President Donald Trump has said he feels “terribly” for Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh as he faces a decades-old accusation of sexual assault.

Mr Trump said the judge “is not a man that deserves this”.

Mr Trump spoke on Tuesday at a joint press conference with the president of Poland.

He praised Mr Kavanaugh, saying he was “at a level that we rarely see”, but said he supported a review process in the Senate.

Senate Supreme CourtPresident Donald Trump’s Supreme Court nominee, Brett Kavanaugh (Andrew Harnik/AP)

Mr Kavanaugh’s nomination has been threatened by a woman’s allegation that he sexually assaulted her when they were high schoolers.

He has denied the claim.

Mr Kavanaugh and his accuser, Christine Blasely Ford, have both been asked to give evidence on Monday, but it is not clear if Ms Ford will appear.

Mr Trump said he feels “terribly” for Mr Kavanaugh, his wife “and for his beautiful young daughters”.

Earlier, Senate Judiciary Committee chairman Chuck Grassley said his panel would hold a hearing on Monday with both Mr Kavanaugh and his accuser, Christine Blasey Ford.

“To provide ample transparency, we will hold a public hearing on Monday to give these recent allegations a full airing,” Mr Grassley said in a statement.

Just hours earlier, Mr Grassley had said he would seek telephone interviews with Mr Kavanaugh and Ms Ford, winning plaudits from Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell for planning to handle the episode “by the book”.

Democrats rejected that plan, saying the seriousness of the charges merited a full FBI investigation.