Judiciary Committee Advances Kavanaugh Nom, Seeks Further Probe

The Senate Judiciary Committee today voted to advance Brett Kavanaugh's Supreme Court nomination to the full Senate, but a key Republican on the committee said he was making that vote with the demand that the Senate allow a week for the FBI to investigate the sexual assault allegation against Kavanaugh.

The committee vote was 11-10, with all Republicans voting to advance the nomination and all Democrats voting against it. One Republican, Sen. Jeff Flake of Arizona, was considered a possible no, but before the vote he had announced his support for sending the nomination to the full Senate, leading two sexual assault survivors to confront him in an elevator.

But either they got to him or Democrats on the committee did. Flake, who is not running for reelection and has shown an independent streak, including willingness to criticize Donald Trump, urged for the full Senate vote to be delayed for a week so the FBI could do the investigation. It's already done a background check of Kavanaugh, but that was before the sexual assault accusations emerged. His first accuser, Christine Blasey Ford, testified before the committee Thursday.

Whether the investigation will take place, however, remains up in the air. Committee chairman Chuck Grassley allowed for no debate on the matter and quickly called for a vote before the 1:30 p.m. adjournment time, and the party-line vote came.

Donald Trump, the only one who can order the reopening of the FBI background check, said Friday afternoon that he would, as Senate Republican leaders including Mitch McConnell and John Cornyn endorsed the move, CNBC reports. Flake and Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, who are not in the leadership but considered possible opponents of Kavanaugh, had said they would support the delay. Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia, a red-state Democrat considered a possible supporter of Kavanaugh, also has endorsed further investigation. An initial procedural vote on Kavanaugh's confirmation was expected as early as this weekend, with Republicans hoping to have a final vote Monday or Tuesday. The procedural vote still may happen over the weekend, but the final vote is now unlikely before the end of the week.

Democrats on the committee were obviously frustrated with Grassley's determination to push their body's vote through.

"This Judiciary Committee is no longer an independent branch of government," said Democratic Sen. Patrick Leahy of Vermont. "We are an arm, and a very weak arm, of the Trump White House. Every semblance of independence has disappeared. ... That is something historians will look at, and they'll call it a turning point in the United States Senate." He added that the committee was "doing even worse" than when it considered Anita Hill's accusations of sexual harassment by Clarence Thomas, which came when Thomas was nominated for the Supreme Court in 1991.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein of California, the senior Democrat on the committee, denounced Kavauaugh's behavior in Thursday's hearing. "In the 25 years on this committee, I have never seen a nominee for any position behave in that matter. Judge Kavanaugh used as much political rhetoric as my Republican colleagues," she said. "[Blasey Ford] was poised, she was credible and she should [be] believed."

The meeting was marked by an impassioned speech by Democratic Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey supporting Blasey Ford. The assault, he said, "was seared into her memory. She knows 100 percent [that Kavanaugh was the perpetrator, which he has denied]. And that's credible because she knew him. She didn't need to pick him out of a lineup of teenagers of some random attack. She knew him."

Kavanaugh's testimony, he said, "stands in sharp contrast." Booker said that if he were "being accused of things that were lies," he would seek an independent investigation, which Kavanaugh had so far not endorsed. Now that the FBI background check has been reopened, Kavanaugh will now face further investigation. His friend Mark Judge, who Blasey Ford said was present at the time of the alleged assault, said Friday afternoon that he will cooperate.