Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh is trying to end what he calls a "smear" campaign, while Christine Blasey Ford says it's her civic duty to share her account of the decades-old sexual assault that she says has "haunted" her as an adult.
Their accounts at Thursday's hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee could determine whether the conservative jurist will get a lifetime seat on the nation's highest court.
Ford came forward nearly two weeks ago to accuse Kavanaugh of drunkenly groping her and pinning her to a bed in an attempt to pull off her clothes at a house party in the early 1980s. She also claims he covered her mouth to stop her from screaming, making it hard for her to breathe.
Two other women, Deborah Ramirez and Julie Swetnick, have publicly made sexual misconduct claims against the Supreme Court nominee.
Kavanaugh, who sits on the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, has denied all allegations.
Here are key moments from Kavanaugh's testimony:
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A defiant Kavanaugh told the committee he would see his nomination through to the end.
"I will not be intimidated into withdrawing from this process," he said in his opening remarks.
"You've tried hard. You've given it your all," he said, referring to Democrats who he blamed for the accusations against him. "No one can question your effort, but your coordinated and well-funded effort to destroy my good name and destroy my family will not drive me out."
Nor will the "vile threats of violence," he said. "You may defeat me in the final vote, but you'll never get me to quit. Never."
"This whole two-week effort has been a calculated and orchestrated political hit. Fueled with apparent pent-up anger about President Trump and the 2016 election, fear that has been unfairly stoked about my judicial record, revenge on behalf of the Clintons, and millions of dollars in money from outside left-wing opposition groups," he said. "This is a circus."
Kavanaugh said when he was in high school, he drank with his friends.
"Sometimes I had too many beers, sometimes others did. I liked beer. I still like beer," Kavanaugh said. "But I did not drink beer to the point of blacking out, and I never sexually assaulted anyone."
"There is a bright line between drinking beer, which I gladly do and which I fully embrace, and sexually assaulting someone, which is a violent crime," he said. "If every American who drinks beer or every American who drank beer in high
school is suddenly presumed guilty of sexual assault, we'll be in an ugly new place in this country."
The judge sharply denied the other public accusations of sexual assault, but he refused to say anything more about them.
Swetnick in a sworn statement accused Kavanaugh of spiking drinks with drugs to "target particular girls so they could be taken advantage of."
"The Swetnick thing is a joke," Kavanaugh said. "That is a farce."
When asked if he would like to speak more about it, Kavanaugh simply said: "No."
Kavanaugh pointed to statements from people Ford has said were at the party where the alleged assault took place, including Ford's friend Leland Keyser, all of whom said they did not remember the event.
"Think about that fact," Kavanaugh said, maintaining he was not at the party. "Listen to Ms. Keyser."
"I've never sexually assaulted anyone," he said.
Kavanaugh said he doesn't doubt that Ford was sexually assaulted, though he says he was not the perpetrator. He said, however, that he harbors no ill will toward Ford or her family.
"The other night Ashley and my daughter Liza said their prayers," Kavanaugh said, referring to his wife and sniffling as he fought back tears. "And little Liza, all of 10 years old, said to Ashley, 'We should pray for the woman.'"
"That's a lot of wisdom from a 10-year-old," he continued, his voice breaking. "We mean no ill will."
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