Sen. Mitch McConnell has weighed in on the latest attacks on Justice Kavanaugh, suggesting that the new push for impeachment is just the latest in a series of threats against the Supreme Court by the progressive left:

McConnell, R-Ky., took to the Senate floor Monday afternoon to decry what he described as a familiar “pattern” involving Kavanaugh allegations: “Shoot first, correct the facts later.” He accused Democrats of “rushing to exploit” the new accusations and “hysterically” demanding his impeachment, but maintained that a majority of senators were right to confirm him last year… “It’s just as transparent and self-serving today,” McConnell said. In his blistering floor speech, he went on to rebuke several Senate Democrats for a recent brief that urged the Supreme Court to “heal itself” or face restructuring – which was widely seen as a threat of court-packing. “This is not normal political behavior,” McConnell said.

McConnell called the NY Times story which launched the calls to impeach Kavanaugh “poorly sourced” and “thinly reported.” You can see his full statement below. The court-packing threat he references in his speech was made last month by Democrat Senator Sheldon Whitehouse. Whitehouse submitted a brief in a New York gun case in which he suggested court-packing was coming if the court didn’t rule the way Democrats wanted. “The Supreme Court is not well. And the people know it. Perhaps the Court can heal itself before the public demands it be ‘restructured in order to reduce the influence of politics,'” Whitehouse wrote.

Sen. Grassley also reacted to the NY Times’ story about Kavanaugh yesterday on Twitter:

2. Despite 7 attempts by staff, Ms. Ramirez' lawyers declined to provide documentary evidence referenced in the article/witness accounts to support the claims. They also declined invitations for Ms. Ramirez to speak with committee investigators or to provide a written statement. — Sen. Grassley Press (@GrassleyPress) September 15, 2019

4. The committee's review found no verifiable evidence to support the claims. The @nytimes' own reporting at the time noted that it couldn't find anyone with firsthand knowledge & that Ms. Ramirez told friends she couldn’t be sure Kavanaugh was involved: https://t.co/e1B4ckSGhr pic.twitter.com/Wj1g9dCleo — Sen. Grassley Press (@GrassleyPress) September 15, 2019

Regarding the Times’ story, Grassley also made a statement today on the Senate floor. “I frequently refer to reports, journalists as the police of our democratic system, but today I’m reminded of a very old adage: Who will watch the watchmen?” He added, “We now have an uncorroborated accusation, rooted only in unnamed sources, with no direct knowledge of the event, and that the alleged victim doesn’t even remember.” “When did this stuff I described become something fit to print by the supposed American paper of record?” he asked.

Here’s McConnell’s full statement: