThisWeekABC) September 30, 2018

Ford testified last Thursday before the Senate Judiciary Committee that Kavanaugh pinned her to a bed and groped her during a high school party in the 1980s. She said she was "100 percent" certain Kavanaugh was the man responsible for the assault.

Kavanaugh vehemently denied the allegation, testifying in a fiery opening statement that the claims of sexual misconduct against him were part of a "political hit job" and blasting committee Democrats' behavior as an "embarrassment."

He suggested that Democrats were out to get him because of "pent-up anger about President Trump Donald John TrumpSteele Dossier sub-source was subject of FBI counterintelligence probe Pelosi slams Trump executive order on pre-existing conditions: It 'isn't worth the paper it's signed on' Trump 'no longer angry' at Romney because of Supreme Court stance MORE and the 2016 election" and "revenge on behalf of the Clintons."

Kavanaugh served as a staffer for special prosecutor Kenneth Starr in the 1990s, investigating alleged wrongdoing by then-President Clinton.

Democrats, some of whom have vocally opposed Kavanaugh's nomination from the time it was announced, have cited a lack of transparency about the judge's time working for the Starr investigation and the George W. Bush White House as a reason to oppose his nomination.

A vote on Kavanaugh’s confirmation was delayed after President Trump approved requests from senators, led by Sen. Jeff Flake Jeffrey (Jeff) Lane FlakeHow fast population growth made Arizona a swing state Jeff Flake: Republicans 'should hold the same position' on SCOTUS vacancy as 2016 Republican former Michigan governor says he's voting for Biden MORE (R-Ariz.), for an FBI investigation into the allegations of sexual misconduct. The investigation is expected to last no more than one week.