Abuse Survivor Confronts Jeff Flake in Elevator

Jeff Flake made big headlines Friday morning when he announced he would vote in favor of Brett Kavanaugh, making it all but certain the judge will be approved by the Senate Judiciary Committee. But the Republican senator from Arizona quickly learned that his decision had angered those who oppose Kavanaugh. A CNN camera captured the scene as two women confronted Kavanaugh in an elevator as he tried to make his way to a meeting of the committee. “What you are doing is al­low­ing some­one who ac­tu­al­ly vio­lat­ed a woman to sit in the Su­preme Court,” one woman told him. “This is hor­rible. You have chil­dren in your fam­i­ly. Think a­bout them.” See the video here.

The other woman, who said she was a survivor of sexual abuse, then interjected: “You’re tell­ing all women that they don’t mat­ter—that they should just stay quiet be­cause if they tell you what hap­pened to them, you’re going to ig­nore them,” she said, reports the Washington Post. Flake didn't engage, saying, "Thank you," and explaining he needed to get to his meeting. “Look at me when I’m talk­ing to you!" said the woman, identified at USA Today as Ana Maria Archila, co-executive of the liberal advocacy group the Center for Popular Democracy. "You’re tell­ing me that my as­sault doesn’t mat­ter, that what hap­pened to me doesn’t mat­ter and that you’re going to let people who do these things into pow­er! That’s what you’re tell­ing me when you vote for him!" (More Jeff Flake stories.)