By Dustin Rowles | Politics | September 28, 2018 |
By Dustin Rowles | Politics | September 28, 2018 |
2:36: Murkowski is on board with Flake’s plan. That’s all that’s needed.
NEWS: Murkowski, entering the Capitol “on the way to talk to her colleagues,” said she supports @JeffFlake proposal for a one week delay and an investigation.
— Leigh Ann Caldwell (@LACaldwellDC) September 28, 2018
2:00: This is incredibly bizarre. Kavanaugh has been voted out of committee. However, it appears that Jeff Flake has forced a week-long delay of a vote on the floor for an FBI investigation. Jeff Flake says he won’t vote for Kavanaugh on the floor unless there is an FBI investigation. Flake has suggested that he will make a request to the White House for that FBI investigation. There is no vote for this, apparently. It’s a “gentleman and women’s agreement,” according to Grassley. This only matters if McConnell approves the investigation, and McConnell will only approve it if Flake, Susan Collins, and Lisa Murkowski all stick together and agree to vote “no” unless there is an FBI investigation.
It’s something, I guess. Though even if the FBI investigates, it’s no guarantee that any of the Republicans will change their mind.
Trump is even being bizarrely agreeable.
"Certainly, she was a very credible witness," Trump says of Ford, while adding of the Senate: "They have to do what they think is right."
— Sabrina Siddiqui (@SabrinaSiddiqui) September 28, 2018
1:35 p.m.: No idea what’s going on now. A commotion. Many Senators have left the room to discuss something in the anteroom. Flake seems to be at the center of the commotion. He had discussions with Murkowski and Collins earlier. The Committee room, which had most of the Senators in it a few minutes ago, now has very few left.
.@SenJohnKennedy: “I don’t know what’s going on” as he leaves the room
— Seung Min Kim (@seungminkim) September 28, 2018
Don’t get your hopes up.
—-
Update: Jeff Flake is a yes, which means that Kavanaugh will get through the Senate Judiciary Committee. There will be a full Senate vote next week.
.@JeffFlake is a YES on Kavanaugh.@SunlenSerfaty broke that news to Sen. Coons in the hallway as he walked into the hearing.
— Elizabeth Landers (@ElizLanders) September 28, 2018
Coons said, “Oh f—k,” then choked up, “We each make choices for our own reason. I’m struggling, sorry.”
A sexual assault survivor just confronted Jeff Flake (who just announced he's voting for Kavanaugh): "Don't look away from me! Look at me and tell me that it doesn't matter what happened to me, that you will let people like that go into the highest court of the land" pic.twitter.com/Jix2BI090B
— David Mack (@davidmackau) September 28, 2018
WATCH — Sexual assault survivors confront Jeff Flake on the elevator moments after he says he will vote to confirm Judge Kavanaugh pic.twitter.com/2d3ABs0s2H
— J.D. Durkin (@jiveDurkey) September 28, 2018
The Democrats attempted to subpoena Mark Judge. It failed.
The Democratic motion to subpoena Mark Judge is defeated on a party line 11-10 vote.
— Paul McLeod (@pdmcleod) September 28, 2018
Terrible day in America.
Kamala Harris walks out of Senate Judiciary hearing room in disgust. Blumenthal and Hirono follow
— Manu Raju (@mkraju) September 28, 2018
———
All the testimony is in now, and aside from the fact that the American Bar Association is asking for a delay on Kavanaugh’s confirmation until an investigation can be performed, there’s no more news on this. Corker is a yes. Collins, Murkowski, and Flake are “undecided.” We’re at the “think piece” portion of the proceedings, and even that’s likely to be moot later this morning after the Judiciary Committee (presumably) pushes Kavanaugh through.
I don’t have a think piece for you, or in me. There’s nothing at this point that I can write that would make anyone see this any differently. I have no talking points to wield against your Trump supporting co-workers or friends. There’s no new way to see this, or another perspective on it.
In a nutshell, two people gave testimony. The person with the least amount to gain from it asked for an FBI investigation. The person with the most to lose rejected an investigation. Putting aside everything else — Kavanaugh’s histrionics, the conspiracy theories, the yelling, the crying, the entitlement, the lying — and that basically says all there is to be said.
Mark Judge should be questioned by the FBI. Mark Judge should be questioned by the Senators. But, Kavanaugh kept repeating, he signed a statement under the penalty of perjury. Yeah, well, so did Julia Swetnick, and she said that Kavanaugh drugged and raped women. Why does the sworn affidavit of a man who admits to a history of alcoholism and sexual assault — who wrote about it — carry more weight than that of a woman with multiple government security clearances?
Basically, this all boils down to one thing.
“DAMN IT! WHAT PART OF ‘WE ALWAYS GET WHAT WE WANT’ DON’T YOU UNDERSTAND?!” pic.twitter.com/NFBCH5BbrJ
— Brian Stack (@BrianStack153) September 28, 2018
The country is broken. Angry, petulant, entitled white men run it. It will be even more broken if Brett Kavanaugh is rammed through. The only way to fix it is to vote better people into office. The end.