Mike Pence should be waiting in case a decisive vote in the Kavanaugh vote is needed



[ad_1]

More than three months of dramas and controversies over the future of the Supreme Court are expected to end in the next 36 hours. The Senate will decide Friday morning to send President Brett Kavanaugh's candidacy to the final vote, scheduled early Saturday night. Republicans control Senators 51 to 49, so the government can not afford to vote "no" by one of its senators.

Three Republican senators are considered undecided: Senators Susan Collins, Jeff Flake and Lisa Murkowski. According to sources, CBS News Vice President Mike Pence will be in Washington this weekend, in case his vote is needed to break the tie.

On Friday, we should know once and for all if Kavanaugh has the support he needs to be confirmed, because the way the few remaining undecided senators vote to end today's debate might indicate how they plan to vote Saturday on the final confirmation. Forces on both sides relied on the pressure until the end.

In the last offer before the vote, anti-Kavanaugh protesters spent the night on the Capitol site, under the impetus of Democrats. His confirmation is now based on a Democrat and three Republicans.

According to a summary released overnight by the Judiciary Committee of the Senate, the The FBI interviewed 10 people who could have had first-hand knowledge of allegations of sexual assault by doctors Christine Blasey Ford and Deborah Ramirez.

For Ford, the FBI spoke with three people who it said were present at the party in question: Mark Judge, P.J. Smyth and Leyland Keyser. They also discussed with Timothy Gaudette and Christopher Garrett, Kavanaugh's classmates about his calendars.

The FBI also interviewed Ramirez, as well as two eyewitnesses named by Ramirez, as well as his close friend of the college. According to the Republican summary, the FBI found no corroboration of Ford's or Ramirez's allegations.

Yet North Dakota Democrat Heidi Heitkamp announced that she was a "no".

"I can not get up in the morning and look at the experience of my life and say yes to Judge Kavanaugh," said Heitkamp.

Kavanaugh, who denied the charges, wrote an editorial Thursday night, admitting that he "could have been sometimes too emotional, I know my tone was sharp, and I said a few things that I'm not sure about." 39, should not have said ". He wrote that it "reflected my overwhelming frustration of being wrongly accused".

Ford's lawyers called the investigation "a stain on the process" because the FBI "refused to interview" friends and others who could have saved it.

"The report ignores some of the absolutely crucial witnesses," said Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal.

CBS News confirmed that the FBI had limited its field of action to Republicans and the White House.

Answering the question as to why the FBI did not interview people entrusted by Ford, Republican Senator Mike Lee responded: "Our request has been addressed to the White House of sexual misconduct. ;did. "

Lee's comments reflect how vague the Republicans and the White House have been about the FBI's orders. To give you an idea of ​​the intensity of last-minute lobbying, the White House, former President George W. Bush and other heavyweights all made phone calls to confirm confirmation of Kavanaugh.

© 2018 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved.

[ad_2]
Source link