(CNN) One of the Republican senators on the Judiciary Committee listening to the testimony of Christine Blasey Ford told reporters Thursday that the woman who accused Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh of sexual assault is "an attractive, good witness."

"I don't think she's uncredible," said Hatch, the senior senator from Utah, when asked during the lunch break in Ford's testimony. "I think she's an attractive, good witness."

When CNN asked what he meant by "attractive," Hatch responded, "In other words, she's pleasing."

Hatch's comments on Ford are significant given that all Republican members of the Senate Judiciary Committee are male, and that they've elected to have a female outside counsel -- Maricopa, Arizona, Deputy County Attorney Rachel Mitchell -- pursue their line of questioning during the hearing.

Matt Whitlock, a spokesman for Hatch, defended the use of the term "attractive" in a series of tweets after the remarks were made public.

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