Over the past two weeks, one story has dominated the news: the controversy surrounding the Judge Brett Kavanaugh and Dr. Christine Blasey Ford hearings. This story has been hard to keep up with, so we have some of the most recent updates to keep you all up to speed.
For those of you who are not familiar with this case, here is a quick rundown of the events that have happened up until now. On July 30, Dr. Ford wrote a letter to Senator Diane Feinstein from California accusing Judge Kavanaugh, President Trump’s nominee to the Supreme Court, of sexual assault when they were in high school. When she wrote this letter, she asked that her identity remain hidden. However, on September 16 Ford came forward and made her identity public after the letter was leaked. She spoke with the Washington Post in an exclusive interview that day and agreed to testify on September 27, after Judge Kavanaugh denied the allegations.
They both gave their opening statements and were questioned by the Senate Judiciary Committee. There has been controversy and many arguments between Republicans and Democrats about the timing of these allegations. Republicans are upset because they think Democrats are just trying to keep Kavanaugh out of the Supreme Court.
The news has most recently revealed to us that President Trump has ordered an FBI investigation of Judge Kavanaugh. This started when Republican Senator Jeff Flake of Arizona pulled his support of Kavanaugh and instead claimed that they should continue to look into the allegations. He was supported by Republican Senators Lisa Murkowski (Alaska) and Susan Collins (Maine). Their call for an investigation created a week delay in the nomination process. Although the nomination is delayed, at this time, Judge Kavanaugh is still up for confirmation. President Trump said that he wanted to make sure that this investigation is limited and takes no longer than a week.
At this time, the Republican Senators still have not yet locked in the 50 votes they would need to confirm Judge Kavanaugh, as some senators have voiced their rejection.
The Senate GOP leaders hoped that the confirmation vote would happen on Tuesday, but the new background check by the FBI will most likely push that to a later date.
We will now wait to see what the FBI comes up with and if they can find any new information. Depending on what they find, the Senate could vote on Judge Kavanaugh as early as next weekend.