The Latest: McConnell won’t blame Feinstein for Ford leak

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Latest on Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s interview with The Associated Press (all times local):

10 a.m.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has declined to blame Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein (FYN’-styn) for the initial public disclosure of a woman’s sexual assault accusation against Judge Brett Kavanaugh before he was confirmed to the Supreme Court.

California college professor Christine Blasey (BLAH’-zee) Ford says Kavanaugh assaulted her when they were teenagers, which Kavanaugh denies.

Ford had asked for confidentiality in a letter to Feinstein. Other Republican senators and President Donald Trump have suggested Feinstein’s office is responsible for leaking Ford’s story.

But McConnell emphasized Wednesday in an interview with The Associated Press he hasn’t criticized Feinstein’s handling of the matter. Still, the Kentucky Republican says the disclosure was “clearly an example of others using” Ford.

Feinstein has denied leaking Ford’s letter.

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9:10 a.m.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell says “nobody’s going to beat” Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska despite her opposition to Brett Kavanaugh’s Supreme Court nomination.

President Donald Trump has said Alaskans “will never forgive” Murkowski and that she’ll “never recover” politically.

McConnell told The Associated Press in an interview Wednesday that “She’s certainly going to recover.” He pointed out that Murkowski won election as a write-in vote in 2010. “She’s about as strong as you can possibly be in Alaska. Nobody’s going to beat her,” he said.

Murkowski bucked her party and voted against advancing Kavanaugh’s nomination. She voted “present” in the actual confirmation vote.

Kavanaugh had been accused of sexual misconduct in high school and college. Kavanaugh strongly denied the allegations and is now on the Supreme Court.