October 06, 2018
The vote was about something much bigger than judicial philosophy. It was about whether women can be believed.

WASHINGTON ― The Senate confirmed Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court on Saturday, ending an ugly, painful, weekslong Senate fight over whether women’s sexual misconduct allegations against him were credible and mattered.
Kavanaugh was narrowly confirmed, 50-48. Every Republican but one, Sen. Lisa Murkowski (Alaska), voted for him. Every Democrat but one, Sen. Joe Manchin (W.Va.), voted against him.
The vote would have been 51-49, but Murkowski, whose vote will be recorded as “no,” agreed to vote “present” during the actual vote as a favor to Sen. Steve Daines (R-Mont.), who supports Kavanaugh but was away at his daughter’s wedding. By voting “present,” and with Daines out, the final tally was 50-48. Their paired vote, as it’s called, maintains the same two-vote margin and does not change the outcome.
Kavanaugh’s fate ultimately came down to four senators who were undecided on how they would vote until the very end: Susan Collins (R-Maine), Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.), Murkowski and Manchin. Murkowski was the only one of the four who did not support him.
Yells periodically erupted in the Senate from anti-Kavanaugh protestors during the process.
“Shame on you! Shame on you!” at least one protestor could be heard chanting as they were removed from the gallery.
Democrats had never been particularly happy with Kavanaugh, who was a judge on the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals. They raised concerns about his judicial philosophy and how he would rule on abortion and health care issues. But his nomination blew up completely last month when Dr. Christine Blasey Ford, a California professor, publicly came forward with allegations that Kavanaugh tried to rape her in high school.
Millions of people watched as Ford testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee, describing a 1982 party where a drunk Kavanaugh and his friend, Mark Judge, allegedly pushed her into a room, pinned her down, groped her and covered her mouth when she tried to scream. Her testimony took place as two more women came forward with sexual misconduct allegations against him.
Kavanaugh denied all of the allegations, alternating between crying, yelling and interrupting Senate committee members as they pressed him on Ford’s story. His unhinged behavior raised a fresh round of questions about whether he had the temperament to be a Supreme Court justice. He blamed his rocky confirmation process on politics. He sneered at female senators on the committee. He repeatedly lied under oath about little and big things.
Senate Confirms Brett Kavanaugh To Supreme Court, Rejects Me Too Movement
Yet none of that was enough to sway Republicans to oppose Kavanaugh. Some argued that Ford’s contemporaries couldn’t corroborate her story, despite Ford securing affidavits from four people who said she previously told them about Kavanaugh’s alleged attack. Others said they believed Ford was sexually assaulted by someone, but that it couldn’t have been Kavanaugh.
None of them could answer the question at the heart of their decision to support Kavanaugh: whether they believe Ford is lying, or whether they believe she is telling the truth but that her allegations don’t matter for judging the character of a nominee to a lifetime seat on the Supreme Court.
Meanwhile, Republicans raged against the other women’s accusations. One woman said that in high school, Kavanaugh attended parties where groups of boys would rape girls (though she didn’t say she’d witnessed Kavanaugh himself committing rape). To Republicans ― especially Sen. Lindsey Graham (S.C.) ― this was a straightforward “gang rape” accusation, one so obviously ridiculous that it became a rallying cry.
Ahead of a procedural vote on Friday, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) framed the confirmation fight not only as a battle over the Supreme Court, but as a test of whether the Senate should believe allegations against a nominee that don’t come with firm corroboration.
That, McConnell said, is the statement the Senate will make with its Kavanaugh vote.
“We will either state that partisan politics can override the presumption of innocence, or we will reaffirm that, in the United States of America, everyone is innocent until proven guilty,” he said.
Kavanaugh’s confirmation flies in the face of the cultural and political Me Too movement, which has empowered women in all walks of life to speak out about sexual assault and harassment, especially by men in positions of power. The movement began partly in response to the election of President Donald Trump, who has bragged on tape about sexual assault and been publicly accused of assault or misconduct by more than 20 women.
Collins said Friday that she was confident that Kavanaugh will not overturn Roe v. Wade, the landmark Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion in the U.S. She also said that she believes Ford, but thinks somebody else besides Kavanaugh must have been the perpetrator. This is despite Ford testifying, under oath, that she is “100 percent” sure that Kavanaugh was her attacker.
“We must listen to survivors,” Collins declared Friday in a sweeping Senate floor speech about doing the right thing, moments before pledging to vote for Kavanaugh. “The Me Too movement is real, it matters, it is needed, and it is long overdue.”
Related Stories
Latest News
Top news around the world
Academy Awards

‘Oppenheimer’ Reigns at Oscars With Seven Wins, Including Best Picture and Director

Get the latest news about the 2024 Oscars, including nominations, winners, predictions and red carpet fashion at 96th Academy Awards

Around the World

Politic
Mary Trump 'energized' as uncle 'Donald's campaign spirals into chaos'
Mar 29, 2024
Donald Trump's campaign is in chaos, and his niece says she's energized.Mary Trump, the niece of the former president and a psychologist by trade, has previously been critical of her uncle.On Thursday, she said her uncle's failures are adding up.ALSO READ: A neuroscientist reveals how Trump and Biden's cognitive impairments are different"As the RNC’s fundraising falters and Donald’s campaign spirals into chaos, I am energized!" she said in a Substack post.She then continued:"When Donald dominates the news cycle, it’s hard not to feel overwhelmed. Every bad headline has a negative impact. But then I remember something crucial: There’s usually more to the story than meets the eye. I’m determined to cut through the media noise and share with you all the good that happened this week. These are the headlines we need to remain energized and hopeful that the media largely ignored."Mary Trump goes on to highlight President Joe Biden's recent fundraising hauls."President Biden’s $155 million+ war chest has just received another turbo boost, bringing the total of cash on hand to at least $180 million. (By comparison, between his campaign and the RNC, Donald barely has over $50 million — and continues to drain the accounts to cover his absolutely staggering legal expenses)," she wrote. "This is a development that could significantly increase Biden’s ability to influence the narrative in crucial swing states."This, she says, also tells us a lot about voter excitement for Biden."While critics have expressed doubts about the degree to which the Democratic base is fired up as compared to 2020, today’s $25 million fundraiser, raised with donations ranging from $250 to $500,000, should put any doubts to rest — yes, we are absolutely behind President Biden and Vice President Harris and we’re in this fight until the end," she wrote.Read the full post here.
READ MORE
Celebrity News

> Latest News in Media

Watch It
Ruby Franke’s Husband REVEALS Alleged Rules He Had to Follow at Home | E! News
March 28, 2024
_mU-3lE2QwI
#KenanThompson speaks out following the #QuietonSet documentary. (🎥: Tamron Hall Show) #shorts
March 28, 2024
8AGP-Gfw_Ek
King Charles Shares "Great Sadness" at Missing Royal Appearance | E! News
March 28, 2024
lyizFqf1kQY
Martha Reeves Walk of Fame Ceremony
March 27, 2024
QzyezumEPtQ
Eminem, 50 Cent & Snoop Dogg Present Dr. Dre with a Star on the Walk of Fame
March 19, 2024
4bNLs1hxVp8
Opening Remarks for the Variety Summit October 20th, 2023 Jay Penske
March 18, 2024
c6Z707iLq8E
Montell Jordan Dishes On Young MC Wedding, 'This Is How Date Night' Plans | TMZ
March 28, 2024
G3SMExj-qio
Davina Potratz Says TV Not Helping 'Selling Sunset' Relationship Woes | TMZ
March 28, 2024
D4piy4GNm4k
Logan Paul Rips Graham Bensinger Over Documentary, You Promised Apple TV+ | TMZ Live
March 28, 2024
NiSDpZhZklQ
Prince William pinned royal medal to Spice Girl Mel B’s boobs #shorts
March 28, 2024
O1cQ0UW9pco
Jennifer Garner shares ‘hard’ part of raising her and Ben Affleck’s kids
March 28, 2024
3Q7mZaVUdgc
50 Cent's ex Daphne Joy named as an alleged sex worker in Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs lawsuit #shorts
March 28, 2024
yhLFI8DG9rM
TV Schedule
Late Night Show
Watch the latest shows of U.S. top comedians

Sports

Latest sport results, news, videos, interviews and comments
Latest Events
28
Mar
CHAMPIONS LEAGUE: Playoffs - Women
PSG W - Hacken W
28
Mar
CHAMPIONS LEAGUE: Playoffs - Women
Barcelona W - SK Brann W
27
Mar
CHAMPIONS LEAGUE: Playoffs - Women
Chelsea W - Ajax W
27
Mar
CHAMPIONS LEAGUE: Playoffs - Women
Lyon W - SL Benfica W
17
Mar
SPAIN: La Liga
Atletico Madrid - Barcelona
17
Mar
ENGLAND: FA Cup
Manchester United - Liverpool
17
Mar
ITALY: Serie A
Inter Milan - Napoli
17
Mar
GERMANY: Bundesliga
Borussia Dortmund - Eintracht Frankfurt
17
Mar
ENGLAND: FA Cup
Chelsea - Leicester City
17
Mar
ITALY: Serie A
Roma - Sassuolo
17
Mar
ITALY: Serie A
Verona - AC Milan
17
Mar
ITALY: Serie A
Juventus - Genoa
16
Mar
GERMANY: Bundesliga
Darmstadt - Bayern Munich
16
Mar
ENGLAND: FA Cup
Manchester City - Newcastle United
16
Mar
ENGLAND: Premier League
Fulham - Tottenham Hotspur
16
Mar
SPAIN: La Liga
Osasuna - Real Madrid
13
Mar
CHAMPIONS LEAGUE: 1/8 Final
Atletico Madrid - Inter Milan
12
Mar
CHAMPIONS LEAGUE: 1/8 Final
Barcelona - Napoli
12
Mar
CHAMPIONS LEAGUE: 1/8 Final
Arsenal - Porto
Find us on Instagram
at @feedimo to stay up to date with the latest.
Featured Video You Might Like
zWJ3MxW_HWA L1eLanNeZKg i1XRgbyUtOo -g9Qziqbif8 0vmRhiLHE2U JFCZUoa6MYE UfN5PCF5EUo 2PV55f3-UAg W3y9zuI_F64 -7qCxIccihU pQ9gcOoH9R8 g5MRDEXRk4k
Copyright © 2020 Feedimo. All Rights Reserved.