[ad_1]
The national tragedy began on Thursday when Kavanaugh testified before the Judiciary Committee and categorically denied the psychologist Christine Blasey Ford's assertion that he had sexually assaulted her in high school in the early 1980s. Nielsen estimated that viewers were exceeding the 20 million people, the public equivalent for a playoff football game or the Oscars. Travelers have heard of row after row of plane passengers with the audience on their screens in flight.
On Friday, Arizona Senator Jeff Flake signed a "last minute" deal with Delaware Democrat Chris Coons, which delayed the Senate vote on Kavanaugh's appointment. Senator GOP, an open critic of Trump who decided not to be re-elected in the face of a likely defeat, told the Atlantic that he hoped that a week-long investigation could "bring some unity" and let the Democrats be worthy of the institution. "
On Saturday, NBC announced that Julie Swetnick, a woman represented by her lawyer, Michael Avenatti, accusing Kavanaugh of being brought forward as a result of a sexual assault while she was a high school student, would not be interviewed and that a list of witnesses that they are allowed to interview. The Wall Street Journal Anonymous sources also indicated that the investigation was "tightly controlled" by the White House, excluding Swetnick. While senators had called for an inquiry "limited to current credible allegations", it was expected that investigators themselves would make the decisions about whom to interview.
California Senator Dianne Feinstein, a member of the Democratic Committee on the Judiciary, quickly tweeted: "The hands of the FBI should not be linked to this investigation. We need the facts. "
Just hours after the NBC report, President Trump told the press that the FBI had "a free hand" in the investigation. Later, he tweeted a rebuttal criticizing NBC and added, "I want them to interview those they deem appropriate, at their discretion.
So what is the truth? Does the White House impose limits on who can be questioned?
Sarah Huckabee Sanders, Press Secretary White House Fox News Sunday, also denied any political control and pointed to the Senate's request for a limited inquiry: "The White House does not micromanage this process. The Senate dictates the conditions. They submitted the application. We opened it. As you have heard from the President, do what you need to do. The FBI is what they do, and we allow them to do that. But she also added, "This can not become a fishing expedition as Democrats would like it. "
When host Chris Wallace asked if the White House lawyer had provided a list of authorized witnesses, Sanders replied, "Not to my knowledge. The White House Council has authorized the Senate to dictate what these terms and the scope of the investigation look like. "
Source link
