Trump said he didn’t know how things will play out, but he expressed optimism.
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Republicans, their hand forced by the narrow margin of support for Kavanaugh, issued a statement not long afterward confirming they had agreed to a “supplemental background investigation” to be limited to “current credible allegations” and to take no longer than a week. Joe Manchin said he supported Flake’s call to push off a full Senate vote until the FBI investigates Ford’s allegation.
While Trump himself watched the testimony from the residential section of the White House, officials gathered in White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders’ office in the West Wing to watch the proceedings. “They have to be comfortable with themselves”, Trump said. Kavanaugh has said he will not ask the White House to request one, and Grassley argues that one isn’t necessary. He said before the vote that he, in agreement with Democrats, would be calling for a one-week delay to allow the FBI to investigate.
“I was underneath one of them while the two laughed”.
The words and tone were a dramatic turn from Trump’s stance at a Wednesday news conference during his visit to the United Nations General Assembly.
Ford said her motivation to come forward with her story was entirely unrelated to politics. But they ― it’s a con job by the Democrats.
David Gomez, a former FBI counterterrorism supervisor in Seattle, said typically FBI headquarters will divide up leads that get assigned to different field offices across the USA for further investigation and are assigned a quick deadline.
Flake said Kavanaugh was entitled to the “presumption of innocence … absent corroborating evidence”. “His testimony was powerful, honest, and riveting”.
The American Bar Association and Heather Gerken, dean of Yale Law School where Kavanaugh earned his law degree, called for a delay in Kavanaugh’s confirmation to allow an investigation.
When asked by the media if the nomination come to the full Senate floor for a vote, Grassley responded “Depends on what happens tomorrow”.
Without the support of Mr Flake and one other Republican senator -and assuming all Democrats vote against – the confirmation of Judge Kavanaugh cannot occur.
Michael Avenatti, the attorney representing a woman who claims she saw Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh at parties in the 1980s where she and other teams were gang-raped, insisted Thursday that she is telling the truth. He said he feared the country was being torn apart over the allegations against the judge, and he said the Federal Bureau of Investigation may be able to provide some certainty. “She gave good testimony”. Ford testified first and will be followed by Kavanaugh.
“I said that because I believe professor Ford”, Baker said.
Thursday’s hearing comes as two other named individuals have levied allegations against Kavanaugh.
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“I understand politically that the Democratic members of this Senate would very much like to see a man who has struggled with addiction most of his life sitting before this committee and pleading the fifth”, Cruz said.
