Murkowski, key vote in Kavanaugh confirmation, signals support for accuser, FBI probe

Republican senator, Lisa Murkowski

Just days before Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee plan to hold a critical vote on whether to recommend Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh's confirmation to the full Senate, a key swing vote Republican senator, Lisa Murkowski, seemed to suggest that her support for the nominee is wavering.
“We are now in a place where it’s not about whether or not Judge Kavanaugh is qualified,” Murkowski said in an interview on Monday night. “It is about whether or not a woman who has been a victim at some point in her life is to be believed.”
Asked Tuesday about whether an FBI inquiry into the decades-old allegations against Kavanaugh should occur -- a repeated demand by Democratic lawmakers -- Murkowski replied, “It would sure clear up all the questions, wouldn’t it?"
However, Murkowski later told Fox News that she expects Thursday's planned Judiciary Committee hearing, where both Kavanaugh and accuser Christine Blasey Ford are expected to testify, will clear up many of the questions currently surrounding his nomination.
Murkowski's comments seemingly put her at odds with her Republican colleagues in the Senate, including Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, who have said the Senate, not the FBI, has the constitutional duty to investigate the Kavanaugh claims.

“It would sure clear up all the questions, wouldn’t it?"
- Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski, on an FBI probe

The FBI would need explicit White House instruction to conduct a probe into the allegations against Kavanaugh, Fox News has learned, because they fall well outside any applicable statute of limitations for a federal crime.

"We are now in a place where it’s not about whether or not Judge Kavanaugh is qualified," Murkowski said.  (AP, File)

The agency already forwarded the allegations to the White House as part of its background check on Kavanaugh.
"It's totally inappropriate for someone to demand we use law enforcement resources to investigate a 35-year-old allegation when she won't go under oath and can't remember key details including when or where it happened," a federal law enforcement official told Fox News.
Murkowski's office did not immediately reply to a request for further clarification from Fox News on Tuesday.
FLASHBACK: BIDEN, IN 1991, SAYS ONLY PEOPLE WHO DON'T UNDERSTAND 'ANYTHING' WOULD CALL FOR FBI PROBE
Republicans hold a slender 51-49 majority in the Senate, with Vice President Mike Pence available to break any ties. That means if Republicans lose Murkowski's vote, they can't afford any additional defections.
Maine Republican Sen. Susan Collins, another pro-choice Republican moderate, has also vowed to withhold judgment pending a Thursday hearing into the allegations by Ford, the California professor who says Kavanaugh sexually assaulted her when they were in high school.
Neither Collins nor Murkowski sits on the Judiciary Committee, which is now expecting to decide on Friday whether to recommend Kavanaugh's confirmation. The committee's approval is not required for Kavanaugh to advance to a vote of the full Senate and be confirmed; Clarence Thomas, who was accused of sexual harassment, did not secure the committee's approval in 1991.
TOP DEMOCRATIC SENATOR SAYS KAVANAUGH DOESN'T DESERVE DUE PROCESS BECAUSE HE'S A CONSERVATIVE
Despite Murkowski's apparent misgivings, the already-volatile political landscape surrounding Kavanaugh's confirmation could shift drastically again during Thursday's scheduled hearing.
Fox News expects the hearing to begin with opening statements from Grassley and Sen. Dianne Feinstein of California, the top Democrat on the panel.
Ford will give an opening statement with no time limit. Then, a five-minute round of questions for each senator will follow. They can turn over questioning to other counsel, and Republicans are expected to allow Rachel Mitchell, an experienced sex-crimes prosecutor, to handle at least some of their inquiries.
WHO IS RACHEL MITCHELL, THE SEX CRIMES PROSECUTOR HEADLINING THURSDAY'S HEARING?
(As recently as Monday night, Ford's attorneys were suggesting that it is inappropriate for outside counsel to ask questions, and they requested the name of the prosecutor.)
Next up, a statement by Kavanaugh with no time limits will precede a five-minute round of questioning for each senator, Fox News expects. Kavanaugh has repeatedly denied all allegations against him.
PURPORTED WITNESS WHO HAD BACKED FORD DELETES ONLINE ACCOUNT, ADMITS 'NO IDEA' IF ATTACK OCCURRED
Ford's legal team has requested that Mark Judge, a Kavanaugh friend Ford says was in the room when he allegedly assaulted her, be subpoenaed to testify. But Republicans have rejected that request, saying he has already provided a statement under penalty of a felony charge, denying any knowledge of the episode.
Feinstein, who received Ford's allegations in July but did not disclose them to her fellow senators or federal authorities until earlier this month, has called for the hearing to be delayed, citing a new allegation made against Kavanaugh on Sunday in The New Yorker.
The magazine published claims by Deborah Ramirez, a Yale classmate of Kavanaugh who says he exposed himself to her while drunk at a college party in the 1980s. Kavanaugh has denied that allegation, as well as Ford's.
Republicans have accused Feinstein of compromising Ford's desire for anonymity by sitting on the allegations and then leaking them at the last minute for political gain, and have suggested that the lawmaker simply wants to stall a vote on the nomination.
Grassley responded to Feinstein in a letter on Tuesday: "I am not going to silence Dr. Ford after I promised and assured her that I would provide her a safe, comfortable and dignified opportunity to testify. ... There is no reason to delay the hearing any further."
On Tuesday, Feinstein admitted to Fox News that she has "no way of knowing" whether Ford will actually testify Thursday. Ford, through her legal team, has said several times this week she would show up at the hearing, following days of delays and setbacks last week in scheduling the proceedings.
The questioning is expected to center on Ford's claim that Kavanaugh pinned her to a bed and tried to remove her clothes at a Maryland house party when they were teenagers. Ford has said she is unable to recall who owned the house or why there was a gathering there. According to Ford, who says she eventually escaped to a bathroom, Kavanaugh covered her mouth briefly as music blared.
FEINSTEIN: 'I HAVE NO WAY OF KNOWING' WHETHER FORD WILL SHOW AT THE HEARING
Ford told The Washington Post last week that there were a total of "four boys at the party" where the alleged episode occurred, and that two -- Kavanaugh and Judge -- were in the room during her attack. She said that her therapist made an error by indicating she told him in 2012 that all four boys were involved.
Those boys purportedly included Kavanaugh, Judge and another classmate, Patrick Smyth -- all of whom have since denied to the Senate Judiciary Committee, under penalty of felony, any knowledge of the particular party in question or any misconduct by Kavanaugh.
However, a woman, Leland Ingham Keyser, a former classmate of Ford's at the Holton-Arms all-girls school in Maryland, has since been identified by Ford as the fourth witness at the party. In a dramatic twist, Keyser, who has never been describable as a "boy," emerged Saturday night to say she doesn’t know Kavanaugh or remember being at the party with him.
"We’re in the Twilight Zone when it comes to Kavanaugh," Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., told Fox News on Capitol Hill Monday. Later that evening, in an interview with Fox News' "Hannity," Graham said the allegations against Kavanaugh are "collapsing."

Rachel Mitchell, prosecutor experienced in sex-crimes cases, to question Kavanaugh and Ford, Grassley announces

Rachel Mitchell

Senate Republicans announced late Tuesday that Rachel Mitchell, a decorated career sex crimes prosecutor with decades of experience, will handle some of the questioning of Christine Blasey Ford at a scheduled hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday.
Ford, the California professor accusing Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh of sexual assault decades ago, had requested through her attorneys that only senators be able to ask questions at the hearing, in order to avoid a "trial-like" atmosphere.
Senate Democrats are still able to ask their own questions of Ford and Kavanaugh, who is also set to testify Thursday, and some have explicitly said they intend to do so.

"The goal is to de-politicize the process and get to the truth."
- Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa

KEY SWING VOTE REPUBLICAN SEN. MURKOWSKI SHOWS SIGNS OF WAVERING ON KAVANAUGH
Saying he wants the hearing to be a "safe, comfortable, and dignified" environment, Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley wrote in a statement that Mitchell's presence would help take politics out of the proceedings.
"The goal is to de-politicize the process and get to the truth, instead of grandstanding and giving senators an opportunity to launch their presidential campaigns," Grassley, R-Iowa, wrote. "I’m very appreciative that Rachel Mitchell has stepped forward to serve in this important and serious role."
Grassley then took a more explicit shot at the conduct of Senate Democrats at Kavanaugh's confirmation hearings earlier this month. During those proceedings, Cory Booker, D-N.J., suggested that he would be expelled from the Senate for releasing confidential committee documents, and compared himself to the gladiator Spartacus.
WATCH: TOP DEM ASKS KAVANAUGH IF HE EVER HAD IMPROPER MUELLER CONVERSATIONS, REFUSES TO CLARIFY QUESTION
"I promised Dr. Ford that I would do everything in my power to avoid a repeat of the ‘circus’ atmosphere in the hearing room that we saw the week of September 4," Grassley wrote. "I’ve taken this additional step to have questions asked by expert staff counsel to establish the most fair and respectful treatment of the witnesses possible."
Mitchell, who has been a prosecutor since 1993 and won several awards for her legal service, is currently on leave as the deputy county attorney in the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office in Phoenix and the division chief of the Special Victims Division, according to Grassley's office. She has overseen prosecutions of a variety of sex-related offenses, including child molestation, sexual assault, and domestic violence.
The county prosecutor's office is entirely distinct from the sheriff's office in Maricopa County, which was led by Joe Arpaio until last year.
Fox News has been told Grassley and Feinstein are expected to give opening statements to kick off Thursday's hearing, followed by Christine Blasey Ford, who would speak with no time limit.
That would be followed by a round of five-minute questioning periods for each senator, who could turn over questioning to other counsel. The process would repeat for Kavanaugh.
As recently as Monday night, Ford's attorneys have suggested that it would be inappropriate for outside counsel to ask questions. 
Maine Republican Sen. Susan Collins, considered a key potential swing vote on Kavanaugh's confirmation, had suggested the use of outside counsel to question Ford last week, saying the optics of having the all-male Republican contingent from the Judiciary Committee would be undesirable. 
Kavanaugh has repeatedly denied all allegations against him. Deborah Ramirez, a former classmate of Kavanaugh's at Yale University who this week also accused him of sexual misconduct, reportedly has not responded to Judiciary Committee inquiries or White House overtures to also testify at the hearing.
The questioning Thursday will center on Ford's claim that Kavanaugh pinned her to a bed and tried to remove her clothes at a Maryland house party when they were teenagers. Ford has said she is unable to recall who owned the house or why there was a gathering there. According to Ford, who says she eventually escaped to a bathroom, Kavanaugh covered her mouth briefly as music blared.
DEM ON JUDICIARY COMMITTEE: KAVANAUGH DOESN'T DESERVE DUE PROCESS BECAUSE HE'S CONSERVATIVE

"We’re in the Twilight Zone when it comes to Kavanaugh."
- Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C.

Ford told The Washington Post last week that there were a total of "four boys at the party" where the alleged episode occurred, and that two -- Kavanaugh and friend Mark Judge -- were in the room during her attack. She said that her therapist made an error by indicating she told him in 2012 that all four boys were involved.
Those boys purportedly included Kavanaugh, Judge and another classmate, Patrick Smyth -- all of whom have since denied to the Senate Judiciary Committee, under penalty of felony, any knowledge of the particular party in question or any misconduct by Kavanaugh.
However, a woman, Leland Ingham Keyser, a former classmate of Ford's at the Holton-Arms all-girls school in Maryland, has since been identified by Ford as the fourth witness at the party. In a dramatic twist, Keyser, who has never been describable as a "boy," emerged Saturday night to say she doesn’t know Kavanaugh or remember being at the party with him.
Washington Post spokeswoman Kristine Coratti Kelly told Fox News that Keyser went unmentioned in the original story on Ford's accusations because she was unreachable, and that the article was not intended to provide a comprehensive tally of everyone at the party.
GRASSLEY UNLOADS ON FEINSTEIN FOR SITTING ON ACCUSATIONS: 'I CANNOT OVERSTATE HOW DISAPPOINTED I AM'
"We didn’t name Keyser in the original story because we had not reached her for comment by that time, as the story indicates," Kelly said in an email. "The story never addressed how many girls were at the party. The story addressed the question of how many boys were in the room with her – in the context of Ford’s explanation for what she was said was an error in her therapist’s notes."
However, the letter sent by Ford to Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., in July that outlined her allegations said: "The assault occurred in a suburban Maryland area home at a gathering that included me and four others."
Feinstein did not report that letter to her colleagues or federal authorities until earlier this month, after a leak describing the letter appeared in The Intercept. Republicans have accused Democrats of orchestrating that leak for political gain only days before a key vote on Kavanaugh's confirmation.
"We’re in the Twilight Zone when it comes to Kavanaugh," Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., told Fox News on Capitol Hill Monday. Later that evening, in an interview with Fox News' "Hannity," Graham said the allegations against Kavanaugh are "collapsing."

 

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Trump doubles down on support for Kavanaugh, blames Dems for trying to destroy 'wonderful man'

President Donald Trump reaffirmed his support for Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh in a tweet late Monday and blamed Democrats for working to destroy a “wonderful man” by casting a series of “false acquisitions.”
The support comes amid new allegations of decades-old sexual misconduct against the nominee.
“The Democrats are working hard to destroy a wonderful man, and a man who has the potential to be one of our greatest Supreme Court Justices ever, with an array of False Acquisitions the likes of which have never been seen before,” Trump tweeted.
Christine Blasey Ford has accused Kavanaugh of covering her mouth and trying to remove her clothing at a party in the early 1980s, when they were both in high school. The New Yorker reported allegations from Debbie Ramirez on Sunday, who claimed Kavanaugh exposed himself to her during a party at Yale University when he was a freshman.
Michael Avenatti, the attorney for porn star Stormy Daniels, said he has information that Kavanaugh and high school friend Mark Judge had plied women with drugs and alcohol at parties so other men could gang rape them. Kavanuagh called the allegations "totally false and outrageous."
In an exclusive interview with Fox News’ Martha MacCallum on Monday, Kavanaugh denied the allegations against him and said he wants a “fair process where I can defend my integrity, and I know I'm telling the truth.”
"What I know is the truth, and the truth is I've never sexually assaulted anyone," Kavanaugh said. "I want a fair process where I can defend my integrity, and I know I'm telling the truth. I know my lifelong record, and I'm not going to let false accusations drive me out of this process. I have faith in God and I have faith in the fairness of the American people."
Kavanagh and Ford are set to testify at a hearing on Thursday after days of back-and-forth negotiations between Ford's legal team and Senate Republicans.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, who delivered a nationally televised speech on the Senate floor Monday defending Kavanaugh, vowed an up-or-down vote on the nominee after the planned hearing on Thursday.
“This shameful smear campaign has hit a new low," McConnell said, recalling that Democrats had promised to stop a generational rightward shift on the Supreme Court by "any means" available. "Senate Democrats are trying to destroy a man’s personal and professional life."
McConnell also reiterated that none of the allegations against Kavanaugh -- including the claims published Sunday in The New Yorker and last week by The Washington Post -- had any first-hand corroboration.
Republicans on the Judiciary Committee do not expect, however, to be able to vote on Kavanaugh's confirmation until Friday at the absolute earliest. That would almost certainly mean that the Supreme Court would be without a ninth justice when its next term begins Oct. 1, a date set by federal law.

Judge appears ready to dismiss Stormy Daniels lawsuit against Trump: report

Adult film actress Stormy Daniels, speaks during a ceremony for her receiving a City Proclamation and Key to the City in West Hollywood, Calif.  (AP)

A U.S. federal judge in Los Angeles on Monday appeared poised to throw out adult film actress Stormy Daniel’s defamation lawsuit against President Donald Trump on free-speech grounds, Reuters reported. 
Daniels, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford, sued the president in April over a tweet in which he denied her claims of being subtly threatened by a man in a Las Vegas parking lot in 2011.
TRUMP MOCKS STORMY DANIELS' SKETCH OF 'NONEXISTENT' HARASSER: 'TOTAL CON JOB'
Daniels said the man was threatening her for going public about an alleged sexual encounter with Trump in 2006. Trump has denied the affair took place, and cast doubt on her story of being threatened.
“A sketch years later about a nonexistent man. A total con job, playing the Fake News Media for Fools (but they know it)!” Trump tweeted.
Daniels’ attorney Michael Avenatti said the tweet damaged her credibility by portraying her as a liar. Trump’s attorneys have asked a federal judge in Los Angeles to dismiss the suit.

To allow the complaint to go forward and to have one consider this to be defamatory in the context it was made would have a chilling effect.
- U.S. District Judge James Otero

Judge S. James Otero said Monday that the U.S. Constitution’s guarantee of free-speech protects Trump from defamation, but did not issue a formal ruling.
“To allow the complaint to go forward and to have one consider this to be defamatory in the context it was made would have a chilling effect,” Otero said during the hearing.
Avenatti told reporters he expects a ruling within days and plans to appeal if the suit is dismissed.

File: Michael Avenatti, the attorney for porn actress Stormy Daniels replies to questions by reporters during a news conference in front of the U.S. Federal Courthouse in Los Angeles.  (AP)

Otero scheduled a hearing Dec. 3 to discuss Trump’s efforts to dismiss another lawsuit by Daniels over a hush-money agreement related to their alleged affair.
Daniels sued Trump and his former lawyer Michael Cohen, who negotiated the deal, so she could speak publicly about the alleged affair without fear of reprisal. Cohen had threatened to sue her for $20 million.
COMPANY SET UP BY MICHAEL COHEN OFFERS TO DROP STORMY DANIEL’S HUSH-MONEY AGREEMENT
Lawyers for Trump and Cohen now say the deal that paid Daniels $130,000 to keep quiet was invalid and they won't sue her for breaking it. Cohen has pleaded guilty to campaign finance violations for arranging payments to both Daniels and a former Playboy model to influence the election.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Bradford Betz is an editor for Fox News. Follow him on Twitter @bradford_betz.

Ted Cruz heckled by protesters in DC restaurant: video

Republican U.S. Senator Ted Cruz takes part in a debate for the Texas U.S. Senate with Democratic Rep. Beto O'Rourke, in Dallas.  (AP)

A group of protesters in Washington, D.C., shouted down Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and his wife in a restaurant Monday night, according to video footage that was posted on Twitter.
The group appeared to chastise Cruz over Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh, who is facing multiple sexual assault allegations. Two one-minute video clips were posted to the Twitter page of a group called “Smash Racism DC.”
The group’s Facebook page states that it is “united” in the fight against the “Nazis, Ku Klux Klan.”
In the first video clip, a group of protesters approach Cruz and his wife at a restaurant table, repeatedly shouting, “We believe survivors!”
“Hi, I’d love to talk to with about Brett Kavanaugh tonight. I’m a constituent, love to know what your vote is gonna be tonight. I know that you’re very close friends with Mr. Kavanaugh,” says a woman off camera. “Do you believe survivors?”
“Senator, I have a right to know what your position is on Brett Kavanaugh,” she continues.
“God bless you, mam,” Cruz says amid the shouts.
“Bless you as well, I really appreciate you,” the woman responds. “I’m a survivor of sexual assault, mam. I believe all survivors. There are now three people who have come forward and who have said that Brett Kavanaugh has attacked them. I know that you’re close friends with him. Could you talk to him about that? Could you talk to him about his position?”
Cruz then appears to get up and head for the exit with his wife.
“How are you gonna vote sir?” the woman asks.
In the second video, the protesters continue shouting, “We believe survivors!” as Cruz is seen struggling to get through the crowd.
“Beto’s way hotter than you, dude!” says one protestor off camera, in reference to Democratic congressman Beto O’Rourke, Cruz’s challenger for his U.S. Senate seat.
“Excuse me, let my wife through,” Cruz says to the hostile crowd.
As Cruz nears the exit a woman is heard shouting, “Are you going to confirm your best friend Kavanaugh?”
Another protester shouts: “Sexist, racist, anti-gay!”
When Cruz leaves the restaurant, the protesters cheer. A restaurant worker appears, telling the group to leave.
Cruz has pushed for Christine Blasey Ford, one of Kavanaugh’s accusers, to testify in public, according to The Texas Tribune.
"These allegations are serious and deserve to be treated with respect," Cruz said in a statement. "Professor Ford should have a full opportunity to tell her story before the Judiciary Committee, and Judge Kavanaugh should have a full opportunity to defend himself. That hearing should be sooner, rather than later, so the committee can make the best assessment possible of the allegations."
Cruz's office did not immediately respond to Fox News' request for comment.
Bradford Betz is an editor for Fox News. Follow him on Twitter @bradford_betz.

Avenatti says more Kavanaugh accusations will go public within 48 hours: 'I state facts and have evidence to back it up'

Michael Avenatti, the lawyer for adult-film star Stormy Daniels in her lawsuit against President Trump, now says he has a client who will reveal allegations against embattled Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh within 48 hours -- shortly before Kavanaugh is set to testify in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee amid other sexual misconduct accusations.
"Let me just be really clear about something," Avenatti said in an interview with CNN on Monday night. "They know that I do not traffic in rumor and nonsense. I state facts and I have evidence to back it up. I would not make these allegations lightly."
Earlier Monday, Avenatti said that the unnamed woman knew Kavanaugh around the time of high school but attended a different school. The woman, according to the attorney, has had multiple security clearances from the U.S. government, including the State Department and Justice Department.
"I’m highly confident in the accusations that are going to be made by my client," Avenatti said. "As it relates to the woman whose name will be publicly disclosed, multiple security clearances have been issued by the federal government."
Asked if he was prepared to prove his client's allegations, Avenatti said that "it is our burden. We are going to embrace and meet it."
In a separate interview Monday night on MSNBC, Avenatti said he thought "there very well may be a criminal complaint relating to this conduct."
Kavanaugh has been accused of committing sexual misconduct decades ago by Christine Blasey Ford and Deborah Ramirez. He has denied all the claims.
Ford said a friend of Kavanaugh's, Mark Judge, witnessed her alleged assault. Judge denied it as well.
GOP SENATORS DEFEND KAVANAUGH: 'WE'RE IN THE TWILIGHT ZONE HERE'
Avenatti revealed new claims Sunday on Twitter. His client, he said, had knowledge of Kavanaugh, Judge and others in high school "targeting women with alcohol/drugs in order to allow a ‘train’ of men to subsequently gang rape them."
Kavanaugh elaborated on his denials in an exclusive Fox News interview on Monday, while explaining the environment where he grew up.
"Yes, there were parties and the drinking age was 18 and yes, the seniors were legal and had beer there," he said. "And, yes, people might have had too many beers on occasion ... I think all of us have probably done things we look back on in high school and regret or cringe a bit. But that's not what we're talking about. We're talking about an allegation of sexual assault. I've never sexually assaulted anyone."
Avenatti wasn't buying the judge's explanation.
"I think it's just absolutely unbelievable and I think the American people are smarter than this," he said.

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