President’s son posted an image on Instagram on Saturday that seemed to suggest the accusations were a leftwing sabotage tactic

Donald Trump Jr posted an image to his Instagram account mocking Democrats and seeming to suggest the recent emergence of sexual assault allegations against the supreme court nominee Brett Kavanaugh were a partisan-minded sabotage tactic from the left.

Kavanaugh and assault accuser willing to testify before Senate committee Read more

Trump Jr posted the image on Saturday night, when the identity of Christine Blasey Ford, who alleges that Kavanaugh sexually assaulted her while they were both in high school, was still anonymous.

“Oh boy... the Dems and their usual nonsense games really have him on the ropes now. Finestein [sic] had the letter in July and saved it for the eve of his vote... honorable as always. I believe this is a copy for full transparency,” he wrote in the caption, followed by a series of laughing and American flag emojis.

It is unclear if Trump Jr was aware at the time that Ford, a psychology professor at Palo Alto University in California, would make her identity known the next day in the Washington Post.

But the image itself, which according to timestamp data was posted at 9.30pm ET, goes beyond trolling Democrats, and seems to be making light of the concept of sexual assault itself.

“Hi Cindy will you be my girlfreind [sic],” the image reads in the style of a crudely drawn children’s note followed by a yes or no box. “Love Bret [sic].”

Ford told the Washington Post that Kavanaugh had “groped her over her clothes, grinding his body against hers … clumsily attempting to pull off her one-piece bathing suit and the clothing she wore over it”.

“I thought he might inadvertently kill me,” she said. “He was trying to attack me and remove my clothing.”

Play Video 1:40 Lawyer for Brett Kavanaugh sexual assault accuser speaks out – video

Kavanaugh again denied the accusations on Monday morning, in a statement issued by the White House. Both parties have said they would agree to testify before the Senate judiciary committee regarding the night in question.

Trump Jr’s dismissal of the allegations against Kavanaugh as both a smear campaign and as mere youthful tomfoolery has become a common reaction on the right across social media yesterday into today. Fox News spent the morning questioning what Ford’s political motive might be, while others on the right have suggested this type of behavior is simply akin to boys being boys behavior.

Eli Valley (@elivalley) High school rape defenders are shook pic.twitter.com/ue9Mj161CZ

Carrie Budoff Brown (@cbudoffbrown) A lawyer close to the White House said the nomination will not be withdrawn. “No way, not even a hint of it. If anything, it’s the opposite. If somebody can be brought down by accusations like this, then you, me, every man certainly should be worried.” https://t.co/aAbYbNVgNj

Among those to like the image on Instagram were Katrina Pierson, the national spokeswoman for the Donald Trump 2016 presidential campaign, rightwing social media personalities Diamond & Silk, former Fox News personality and current Trump Jr romantic partner Kim Guilfoyle and housing and urban development official Lynne Patton.

Trump Jr has yet to comment on the post following the identification of Ford. Patton, on her own behalf, attempted to clarify her support for the Instagram post today, writing in a tweet:

“This was not an attempt to diminish sexual assault. To the contrary, my post was in response to the hypocrisy highlighted by @DonaldJTrumpJr inasmuch that @SenFeinstein concealed Ms. Ford’s letter for 2 mos, releasing it only when the timing best suited her own. True exploitation.”