“I do not regret my vote in the least.”
— Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME), in an interview with the New York Times, on her vote to confirm Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh.
White House Thinks Kavanaugh Will Save Immigration Plan
“The Trump administration expects to be sued over its draconian new immigration plan, which may be unveiled as soon as Thursday afternoon… but with Justice Brett Kavanaugh now on the Supreme Court, it expects to win,” NBC News reports.
“In the weeks before the midterms, even those Trump administration officials who fought bitterly with each other over how to curtail illegal immigration learned they could agree on a few things.”
“First, of the measures most likely to be approved by the president, all were likely to lead to a lawsuit. But second, when sued, they believed they would ultimately prevail. According to the two senior officials, they think that with Kavanaugh in place, the Supreme Court will rule in their favor.”
Kavanaugh Hailed as Hero at Georgetown Prep
New York Times: “At one point during the football game, Justice Kavanaugh prepared to pose for a picture with former classmates. First, though, he instructed everyone to put down their beers.”
Just a Quarter Think Kavanaugh Was Truthful
A new AP-NORC poll finds just 1 in 4 people thinks Brett Kavanaugh was completely honest when he heatedly rebuffed charges of sexual assault and heavy drinking during his Supreme Court confirmation hearing.
Kavanaugh Is a Net Negative for GOP In Midterms
A new Washington Post/ABC News poll finds that slightly more American voters say the debate over Brett Kavanaugh’s nomination to the Supreme Court makes them more inclined to support Democrats for Congress than Republicans, 33% to 27% with another 39% say it makes no difference.
Women say the episode draws them toward Democrats over Republicans by a 16-point margin, 40% to 24%, while men are more evenly split, 25% to 30%.
Kavanaugh Not Popular In Middle America
First Read: “For all of the talk and evidence of how the fight over Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh has fired up voters in the reddest of red states, our three NBC/Marist polls this week of Nevada, Minnesota and Wisconsin show that he’s not popular with the middle of the country.”
“What’s more, independent voters in all three states break for the candidate opposing Kavanaugh — 36% to 32% in Nevada; 47% to 22% in Minnesota; and 41% to 28% in Wisconsin.”
Kavanaugh Unlikely to Heed Calls for Recusal
Justice Brett Kavanaugh “is unlikely to heed calls by critics to step aside from certain politically charged U.S. Supreme Court cases in which his fairness and independence might be questioned after a divisive confirmation fight,” Reuters reports.
”U.S. law requires justices to step aside when there is a conflict of interest or genuine question of bias, but it leaves the recusal decision in the hands of the individual justices.”
Brett Kavanaugh Didn’t Buy His Domain Name
“Don’t expect to find any flattering biographical information about newly-minted Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh on his namesake website domain,” the HuffPost reports.
“Instead, visitors to BrettKavanaugh.com are invited to click on links to resources for survivors of sexual assault.”
Kavanaugh Fight Energized Democrats More
Politico: “Republicans are touting the confirmation of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh as rocket fuel for the GOP grass roots in next month’s midterm elections, but it’s Democrats who appear more energized by the nomination fight, according to a new Politico/Morning Consult poll.”
”Kavanaugh’s confirmation is not popular: In the poll, which was conducted entirely after last week’s Senate vote, 46 percent of voters said the Senate ‘made the wrong decision’ in approving the controversial judge, while 40 percent said it was right to elevate him to the high court.”
”And following the GOP-led effort to push through his nomination, enthusiasm among Democratic voters has surged. More than 3 in 4 Democrats (77 percent) say they are ‘very motivated’ to turn out and vote in the midterms — more than the 68 percent of Republicans who say they’re ‘very motivated.‘“
The Kavanaugh Cash Surge
“The Brett Kavanaugh confirmation fight has led to a huge increase in donations to Democrats and groups that support them — and Republicans say the battle has been good for their fundraising, too,” Axios reports.
“It’s tangible evidence that the bitter Supreme Court showdown is turning into massive energy for the midterm elections. Republicans have said a ‘Brett bounce’ is increasing enthusiasm among their base, but the fundraising numbers suggest that Democrats are also fired up and throwing all the money they can at the elections.”
“Money isn’t everything, but it’s a good sign that Kavanaugh is going to drive a lot of angry voters to the polls on Nov. 6.”
Majority Oppose Kavanaugh
A new CNN poll finds that 51% of Americans oppose Brett Kavanaugh’s confirmation to the Supreme Court, up from 39% who opposed it in early September, after his initial confirmation hearing but before accusations of sexual misconduct emerged.
Support for Kavanaugh’s confirmation has merely inched up, by contrast, from 38% backing him in early September to 41% now.
Key finding: “All told, 52% of Americans say they believe the women accusing Kavanaugh of sexual misconduct over the judge’s denials of those accusations (38% said they believed him more than the women). And half (50%) said they thought he lied about his alcohol use as a young adult, more than thought he was telling the truth about it (37%).”
Trump Certain Kavanaugh Didn’t Assault Ford
President Trump said he’s “a hundred percent” certain that Christine Blasey Ford named the wrong person when she said Brett Kavanaugh sexually assaulted her, the HuffPost reports.
Said Trump: “This is one of the reasons I chose him is because there is no one with a squeaky clean past like Brett Kavanaugh. We’re very honored that he was able to withstand this horrible, horrible attack by the Democrats.”
Trump also insisted women were “extremely happy” about Kavanaugh’s confirmation because they’re apparently relieved the men in their lives are less likely now to be accused of sexual assault.
Collins Says She Didn’t Believe Kavanaugh Accuser
Sen. Susan Collins explicitly told CNN that she does not believe Christine Blasey Ford’s sexual assault allegation against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh.
Said Collins: “I found Dr. Ford’s testimony to be heart-wrenching, painful, compelling, and I believe that she believes what she testified to.”
But she added: “I’m 100 percent certain that this did not happen.”
Democrats Say Avenatti Undercut Their Case
“Senate Democrats believed they had Brett Kavanaugh on the ropes… Then came Michael Avenatti,” CNN reports.
“The combative lawyer… revealed a stunning new allegation: A woman, Julie Swetnick, said she had witnessed the Supreme Court nominee attending more than 10 house parties… She also alleged that at some parties, boys lined up by a bedroom to ‘gang-rape’ incapacitated girls and claimed those in the lineup included Kavanaugh and Judge.”
“But the eye-popping nature of those claims suddenly gave Republicans an opportunity to shift the narrative away from Ford’s allegations and make a broader case that the growing accusations of sexual misconduct amounted to an orchestrated Democratic smear campaign, something Sen. Susan Collins, the swing GOP vote, cited herself when announcing she’d be the decisive vote to support Kavanaugh’s confirmation.”
Collins Will Vote for Kavanaugh
Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) announced that she will vote in favor of Brett Kavanaugh’s nomination to the U.S. Supreme Court.
After her speech, Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) said he would also support Kavanaugh.
That means Republican leaders now have 51 committed votes to confirm Kavanaugh.
Did Brett Kavanaugh’s Op-Ed Help?
First Read: “The good news for Kavanaugh is that he wrote the op-ed, acknowledging that his tone last Thursday was way off key. But here’s the bad news about the op-ed: It was poorly placed (why the conservative Wall Street Journal opinion pages and not, say, USA Today?); it didn’t spell out what he wants to dial back; and it neglects to mention that he wrote those opening remarks himself — the day before his testimony.”
“The question you have to ask yourself after reading the op-ed: Does Kavanaugh truly believe he was wrong to say the things he said at the hearing? Or does he just wish he hadn’t said them? Remember, Kavanaugh’s past partisanship (hello, Ken Starr) was always one of the most problematic parts of his resume before Christine Blasey Ford.”
Durbin Still Sees ‘Fire’ In Kavanaugh’s Eyes
Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) told CBS News that he will never forget the “fire” in Judge Brett Kavanaugh’s eyes during last week’s dramatic hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee.
Said Durbin: “I understand his emotion and his anger. This has to be a terrible ordeal for him and his family and I understand that part. But the fire in his eyes when he turned into this partisan screed is something I’m not going to forget. I cannot imagine a Supreme Court justice who would be so partisan, make such wild claims, and then ask to be put on a bench and trusted his temperament.”
Quote of the Day
“I’m glad he picked him. I swear to God, there was a time I thought he would pick Judge Judy.”
— Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), quoted by the Washington Post, praising President Trump’s pick of Brett Kavanaugh for the Supreme Court.
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