Maine Sen. Susan Collins said she was “appalled” by President Trump’s tweets Friday morning that criticized Christine Blasey Ford for not coming forward sooner with her allegations against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh.

Speaking at an event in Portland, Collins appeared to offer support for Ford, who has said Kavanaugh tried to sexually assault her 36 years ago when they were both in high school. The senator stopped short, though, of saying whether she believed Ford.

“I was appalled by the president’s tweet,” Collins said. “First of all, we know that allegations of sexual assault – I’m not saying that’s what happened in this case – but we know allegations of sexual assault are one of the most unreported crimes that exist. So I thought that the president’s tweet was completely inappropriate and wrong.”

Trump tweeted that if Ford thought what happened to her years ago was “as bad as she says,” she should have alerted law enforcement. He then reiterated his support for Kavanaugh, his pick to replace outgoing justice Anthony Kennedy, saying the judge has an “impeccable reputation.”

The allegations have thrown Kavanaugh’s confirmation into chaos at the last minute, as Republicans face increasing pressure to get him confirmed ahead of the midterm elections in November.

Collins said she wants to hear from Ford directly and also said members of the Senate Judiciary Committee, which is handling the confirmation, should be allowed to question her about the allegations. The committee chairman, Republican Chuck Grassley of Iowa, has invited both Kavanaugh and Ford to testify before the committee on Monday. Ford, through her attorneys, has said she cannot appear Monday but could later in the week.

Collins said she would be comfortable allowing Ford to testify later in the week and said the committee should make reasonable accommodations to allow her to speak. She also said the committee should be able to use its discretion to structure the hearing as it sees fit.

“I do think that both she and Judge Kavanaugh need to testify under oath, but I believe we should attempt to make this as comfortable a process for her as possible,” Collins said. “To me Monday is the preferred date but I don’t see a problem with delaying to Wednesday or Thursday.”

Collins was in Portland late Friday morning for an event at The Cedars, a senior living facility that is planning an expansion. After delivering remarks, the senator climbed into an excavator and scooped a pile of dirt to mark the symbolic start of that project.