SEPTEMBER 22 AND 23, 2018


NEWS AND VIEWS


ANOTHER WOMAN IS NOW ACCUSING KAVANAUGH AND JUDGE OF SEXUAL MISCONDUCT. MAYBE THEY WERE GOOD FRIENDS AND WENT OUT DRINKING A GOOD DEAL, THUS WERE TOGETHER IN MORE THAN ONE SITUATION.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/powerpost/as-hearing-on-kavanaugh-assault-allegations-loom-senators-seem-unwilling-to-budge/2018/09/23/99f3fd3e-bf37-11e8-90c9-23f963eea204_story.html
PowerPost
Senate Judiciary panel’s top Democrat calls for delay in Kavanaugh hearing after new allegation
By Karoun Demirjian ,
Amy Gardner and
Seung Min Kim
September 23 at 10:17 PM

Sen. Dianne Feinstein, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee, called late Sunday for a delay in further consideration of Supreme Court nominee Brett M. Kavanaugh after a second woman accused him of sexual misconduct.

“I am writing to request an immediate postponement of any further proceedings related to the nomination of Brett Kavanaugh,” Feinstein (Calif.) wrote in a letter to Sen. Charles E. Grassley (R-Iowa), the committee’s chairman.

Her letter came after the New Yorker magazine reported that Deborah Ramirez, a classmate of Kavanaugh’s at Yale University, said he exposed himself at a party when they were both first-year students.

Ramirez, who told the magazine that they both had been drinking at the time of the incident, acknowledged some gaps in her memory but said she remembered another student shouting Kavanaugh’s name.

“I would think an F.B.I. investigation would be warranted,” Ramirez said.

In a statement issued by the White House, Kavanaugh denied the accusation and called it “a smear, plain and simple.”

“I look forward to testifying on Thursday about the truth, and defending my good name — and the reputation for character and integrity I have spent a lifetime building — against these last-minute allegations,” he said in the statement.

The new accusation further roiled Kavanaugh’s nomination hours after the Senate Judiciary Committee had agreed to allow Christine Blasey Ford to testify Thursday about her claim that Kavanaugh sexually assaulted her when they were teenagers.

In her letter, Feinstein asked “that the newest allegations of sexual misconduct be referred to the FBI for investigation, and that you join our request for the White House to direct the FBI to investigate the allegations of Christine Blasey Ford as well as these new claims.”

Grassley did not immediately respond to Feinstein’s call for a delay. Spokesman Taylor Foy said the majority Republican committee staff learned about Ramirez’s allegations from Sunday evening’s New Yorker article. Neither Ramirez nor her attorney have contacted the chairman’s office, Foy said, adding Democrats never informed the GOP staff of these allegations.

“It increasingly appears that they are more interested in a political takedown than pursuing allegations through a bipartisan and professional investigative process,” Foy said in a statement. “Of course, we will attempt to evaluate these new claims.”

Supreme Court nominee Brett M. Kavanaugh has repeatedly denied allegations that he sexually assaulted California professor Christine Blasey Ford when both were teenagers. (J. Scott Applewhite/AP)

Republicans had agreed to ­delay a committee vote on ­Kavanaugh’s confirmation until after the hearing with Ford took place, but many members of the GOP have said they are eager to move on with the process. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) spoke confidently Friday, telling a group of conservative activists, “In the very near future, Judge Kavanaugh will be on the United States Supreme Court.”

Before Ramirez’s allegation was made public, some Republican senators indicated that they were unlikely to waver in their support for Kavanaugh.

“What am I supposed to do, go and ruin this guy’s life based on an accusation?” Sen. Lindsey O. Graham (R-S.C.) said on “Fox News Sunday.” Ford’s allegations that Kavanaugh assaulted her at a party in the early 1980s would be too thin to hold up in court, Graham said. “I don’t know when it happened, I don’t know where it happened, and everybody named in regard to being there said it didn’t happen. I’m just being honest: Unless there’s something more, no, I’m not going to ruin Judge Kavanaugh’s life over this.”

Democrats insisted Sunday that Kavanaugh’s denials were not believable and that a public appearance would do little to sway their support for Ford.

“There are so many indications of his own lack of credibility,” Sen. Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii) said of Kavanaugh on CNN’s “State of the Union.” Her concerns about Kavanaugh’s “very ideological agenda” and “inability to be fair,” she said, predate Ford’s allegations.

[Republican senators rush to Kavanaugh’s defense after sexual misconduct allegation]

The New Yorker reported that at least four Democratic senators were aware of Ramirez’s account and at least two had begun investigating it.

A spokesman for Feinstein said Sunday night that “we didn’t receive details of this allegation.”

The magazine described an incident in which a male student exposed himself to Ramirez during a party. She acknowledged lapses in her memory of the episode but said she remembered Kavanaugh standing to her right and laughing while he pulled up his pants, according to the magazine.

In a statement, White House spokeswoman Kerri Kupec said the administration “stands firmly behind Judge Kavanaugh” and described Ramirez’s claim as “uncorroborated” and part of a “coordinated smear campaign” by Democrats.

The claim “is wholly inconsistent with what many women and men who knew Judge Kavanaugh at the time in college say,” she said.

A senior White House official also said the president wants to stick with Kavanaugh and believes people are out to smear him.

Ramirez’s allegation surfaced as attorney Michael Avenatti, who represents adult-film star Stormy Daniels, claimed on Twitter that he has a client with information about misconduct by Kavanaugh in high school. An aide to Grassley confirmed that the committee was reaching out to Avenatti for more information.

“The three ring circus Democrats have demanded,” Antonia Ferrier, a spokeswoman for McConnell, wrote in a tweet of Avenatti’s emergence in the nomination fight.

Ford’s attorneys said Sunday that they agreed to the hearing despite the committee’s refusal to let her speak after Kavanaugh’s testimony, interview other people she identified as present at the party where the alleged assault took place, or ask the FBI to look into her allegations in advance of her appearance. Senate Democratic leaders sent a letter to President Trump on Sunday urging him to direct the FBI to conduct an investigation into Ford’s claims, arguing it would take only a few days.

Ford’s lawyers also said they had not been told whether the Republican senators on the committee would themselves ask Ford questions or defer to staff or an independent lawyer to question her. It is customary that senators ask their own questions during public hearings. But there is a potential political risk if the all-male, all-white roster of Republicans on the panel — few of whom have any experience questioning sexual assault victims — grills Ford in a way that reminds viewers of 1991, when Anita Hill told the panel that Supreme Court nominee Clarence Thomas had repeatedly sexually harassed her. Thomas was confirmed.

“The Anita Hill hearing was a disaster, but they did have an FBI investigation; they did have other witnesses,” Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.) said Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” charging that Republican senators had “predetermined the outcome” and set up a “he said, she said” showdown around Ford’s allegations.

“The Senate, Congress, failed the test in 1991,” Murray continued. “How the Senate handles this, and the Senate Republicans handle this, will be a test of this time, in 2018, in the ‘Me Too’ movement, can we do better? And I feel we are failing that if we don’t do it correctly.”

Ford alleges that Kavanaugh pinned her on a bed, drunkenly groped her, tried to take off her clothes and put his hand over her mouth when she tried to scream. Ford said a friend of Kavanaugh, Mark Judge, was in the room — but neither he nor others who she said were at the party have claimed any knowledge or memory of the incident, although at least one said she believes Ford’s allegations.

[Kavanaugh accuser Christine Blasey Ford moved 3,000 miles to reinvent her life. It wasn’t far enough.]

Ford told The Post one person at the party was a boy named “PJ.” Patrick J. Smyth, a friend of Kavanaugh who signed a letter of support for his nomination, has told the Judiciary Committee that he has no knowledge of the party and has never witnessed Kavanaugh behave improperly toward women, according to a letter from Smyth’s attorney that the committee made public on Sunday. Through his lawyer, Smyth declined to comment Sunday.

Ford said her friend Leland Keyser also was at the party. In an email to the committee, an attorney for Keyser wrote that she “does not know Mr. Kavanaugh and she has no recollection of ever being at a party or gathering where he was present.” In a brief interview with The Washington Post, Keyser said she did not recall the party but believed Ford’s account.

Last week, Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) said that if Democrats gain control of Congress in the midterm elections, they will continue to investigate Ford’s allegations. When asked Sunday if she agreed with the idea, Hirono noted that Maryland — the state in which Ford alleges the assault took place — has lifted the statute of limitations on criminal prosecutions of most forms of sexual abuse, adding that “there may be an investigation along those lines.”

“This is a situation that is not going to go away,” she said.

[‘Incredibly frustrated’: Inside the GOP effort to save Kavanaugh amid assault allegation]

But Republicans have argued that more FBI scrutiny would be superfluous.

“Their role in this case is not to determine who is telling the truth,” Sen. David Perdue (R-Ga.) said Sunday on “Meet the Press.” “I hope that we will get to the truth” during the Judiciary Committee hearing, he added.

Trump also has backed the hearing, but he has questioned Ford’s credibility, suggesting in a tweet last week that if the alleged assault was “as bad as she says,” she would have filed charges at the time.

That tweet rankled at least one key swing vote on Kavanaugh’s nomination, Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), who said last week that she was “appalled” by Trump’s tweet.

The fate of Kavanaugh’s nomination is likely to hinge on Democratic and Republican senators such as Collins whose votes are uncertain.

“If one Republican senator should decide that Dr. Ford’s allegations, assertions, are true and that they are serious, it could make a big difference,” Sen. Richard J. Durbin (D-Ill.) said on ABC’s “This Week With George Stephanopoulos.”

Meanwhile, Republicans said they hoped that Trump would not weigh in with any more tweets.

“I would advise the president to let us handle this,” Graham said Sunday.

Emma Brown, Josh Dawsey, Tom Hamburger and Beth Reinhard contributed to this report.

Read more at PowerPost


THIS IS ANOTHER DIRTY BUSINESS DEALINGS ISSUE. KUSHNER FAILED TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT RENTERS LIVED THERE WHO RECEIVED RENTAL SUBSIDIES – A LEGAL NO-NO. IT IS APPARENTLY OFTEN COMMITTED, HOWEVER. KUSHNER HAS BEEN FINED $210,000 FOR GETTING CAUGHT DOING IT.

https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/bill-targets-kushner-loophole-allowing-false-filings-58022722
Bill targets 'Kushner loophole' allowing false filings
By BERNARD CONDON, AP BUSINESS WRITER NEW YORK — Sep 23, 2018, 11:04 AM ET

VIDEO – TURMOIL IN THE WHITE HOUSE, WALL STREET COMPANIES HAD MULTIPLE MEETINGS WITH KUSHNER IN THE WHITE HOUSE, JOSHUA HARRIS DISCUSSED POSSIBILITY OF A WHITE HOUSE JOB

COMING UP -- Trump son-in-law Jared Kushner facing growing scrutiny

A New York City councilman plans to introduce a bill to close the "Kushner loophole" that fails to check up on landlords if they file false documents with the city.

The move follows an Associated Press report earlier this year that Jared Kushner's family real estate company filed dozens of false documents with the city claiming it had no rent-regulated tenants in many of its buildings. That allowed it to avoid strict oversight of construction that critics say was used to drive out low-paying tenants.

Councilman Ritchie Torres says his bill would require the city's buildings department to check with tax records to validate such claims. If any false submission is discovered, the landlord's entire portfolio of buildings would be subject to an audit.

"We refuse to stand by idly while real estate companies like the Kushner Cos. play Russian roulette with the safety of the residents and the affordability of rent," Torres said. "Kushner Cos. is a poster child for a systemic problem."

The AP story in March, based on a study by tenant watchdog Housing Rights Initiative, showed the Kushner Cos. filed at least 80 such false construction-permit applications in 34 buildings over a three-year period when the company was being run by Jared Kushner, who is President Donald Trump's adviser and son-in-law.

The permit applications stated there was not a single rent-regulated tenant in any of the buildings when, in truth, there were hundreds.

A landlord with rent-regulated residents can face extra city oversight during construction including "tenant protection sweeps" by buildings marshals to make sure noise, dust and off-hour work are not used to push out low-rent tenants so they could be replaced with higher paying ones.

The city fined the Kushner Cos. $210,000 last month for 42 of the false filings. The family company says it plans to fight the charges in court. It says any mistakes in its documents were made by third parties and errors were quickly corrected, and says it has not used construction to harass low-paying tenants.

Housing Rights Initiative founder Aaron Carr says the practice of submitting false permit applications is widespread in the city. He says a new study he conducted of applications from the start of 2016 through June this year shows that the buildings department approved over 10,000 applications falsely claiming there were no rent-regulated tenants in hundreds of buildings throughout the city. He says he checked the application claims against tax records at the city's Department of Finance, which showed there were plenty of such residents.

Carr says details of the study will be released at a news conference Monday when Councilman Torres will also announce his proposed bill.

The bill would also require the buildings department to alert the city council, a state tenant protection unit and the city investigations agency of any false applications. And any landlords that had corrected false claims more than five times in "amended" filings would also be subjected to an audit of all its buildings.


MANY PEOPLE ON ISLANDS AROUND THE WORLD, WHO FEEL FREE ENOUGH MENTALLY TO “BELIEVE” THAT GLOBAL WARMING IS REAL AND NOT A RADICAL LEFTIST PROPAGANDA STORY, WILL UNDOUBTEDLY BE LEAVING FOR HIGHER GROUND LIKE THIS I FEEL SURE, IF THEY HAVE ENOUGH MONEY TO MOVE.

THOSE WHO DON’T WILL SUFFER DEVASTATION, MOSQUITO BORNE DISEASES, AND OTHER VERY UNHAPPY THINGS. THERE ARE CERTAIN GENIES THAT JUST CAN’T BE PUT BACK INTO THE BOTTLE. THIS KIND OF STORM DAMAGE AND A LARGER NUMBER OF VIOLENT STORMS IS THE FACE OF GLOBAL WARMING. SEE THE NORTH CAROLINA STORY ABOUT DAMAGE FROM FLORENCE AS WELL AS PUERTO RICO.

HURRICANE FLORENCE NC VIDEO AND STORY: https://6abc.com/dead-fish-strewn-across-nc-interstate-after-florence-flood-recedes/4319367/

VIDEO ONLY: https://www.cbsnews.com/video/puerto-rico-the-exodus-after-hurricane-maria/

STORY -- https://www.cbsnews.com/news/puerto-rico-exodus-after-hurricane-maria-cbsn-originals/


IN MY OPINION, THIS IS ONE OF THE REALLY BAD DUDES THAT WE HAVE WALKING THE STREETS. THE REASON HE’S OUT IN THIS CASE IS THAT HE WAS ABLE TO PUT UP $150,000 BOND TO GET OUT OF JAIL. WAS HE EXTRADITED BECAUSE OF HIS 3D PRINTED AR-15? NO. HE IS ALSO A FANCIER OF VERY YOUNG GIRLS, EVEN THOUGH HE IS IN HIS THIRTIES. 17 YEARS OLD IS THE AGE OF CONSENT IN TEXAS, AND THE GIRL IS 16 – OLD ENOUGH TO BE ATTRACTIVE AND YOUNG ENOUGH TO BE CONFUSABLE AND NAIVE.

https://www.chron.com/news/houston-texas/article/3D-printed-gun-advocate-Cody-Wilson-jailed-in-13251168.php
3-D printed gun advocate Cody Wilson jailed in Houston after arrest in Taiwan
By Keri Blakinger Updated 8:22 am CDT, Sunday, September 23, 2018

9 PHOTOGRAPHS -- Cody Wilson, creator of the 3-D printable gun, was transported to Harris County Jail about 1 a.m. Sunday after his arrest in Taiwan last week on a child sex charge in Austin. Photo: Metro Video
Photo: Metro Video

The Austin man known as an advocate for 3-D printed guns appeared in a Houston court early Sunday after he was extradited from Taiwan to face sexual assault charges in Texas.

Cody Wilson was arrested at a restaurant in Taipei City late Friday, according to Taiwanese media.The 30-year-old is now being held in the Harris County jail on $150,000 bail, pending transfer to Travis County for prosecution.

LOOPHOLE: Texas man sells plans for 3-D printer guns, despite court order

The so-called crypto-anarchist and owner of Defense Distributed was wanted on charges of sexual assaulting a child after he allegedly exchanged naked pictures with a 16-year-old he met on SugarDaddyMeet.com, then took her to an Austin hotel and paid her $500 for sex.

Cody Wilson, creator of the 3-D printable gun, was transported to Harris County Jail about 1 a.m. Sunday after his arrest in Taiwan last week on a child sex charge in Austin.

Media: Metro Video
Afterward, authorities say, he dropped her off at a Whataburger.


The girl told a counselor at the Center for Child Protection in August about the alleged assault, and the counselor reported it to police. But one of the victim's friends apparently tipped off Wilson, who boarded a flight to Taiwan and skipped out on the return ticket.

Wilson catapulted into the national spotlight in 2013 when he made the first fully 3D-printed gun and posted the blueprints online, downloadable for free. The guns have no serial numbers, can evade some some metal detectors and are designed for do-it-yourselfers to make at home.

But the U.S. State Department shut him down, and Wilson fired back with a First Amendment lawsuit.

Nineteen state attorneys general then jumped in and filed suit to stop Wilson from freely posting the plans, and a federal judge ultimately barred Wilson from doing so. He later announced he would still sell the controversial plans directly to anyone who wanted order them.

ON THE RUN: 3-D printed gun advocate fled to Taiwan after tip of arrest

"Anyone who wants these files is going to get them," Wilson said at a news conference in Austin over the summer. "That will never be interrupted. The free exchange of these ideas will never be interrupted."

It's not immediately clear when Wilson might be transferred to Travis County. If convicted, he could face 20 years in prison and would be unable to own a gun legally.



THIS IS ONE OF THOSE ARTICLES WHOSE WRITERS DIDN’T BOTHER TO GIVE A DATE ON THIS MATERIAL, BUT IT DOES SAY “BACK IN THE U.S. SUNDAY,” SO I ASSUME THAT MEANS TODAY – SEPTEMBER 23, 2018. THERE ARE THREE OF THESE STORIES TODAY AND THEY ALL ADD A LITTLE SOMETHING IN THE WAY OF NEW DETAIL. THIS ONE HAS THE BEST INTERVIEW WITH POLICE IN HOUSTON.

http://time.com/5404123/cody-wilson-3d-gun-advocate-arrest/
Cody Wilson, 3-D Printed Gun Advocate, Has Been Jailed in the U.S.
By PAUL J. WEBER / AP 12:18 PM EDT



KAVANAUGH, FORD, GRASSLEY AND MORE

IF YOU’RE A TRUMP FAN, BE PREPARED FOR A SHOCK.

https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/2nd-woman-accuses-brett-kavanaugh-sexual-misconduct-report/story?id=58031736
2nd woman accuses Brett Kavanaugh of sexual misconduct: Report
By ABC NEWS Sep 23, 2018, 8:26 PM ET

COMING UP -- Kavanaugh accuser to testify about alleged sexual assault

A former Yale University classmate of Brett Kavanaugh, President Trump’s Supreme Court nominee, alleges that he sexually assaulted her 35 years ago at a party, according to The New Yorker.

Deborah Ramirez, 53, told The New Yorker Kavanaugh exposed himself to her at a dorm room party and “thrust his penis in her face,” causing her to “touch it without her consent.” Ramirez said both she and Kavanaugh, then 18, had been drinking.

Kavanaugh flatly denied the alleged incident in a statement.

“This alleged event from 35 years ago did not happen,” he said. “The people who knew me then know that this did not happen, and have said so. This is a smear, plain and simple. I look forward to testifying on Thursday about the truth, and defending my good name--and the reputation for character and integrity I have spent a lifetime building--against these last-minute allegations.”

(MORE: Kavanaugh accuser and Senate panel agree on timing of hearing, but unclear who will question her)
(MORE: http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/ronald-reagans-daughter-patti-davis-alleges-harrowing-sexual/story?id=58006920)
White House spokeswoman Kerri Kupec said in a statement that the president still supported Kavanaugh.

“This 35-year-old, uncorroborated claim is the latest in a coordinated smear campaign by the Democrats designed to tear down a good man,” Kupec said. “This claim is denied by all who were said to be present and is wholly inconsistent with what many women and men who knew Judge Kavanaugh at the time in college say. The White House stands firmly behind Judge Kavanaugh.”

Kavanaugh is also facing allegations of sexual misconduct from Christine Blasey Ford, who claims the judge assaulted her when they were teenagers. Members of the Senate Judiciary Committee will hear testimony from Kavanaugh as well as Ford on Thursday. Kavanaugh has denied Ford's accusations.


BEFORE YOU READ THIS PARTICULAR ARTICLE, LOOK AT THE PHOTO OF KAVANAUGH TAKEN FROM WASHINGTON POST. ALL OF THE OTHERS I’VE SEEN LOOK ALMOST BABY-FACED. THIS HAS AN ENTIRELY DIFFERENT EXPRESSION, AND NOT AT ALL BABYISH.

https://www.sltrib.com/news/nation-world/2018/09/23/kavanaugh-accuser-commits/
2nd woman accuses Kavanaugh of sexual misconduct
By Lisa Mascaro, Mary Clare Jalonick and Jonathan Lemire | The Associated Press
SEPTEMBER 23, 2018, Published: 5 hours ago
Updated: 11 minutes ago

PHOTOGRAPH -- (Melina Mara | The Washington Post) Attorneys for Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh's accuser, Christine Blasey Ford, and the Senate Judiciary Committee have reached agreement for a public hearing Thursday about her decades-old sexual assault claim.

Washington • The Senate Judiciary Committee has scheduled a hearing Thursday for Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh and Christine Blasey Ford, a woman who says he sexually assaulted her as a teenager, as a claim of sexual misconduct emerged from another woman.

The New Yorker magazine reported Sunday night that Senate Democrats were investigating a second woman's accusation of sexual misconduct by Kavanaugh dating to the 1983-84 academic year, Kavanaugh's first at Yale University.

The New Yorker said 53-year-old Deborah Ramirez described the incident in an interview after being contacted by the magazine. Ramirez recalled that Kavanaugh exposed himself at a drunken dormitory party, thrust his penis in her face, and caused her to touch it without her consent as she pushed him away, the magazine reported.

In a statement provided by the White House, Kavanaugh said the event "did not happen" and that the allegation was "a smear, plain and simple." A White House spokeswoman added in a second statement that the allegation was "designed to tear down a good man."

FOUR RELATED ARTICLES
Standoff has Kavanaugh accuser’s Senate appearance in limbo
Shame, fear: Survivors explain not reporting sexual assaults
Trump questions credibility of Kavanaugh accuser, lashes out at Democrats
Nearly three decades after Anita Hill came forward, Sen. Orrin Hatch again sides with the accused

The new information came hours after the Senate committee agreed to a date and time for a hearing after nearly a week of uncertainty over whether Ford would appear to tell her story.

The agreement and the latest accusation set the stage for a dramatic showdown as Kavanaugh and Ford each tell their side of the story. The developments could also determine the fate of Kavanaugh’s confirmation, which hangs on the votes of a handful of senators.


AVENATTI'S TWEET ON THE KAVANAUGH CASE AND A LONG TWITTERING OF ANSWERS. I FIND THESE THINGS FUN TO READ, AND THEY DO CONTAIN INFO ALONGSIDE THE POLITICAL WISE CRACKING. IF YOU, ON THE OTHER HAND, ABSOLUTELY HATE THEM, THEN JUST SKIP RIGHT OVER THEM TO THE NEXT STORY.

https://twitter.com/MichaelAvenatti/status/1044006928416825344
@MichaelAvenatti
Follow Follow @MichaelAvenatti

I represent a woman with credible information regarding Judge Kavanaugh and Mark Judge. We will be demanding the opportunity to present testimony to the committee and will likewise be demanding that Judge and others be subpoenaed to testify. The nomination must be withdrawn.

4:33 PM - 23 Sep 2018
18,941 Retweets 46,919 Likes Susan CauseyEvangeline JohnsonElizaRRandy C BensonKarin SmithJohn DeJarnattDonVAn Overwhelming Surplus of DiggityL.E. Harding
7,376 replies 18,941 retweets 46,919 likes
Reply 7.4K Retweet 19K Like 47K

Michael Avenatti
‏
Verified account

@MichaelAvenatti
2h2 hours ago
More
My client is not Deborah Ramirez.

1,438 replies 4,782 retweets 15,382 likes
Reply 1.4K Retweet 4.8K Like 15K
New conversation

Meg‏

@Megresistor
17m17 minutes ago
More
Replying to @MichaelAvenatti
Megyn Kelly saying on air that she can’t understand why Ford would wait decades to come forward,so I sent twitter messages of victims coming forward with their stories & also about my late husband molested by a priest & never came forward! She sent a message saying I am sick

19 replies 28 retweets 147 likes
Reply 19 Retweet 28 Like 147

@petittonton
17m17 minutes ago
More
Replying to @MichaelAvenatti
We CAN NOT have two @gop sex predators on the @scotus. They already put that degenerate Thomas on there. Kavanaugh must be stopped. Enough with the ascent of morally bankrupt men to stand in judgement of us. We must fight for a standard that is higher than that of the @SenateGOP

4 replies 38 retweets 129 likes
Reply 4 Retweet 38 Like 129

@petittonton
5m5 minutes ago
More
We need to get more women on @scotus Woman have better morals and judgment than men, IMHO, and in 57 years of observation.

@garydmares
9m9 minutes ago
More
I have a suggestion for @SenateMajLdr . Karma is a great thing... Don’t you think? Merrick Garland. #ImpeachPOS45 #Resist #Resistance #FBR #FBRResistance #BlueWave2018 #Vote #VoteBlue

0 replies 16 retweets 75 likes
Reply Retweet 16 Like 75

More
Replying to @MichaelAvenatti
Someone is about to be Avenattied.

13 replies 30 retweets 297 likes
Reply 13 Retweet 30 Like 297

🌊 🌊#bluewave 🌊 🌊
‏
Marina
‏
@MarinaCB3
2h2 hours ago
More
Replying to @MichaelAvenatti
Well well!! And Ronan Farrow is apparently also about to drop a big one on Kavanaugh...


@TheNotoriousNIK
2h2 hours ago
More
Replying to @MichaelAvenatti
This week is already pandemonium,... and it aint even MONDAY!.

For anyone still confused, when he says #BASTA he MEANS "BASTA" AND... LOOK OUT!.

It just got REAL in a hurry!

24 replies 105 retweets 725 likes
Reply 24 Retweet 105 Like 725

Meghan Chavalier 🌊 🏳️‍🌈
‏

@MeghanChavalier
2h2 hours ago
More
You know I'm sitting here waiting for this news to drop.

12 replies 18 retweets 364 likes
Reply 12 Retweet 18 Like 364

Nik Carter
‏
Verified account

@TheNotoriousNIK
2h2 hours ago
More
RIGHT? I saw his tweet and literally said " here we GO" all by myself in my apartment, to my monitor. I just had a feeling that someone else would com forward, BUT the fact that she is an Avenatti client?... The Judge should just find a towel, and THROW IT

More
Same. Here we go!!!!! Let’s win this thing.

#KavanaughWithdraw #KavaNoMeansNo #ByeFelicia 👋

@Irishgawdess
31m31 minutes ago
More
Judge has voided the value of any testimony or evidence he could have provided by denying the Blasey incident during high school and now refusing to discuss it further, much less testify. IMO.

3 replies 1 retweet 20 likes
Reply 3 Retweet 1 Like 20

Shelly Splainin’ 🙋🏻‍♀️
‏

@sheLLbeLL_xo
19m19 minutes ago
More
I was suspicious the moment he said he wouldn’t testify. I would have done it in a second for my friend esp over an attempted rape.....unless I had something to hide.

1 reply 5 retweets 51 likes
Reply 1 Retweet 5 Like 51


THIS ARTICLE FROM CNN REPRESENTS THE LATEST INFORMATION I HAD BEFORE TODAY’S BLOCKBUSTER INFORMATION ON A SECOND AND POSSIBLY A THIRD COMPLAINT AGAINST KAVANAUGH. ON THE DATE FOR THE KAVANAUGH SENATE HEARING, THIS IS THE BEST I HAVE.

https://www.cnn.com/2018/09/21/politics/kavanaugh-ford-senate-judiciary-hearing/index.html
Kavanaugh's accuser accepts request to speak to Judiciary Committee next week, lawyers say
By Ariane de Vogue, Clare Foran, Sarah Westwood and Manu Raju, CNN
Updated 4:33 PM ET, Sat September 22, 2018

VIDEO – FORD’S LEGAL TEAM RESPONDS TO DEADLINE 2:54 DURATION

Washington (CNN) Christine Blasey Ford, the woman who has accused Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh of a past sexual assault, accepted the request to speak to the panel next week about the alleged incident, her lawyers told Senate Judiciary Committee staff on Saturday.

"Dr. Ford accepts the Committee's request to provide her first-hand knowledge of Brett Kavanaugh's sexual misconduct next week," Debra Katz and Lisa Banks, attorneys representing Ford, wrote in a message to the committee.

But the message did not agree to a specified date and time for Ford to speak to the committee and said that "many aspects" of an earlier proposal by the committee were "fundamentally inconsistent with the Committee's promise of a fair, impartial investigation into her allegations."

The lawyers asked in their message to "set up a time for later this afternoon to continue our negotiations."

Kavanaugh allies quickly pushed back on the latest response from Ford, arguing that it does not actually amount to accepting the committee's invitation to testify.

A source close to the process who supports Kavanaugh told CNN, "This is not an 'acceptance' of anything at all. The email doesn't even say she will testify. It says she will 'provide her firsthand knowledge' but it doesn't say how. It says she will do so 'next week' but doesn't say when. And it says the rest of the terms are still up for negotiation. It 'accepts' nothing at all, but the language is very carefully calculated to give her credit for having accepted."

A senior White House official made a similar argument, telling CNN, "I don't know how to interpret this but it's difficult to interpret this as a yes."

Points of contention

Several points of contention still need to be worked out before there is any final deal. Some of those differences are as follows:

A source close to Ford says the legal team still wants the hearing on Thursday. Senate Judiciary has proposed Wednesday.

Ford's team still wants questioning only by senators, while some on the committee are pushing for a female outside counsel to do at least part of the questioning for the majority. Ford's lawyers also still want some others to testify or be subpoenaed, including Kavanaugh's high school friend Mark Judge, who was identified by Ford as someone else in the room during the alleged assault.

Judge told the committee in a letter sent by his lawyer earlier in the week that he has "no memory" of the alleged incident and said that he does "not wish speak publicly" about Ford's accusations. He also denied the allegation in an interview with The Weekly Standard last week.

Ongoing negotiations
The statement from Ford's lawyers on Saturday is the latest in a tense back-and-forth with the Senate Judiciary Committee's GOP majority over the terms under which Ford would be willing to testify before the panel next week about her allegation. It remains unclear whether the two sides will reach an agreement.

Senate Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley agreed late Friday night to allow the woman who has accused Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh of sexual assault more time to decide whether to testify before Congress.

Grassley tweeted that he "granted another extension" to Christine Blasey Ford, saying "she (should) decide so we can move on. I want to hear her."

ChuckGrassley
✔
@ChuckGrassley
Judge Kavanaugh I just granted another extension to Dr Ford to decide if she wants to proceed w the statement she made last week to testify to the senate She shld decide so we can move on I want to hear her. I hope u understand. It’s not my normal approach to b indecisive

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The Senate Judiciary Committee had given Ford's attorneys a deadline of 2:30 p.m. ET Saturday to respond with their decision, a committee source confirmed to CNN.

The panel had proposed holding a hearing next Wednesday in which it would hear testimony from both Kavanaugh and Ford, according to a source with knowledge of the matter.

Kavanaugh has denied the sexual assault allegation.

The committee earlier Friday had set a deadline of 5 p.m. ET for Ford to decide, later extending that to 10 p.m. In response, Debra Katz, who is representing Ford, wrote in a letter to the committee that its "cavalier treatment of a sexual assault survivor who has been doing her best to cooperate with the Committee is completely inappropriate."

Calling the deadline arbitrary, Katz wrote in a letter that "our modest request is that she be given an additional day to make her decision."

Had Ford's lawyers not responded to the proposal or if Ford decided not to testify by the deadline, Grassley said, the committee would vote on Kavanaugh's nomination Monday.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein of California, the top Democrat on the Judiciary Committee, accused Republicans of "bullying a survivor of attempted rape in order to confirm a nominee" by saying they will vote Monday on the nomination if they don't reach an agreement with Ford and her lawyers for her to testify.

"It's clear that Republicans have learned nothing over the last 27 years. Bullying a survivor of attempted rape in order to confirm a nominee — particularly at a time when she's receiving death threats — is an extreme abuse of power," Feinstein said in a statement. "I'm shocked and appalled by the Republicans' refusal to wait 24 hours for a hearing and instead rush forward with a vote on Monday. From the outset Republicans have tried to push through this nomination at all costs."

Max Young, a spokesman for Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, said, "At approximately 2:30 Republicans sent her a proposal and gave her a 5 p.m. deadline. Shortly after they wrote her, she responded and said I need 24 hours to talk to my client. At 6:30 they gave her a 10 p.m. deadline. ... At this point, the Senate has shown significantly more deference to Facebook and Google's hearing-scheduling requests than to Ford's."

Ford's lawyers said Thursday night that Ford wouldn't be able to get to Washington before next Thursday because of all that her family is dealing with, according to a Senate Democratic leadership aide.

The proposed hearing, according to three sources, would include an outside counsel who would ask questions. The proposal calls for Ford to testify first and Kavanaugh second.

The order of testimonies is the opposite of what Ford, through her lawyers, has requested, according to a senior congressional source.

Another source told CNN that Republicans are dealing with internal disagreements about whether they should use an outside counsel. Multiple senior members of the committee are pushing for one, while others are less interested, according to the source, making it unclear whether this will make it into the final proposal to Ford.

Her lawyers previously suggested that the committee's senators question their client, not an outside counsel.

A Senate Republican aide told CNN Friday that a special counsel would prevent the politicization of Ford's questioning.

"Senate Democrats rightly said that the Senate should not bully Dr. Ford ... the way to depoliticize that and ensure that is with an outside counsel," they said.

But the use of an outside counsel is receiving pushback from Senate Democrats. An aide to a member of the Senate's Democratic leadership told CNN that, "outside counsel doesn't vote on Kavanaugh. Senators do. Republicans need to do their jobs and not hide."

Ford also requested that at no point during any potential hearing would she be in the same room as Kavanaugh.

CNN's Phil Mattingly, Dana Bash, Devan Cole, Sunlen Serfaty, Veronica Stracqualursi and Maegan Vazquez contributed to this report.


CHUCK GRASSLEY’S AIDE IS NOT KAVANAUGH, BUT IT DOES MAKE IT APPEAR THAT ALL REPUBLICANS ARE DOGS. I’M SURE THEY AREN’T. IT IS POSSIBLE THAT MANY MEN WHO GET INTO POSITIONS OF WEALTH AND POWER ARE MORE LIKELY TO GIVE IN TO TEMPTATION, THOUGH. IT’S THAT SENSE OF FEELING UNTOUCHABLE.

I JUST WANT THEM TO ADMIT THE TRUTH ABOUT KAVANAUGH, AND STOP MINIMIZING HIS SHOVING A WOMAN DOWN ON A BED AND STARTING TO SHAME AND FRIGHTEN HER. OKAY, HE WAS YOUNG AND IMMATURE AT THE TIME, BUT THAT WAS A VERY MENTALLY AND PHYSICALLY AGGRESSIVE AND HOSTILE THING TO DO; AND ACCORDING TO THE PSYCHOLOGICAL ARTICLE I PUT IN HERE A FEW DAYS AGO, IT IS A SIGN OF POTENTIALLY SERIOUS MENTAL ISSUES. AN ANTIFEMINIST, SEXUAL SADIST OR SOME OTHER KIND OF MENTALLY DISTURBED PERSON ON THE SUPREME COURT? NO WAY!!

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2018/09/22/sen-chuck-grassley-aide-garrett-ventry-resigns-sexual-harassment-complaint/1394249002/
Aide to Sen. Chuck Grassley resigns amid reports he had been accused of sexual harassment
Deirdre Shesgreen, USA TODAY Published 11:47 a.m. ET Sept. 22, 2018 | Updated 3:26 p.m. ET Sept. 22, 2018

PHOTOGRAPH -- A look at the week's Trump news through the eyes of the late-night comics. Watch our favorite jokes, then vote for yours at usatoday.com/opinion.Eileen Rivers

WASHINGTON – An aide to Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley resigned Friday night after NBC News learned he had been accused of sexual harassment at a previous job, according to media reports.

Garrett Ventry served as a communications adviser to Grassley, helping the Senate Judiciary Committee with the Supreme Court nomination of Judge Brett Kavanaugh, who has himself been accused of sexual assault.

Ventry did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment. A spokesman for Grassley did not respond immediately to emailed questions.

NBC News and The Washington Post reported that Ventry denied the sexual harassment allegation but resigned from the committee so as not to distract from the GOP push for Kavanaugh's confirmation.

“Garrett was one of several temporary staff brought on to assist in the committee’s consideration of the Supreme Court nomination, a team that has done outstanding work,” a committee spokesman told the Washington Post on Saturday. “While he strongly denies allegations of wrongdoing, he decided to resign to avoid causing any distraction from the work of the committee.”

NBC News reported that Ventry was fired from a previous job as a social media adviser for North Carolina House Majority Leader John Bell in 2017.

“Mr. Ventry did work in my office and he’s no longer there, he moved on,” Bell told NBC News. He declined to detail the reason for Ventry's firing.

NBC, citing unnamed sources, said Ventry was terminated from Bell’s office after "parts of his résumé were found to have been embellished, and because he faced an accusation of sexual harassment from a female employee of the North Carolina General Assembly's Republican staff."

Grassley and other Senate Republicans are in delicate negotiations with Kavanaugh's accuser, Dr. Christine Blasey Ford, about her possible testimony before the Judiciary Committee.

Ford has alleged that Kavanaugh sexually assaulted her when they were teenagers in the 1980s. Kavanaugh has denied the allegations.

RELATED:
More: Frustrated Republicans offer extension to Kavanaugh accuser in standoff over testimony

More: Kavanaugh allegations: #WhyIDidntReport becomes outlet for victims who didn't come forward

More: Kavanaugh's prep school culture nurtures high achievers, fosters darker impulses, grads say


THIS IS A “TENTATIVE” ACCEPTANCE, THOUGH THE HEADLINE DOESN’T SAY THAT. SO THIS IS THE BEST INFORMATION OF THE MOMENT.

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2018/09/22/ford-accepts-request-to-testify-about-alleged-kavanaugh-assault-lawyers-request-thursday-hearing.html
Tentative agreement reached for Kavanaugh-Ford hearing on Thursday, source says
Adam Shaw By Adam Shaw, Elizabeth Zwirz | Fox News
CONFIRMATION [HEARING] OF JUDGE KAVANAUGH
SEPTEMBER 22, 2018, 18 mins ago

A tentative agreement for a Thursday hearing with Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh and Christine Blasey Ford has been reached, a source with knowledge of the discussions has told Fox News.

Earlier on Saturday, Ford had indicated she'd accept the Senate Judiciary Committee’s request to discuss an alleged sexual assault by Kavanaugh, although the terms under which she might testify remained largely unclear.

In a letter to the committee, Ford’s lawyers said that she had accepted the request to provide “her first-hand knowledge of Brett Kavanaugh’s sexual misconduct next week” after Republicans on the committee set a 2:30 p.m. deadline for her to say whether she would do so. Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, had said a vote would proceed in the absence of a response from Ford's team by the cutoff time.

In the letter from Ford's lawyers, they said “many aspects of the proposal you provided ... are fundamentally inconsistent with the Committee’s promise of a fair, impartial investigation into her allegations,” yet they also expressed hope that an agreement would be reached, as now appears to be the case.

Ahead of news about a tentative Thursday meeting, a senior White House official had told Fox News that the Ford team's letter represented a request to continue negotiations without any firm commitment.

White House official tells Fox News that Kavanaugh accuser's offer to testify is an ask to continue negotiations without committing to anything.Video
White House responds to Ford's agreement to testify

White House spokesperson Kerri Kupec later issued a separate statement, noting that Kavanaugh has denied the allegation "and is eager to testify publicly to defend his integrity and clear his good name."

Ford alleges that Kavanaugh assaulted her during a house party in high school in the 1980s. Kavanaugh has repeatedly denied the allegation. Democrats have called for the vote on his confirmation to the nation’s highest court to be delayed, pending a full FBI investigation, something that Republicans have dismissed as unnecessary.

DEMOCRATS FLOAT MORE KAVANAUGH INVESTIGATIONS, IMPEACHMENT EVEN IF HE IS CONFIRMED

Republicans have accused Democrats of sitting on the doctor's allegation during the hearings and looking to delay the vote until after the midterms in November.

Senator Hatch Office
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@senorrinhatch
Worth noting that this is exactly where we were on Monday morning— without agreeing to a date, time, and terms we are no closer to hearing from Dr Ford then we were when her lawyers said Dr. Ford was willing to testify during their media tour

6 days agohttps://twitter.com/chadpergram/status/1043573841983868928?s=21 …

Chad Pergram
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@ChadPergram
In the latest msg by Ford’s atty to cmte, they just reiterated they are willing to appear, but no committment to time or format. This doesn’t clarify things much further. Saying Ford is willing to appear is just consistent with what Ford has said before.

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Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., said in a statement that he will support Ford's "steadfast bravery against the arbitrary, unfair, irrational constraints set by Chairman Grassley."

"I remain deeply disturbed by the conduct of my colleagues over the last week, and am committed to ensuring that Dr. Ford’s safety and security is made a top priority,” he said.

Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., said Ford had demonstrated "impressive courage" in her willingness to come forward "in spite of Republicans’ astounding disregard for basic due process in failing to order the completion of a background investigation."

“Even in accommodating Dr. Blasey Ford’s request for a few additional days, Chairman Grassley has rejected many of her reasonable requests to ensure a fair process," his statement said. "Next week’s hearing, as currently contemplated, will be a kangaroo court, because the Republicans have done everything in their power to prevent the consideration of any outside evidence, whether corroborating or exculpatory. Republicans should respect Dr. Blasey Ford’s wishes, as they should respect the wishes of all victims of sexual assault."

Fox News’ Mike Emanuel, Chad Pergram and Matt Leach contributed to this report.


Senator Patty Murray
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@PattyMurray
Dr. Ford has made the brave decision to testify and share her experience of being sexually assaulted by Judge Kavanaugh. I hope Senate Republicans now agree to listen and treat her fairly and with respect. –PM https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/lawyers-for-christine-blasey-ford-say-she-has-accepted-senate-judiciary-committees-request-to-testify-against-kavanaugh/2018/09/22/e8199c6a-be8f-11e8-8792-78719177250f_story.html …

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Senator Patty Murray
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Verified account

@PattyMurray
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Dr. Ford has made the brave decision to testify and share her experience of being sexually assaulted by Judge Kavanaugh. I hope Senate Republicans now agree to listen and treat her fairly and with respect. –PM
@LomaxPatriot
5h5 hours ago
More
Replying to @PattyMurray
Why aren't @SenateDems putting in a list of witnesses like Senate Rules state they have every right to do? This Tippy Toe crap around being politically correct against a tyrannical party is BS. Democrats need to use the Rules against the Republicans.

6 replies 4 retweets 9 likes
Reply 6 Retweet 4 Like 9

@KatieMHRoberts
4h4 hours ago
More
How do you know they didn’t? Or won’t? How about giving them a little bit of time to react?

1 reply 1 retweet 2 likes
Reply 1 Retweet 1 Like 2


FORD’S TERMS FOR GIVING LIVE TESTIMONY ARE IN HERE AND OTHER SPECIFICS ABOUT THE UPCOMING HEARING. IN RESPONSE TO HER REQUEST FOR A WITNESS TO BE SUBPOENAED FOR HER ARGUMENT, SHE WAS TOLD THAT IT ISN’T “TRADITIONAL” IN NOMINATIONS HEARINGS FOR SUBPOENAS TO BE ISSUED. THE IDEA THAT IT IS FAIRER DOESN’T FAZE THEM, APPARENTLY.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2018/09/20/brett-kavanaugh-terms-christine-ford-senate-testimony/1375491002/
Kavanaugh accuser gives terms for Senate testimony, including him not being in the room
Eliza Collins and Richard Wolf, USA TODAY Published 10:38 p.m. ET Sept. 20, 2018

VIDEO -- Demonstrators congregated in Senate office buildings Thursday to protest Republicans' handling of the sexual assault accusation against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh. (Sept. 20) AP

WASHINGTON – The woman who has accused Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh of sexually assaulting her when they were teens says she is willing to testify about the incident if a number of terms are met.

An attorney for Dr. Christine Blasey Ford, who claims that Kavanaugh pinned her down at a party in 1982, groped her and covered her mouth when she tried to scream, spoke with the Senate Judiciary Committee Thursday, according to two Senate aides.

She spoke with staff for the Judiciary Committee’s chair and ranking member and laid out their requests in order for Ford to testify next week, including that Kavanaugh not be in the same room. Kavanuagh has repeatedly denied the allegations.

No decisions have been made on if Ford’s requests will be honored. These are the conditions she is asking for, according to the Senate aides.

Ford wants Kavanaugh to testify first and then she will tell her story to the committee, a committee staffer said. That request, though, was unlikely to pass muster because it isn't normal practice to have someone who is accused of something testify first and not be able to respond to claims.

She doesn’t want Kavanaugh to be in the room when she is.

Ford wants to be questioned by senators, not a special counsel. Multiple news reports on Thursday indicated a female special counsel was being considered to questioning Ford instead of the committee.

She wants a single photographer in the room.

Ford requested additional safety measures. Her attorney says she's received a number of death threats

She said she is willing to testify at earliest on Thursday.

She has requested that Kavanaugh’s high school friend Mark Judge be subpoenaed to testify, a move that a committee staffer said was unlikely because it is not traditional for a committee to subpoena for nominations. Ford says Judge was in the room, but Judge has denied the incident took place when they were all high school students.

More: Christine Blasey Ford willing to testify on Kavanaugh allegations under 'fair' conditions

More: Kavanaugh wants to testify on sexual assault allegations to 'clear my name'

Kavanaugh has offered to testify "as soon as possible, so that I can clear my name," he wrote in a letter to Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley Thursday. He says he is willing to appear before the committee Monday to deny the allegations lodged against him.

It's unclear whether that would change after Ford's attorneys spoke with the committee.

Contributing: Christal Hayes

A look at Supreme Court Justice nominee Brett Kavanaugh
Fullscreen
Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh meets with Sen. Jim Inhofe, R-Ok, on Capitol Hill in Washington on July 26, 2018. Kavanaugh's confirmation hearing begins on Sept. 4, 2018. MICHAEL REYNOLDS, EPA-EFE


“I AM NOT FOCUSED ON THIS INVESTIGATION. I AM FULLY FOCUSED ON THOSE IMPACTED BY HURRICANE FLORENCE," LONG SAID IN A STATEMENT EARLY MONDAY NIGHT THROUGH A FEMA SPOKESPERSON.” TRANSLATION: “DON’T BOTHER ME KID. I’M BUSY!” SLEIGHT OF HAND, AGAIN.

"IT’S MY UNDERSTANDING THAT MAYBE SOME POLICIES WERE NOT DEVELOPED AROUND THESE VEHICLES THAT WE WILL GET CLEARED UP AND PUSH FORWARD," HE ADDED. SOUNDS LIKE MACHO SOUNDING DOUBLE TALK TO ME. MEANWHILE MORE GOVERNMENT MONEY IS WASTED DAY BY DAY.

https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/407090-investigation-into-fema-head-referred-to-prosecutors-report
Investigation into FEMA head referred to prosecutors: report
BY BRETT SAMUELS - 09/17/18 04:44 PM EDT

PHOTOGRAPH – BROCK LONG © Getty Images

The investigation into Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Administrator Brock Long's alleged misuse of government vehicles has been referred to federal prosecutors, The Wall Street Journal reported Monday.

The news outlet reported that Long and two other federal employees may have broken multiple laws in their use of government resources. The incident was under review by the inspector general's office, but has since been referred to the U.S. attorney's office.

Long is facing an investigation over his alleged use of government vehicles and staff to drive him from his office in Washington, D.C., to his home in North Carolina. Staffers were then allegedly put up in hotels at taxpayer expense.

“I am not focused on this investigation. I am fully focused on those impacted by Hurricane Florence," Long said in a statement early Monday night through a FEMA spokesperson.

"I am looking forward to meeting with (North Carolina) Governor Cooper tomorrow and discussing with him how the federal government can best help him meet his response and recovery needs," he added.

Long has denied intentionally violating the law, and has insisted he's willing to cooperate with the investigation.

He appeared on a trio of talk shows on Sunday, where he suggested questions about his use of government vehicles was the result of a policy mix-up.

"The program was developed back in 2008. It ran for me the same way it's run for anybody else," Long said on NBC's "Meet the Press."

"It’s my understanding that maybe some policies were not developed around these vehicles that we will get cleared up and push forward," he added.

Long also disputed reports that Secretary of Homeland Security Kirstjen Nielsen asked him to consider resigning over the scandal.

"Let me go ahead and clear up the facts. Secretary Nielsen has never asked me to resign. We have a very functional and professional relationship," he said.

Long added that he is not thinking about resigning.

The FEMA administrator on Sunday also discussed the response to Hurricane Florence and addressed President Trump's unfounded claims that the death toll from Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico was inflated to make him look bad.

Long didn't refute the president, instead calling into question the validity and methodology of the studies looking at the aftermath of Maria, and praising Trump for his support of the agency.

—Updated at 6:20 p.m.


ABOUT THOSE MIKE DAVIS TWEETS, MUCH AS I TRY TO KEEP UP WITH THE NEWS I STILL CAN’T KEEP TRACK OF ALL THE REPUBLICAN OPERATIVES, SOME OF WHOM HAVE POSITIONS OF TRUST AND POWER WITHIN THE PARTY. THIS MIKE DAVIS IS THE CHIEF COUNSEL ON NOMINATIONS FOR SENATOR GRASSLEY. GRASSLEY IS A WELL-KNOWN BARE-KNUCKLE FIGHTER ON THE REPUBLICAN SIDE, AND HE MEANS TO MAKE A TKO OF DR. CHRISTINE FORD, WHO HAS DARED TO QUESTION THE REPUBLICAN CHOICE OF A NOMINEE.

GRANTED, THEY ARE DOMINANT, AND THEREFORE THE DECIDING PARTY IN THE SENATE, BUT THAT SHOULDN’T GIVE THE REPUBLICANS THE RIGHT TO CONTROL ALONE ALL THAT GOES ON IN THE SENATE. I SUGGEST THAT ISSUES OF GREAT IMPORTANCE SUCH AS THE MEMBERSHIP OF THE SUPREME COURT SHOULD HAVE SPECIAL AND MANDATORY PROCEDURAL RULES TO ENSURE FAIRNESS. IF THE SENATE RULES REALLY DO GIVE THEM THAT RIGHT, THEY NEED TO BE REWRITTEN.

ONE OF THE THINGS THAT STANDS OUT TO ME ON THIS AND OTHER THINGS THAT I HAVE SEEN IS THAT THE RULING PARTY IS GIVEN CARTE BLANCHE ON MOST OR ALL THINGS IN PRACTICE. THE CITIZENS’ CHECK ON THAT IS TO CONTACT AND PERSUADE/DEMAND THE SENATE TO FOLLOW CERTAIN PATHS. EVEN WHEN THE CASE IS CLEARLY ALREADY DECIDED, A BLACK MARK ON THE NAME OF REPUBLICANS, THEY ARE BEING ALLOWED HERE TO PUSH THROUGH UNDETERRED.

THERE SURELY ARE RULES ALREADY IN EXISTENCE TO BE FOLLOWED, WHICH SHOULD NOT ALLOW THIS PERVERSION OF THE TERM “ADVISE AND CONSENT.” SURELY BEFORE THEY “ADVISE” THEY SHOULD LOOK THOROUGHLY INTO ANY CANDIDATES’ BACKGROUND. WHY ELSE SHOULD WE (“THE PEOPLE”) HAVE THE SENATE INVOLVED IN THE MATTER AT ALL? THE CONSTITUTION DOESN’T SAY “RUBBER STAMP” THE PRESIDENTIAL PREFERENCES.

THERE ARE SEVERAL WAYS TO CONTACT SENATORS, AND THE BEST, MOST RELIABLE AND QUICKEST WAY IS BY PHONE. “YOU MAY PHONE THE U.S. CAPITOL SWITCHBOARD AT (202) 224-3121. A SWITCHBOARD OPERATOR WILL CONNECT YOU DIRECTLY WITH THE SENATE OFFICE YOU REQUEST.” THE OPERATOR WILL PUT YOU THROUGH TO YOUR OWN SENATORS AND TO SENATOR GRASSLEY. CALL EACH AND EVERY MEMBER TO DEMAND AN HONEST RESULT. SEN. JEFF FLAKE OF ARIZONA AND LINDSEY GRAHAM OF SOUTH CAROLINA SEEM TO ME TO BE THE MOST HONEST AND FAIR OF THIS GROUP.

SUCH SUGGESTIVE LANGUAGE AS THESE DAVIS TWEETS BACKED UP BY GRASSLEY’S OWN HOSTILE MOVES SHOULDN’T BE IGNORED, AND THOUGH DAVIS DELETED THE TWEETS IT WASN’T DONE QUICKLY ENOUGH. HE CLEARLY KNEW THEY WERE INCENDIARY. WELL, THE WHOLE WORLD KNOWS ABOUT IT NOW. I THINK THAT IF THE SENATE JUST BULLDOZES THROUGH ON KAVANAUGH AFTER THIS, THERE MAY BE MORE PROTESTS, AND THERE SHOULD BE. IF THE CITIZENS CAN’T BE HEARD THROUGH NORMAL LEGISLATIVE CHANNELS DUE TO INTENSE CORRUPTION IN THE REPUBLICAN PARTY, WE MAY SEE DEMONSTRATION AFTER DEMONSTRATION IN CITIES AND TOWNS ALL OVER THE COUNTRY UNTIL THEY RELENT. THIS SUPREME COURT DECISION IS TOO IMPORTANT. CONSIDER WHAT IS AT STAKE.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/onpolitics/2018/09/20/brett-kavanaugh-confirmation-furor-over-mike-davis-tweets/1366391002/
logoNEWSLETTER
'Unfazed and determined': Top Grassley aide vows to confirm Kavanaugh despite allegations
William Cummings, USA TODAY Published 4:18 p.m. ET Sept. 20, 2018 | Updated 4:25 p.m. ET Sept. 20, 2018

PHOTOGRAPH -- Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh arrives on the first day of his confirmation hearing in front of the Senate on Capitol Hill in Washington, on Sept. 4, 2018. (Photo: Saul Loeb, AFP/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON – Mike Davis, the chief counsel on nominations for the Senate Judiciary Committee under Chairman Chuck Grassley, is being criticized for two tweets he posted and then deleted that called into question his objectivity regarding the sexual assault allegation that has been made against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh.

"Unfazed and determined. We will confirm Judge Kavanaugh. #ConfirmKavanaugh," read screengrabs of a deleted tweet sent from Davis' account at 10:22 p.m. EDT on Wednesday.

About two hours later, Davis sent another tweet reading, "I personally questioned Judge Kavanaugh under penalty of felony and 5 years imprisonment, if he lies. I'm waiting to hear back from the accuser's attorneys, who can't find time between TV appearances to get back to me."

Those tweets sparked an uproar as some Twitter users interpreted them as evidence that Kavanaugh's accuser, Christine Blasey Ford, will not be given a fair hearing if she accepts Grassley's invitation to testify about her accusation before the committee on Monday.

Chris Hayes
✔
@chrislhayes
"unfazed" - not really even pretending

Tim Dickinson
@7im
clearly open to new information on the nominee

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Amy Siskind
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@Amy_Siskind
This is a tweet by Mike Davis, @ChuckGrassley’s chief counsel. They don’t actually have a desire to hear Dr. Ford and get to the truth. Republicans plan to push their guy through - whatever it takes.

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Louise Mensch
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@LouiseMensch
· Sep 20, 2018
Replying to @JesseCharlesLee and 2 others
. @chuckgrassley, how can @mrddmia - who has now locked his Twitter account - investigate Dr. Ford when he has tweeted in advance that the Committee will confirm Kavanaugh in spite of it? Is that a joke, sir? I sat on a Select Committee in the UK and we would scorn such bias. pic.twitter.com/fLVI86E75c

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Louise Mensch
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@LouiseMensch
Democrats should subpoena Mike Davis, @mrddmia, Twitter account, because the prejudgment he shows here is surely illegal and his locking his account up demonstrates he knows it. @ChuckGrassley staff show the world they have prejudged any internal #Kavanaugh / Ford investigation pic.twitter.com/fDbXGQfaGg

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10:12 AM - Sep 20, 2018
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Judd Legum
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@JuddLegum
If you want to know why Ford doesn't trust Grassley's staff to conduct an impartial investigation, check out these two tweets from Grassley's chief counsel, which he subsequently deleted

There is no intention to uncover the truth, only to confirm Kavanaugh by any means necessary

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After deleting those tweets and briefly locking his account, Davis sent another one on Thursday morning that was meant "to clear up any confusion."

"I was referring to Democrats' partisan political attacks and their refusal to take part in the committee's thorough and fair investigation," he wrote. "I deleted the tweet to avoid any further misrepresentation by left wing media as so often happens on Twitter."

To clear up any confusion, I was referring to Democrats’ partisan political attacks and their refusal to take part in the committee’s thorough and fair investigation. I deleted the tweet to avoid any further misinterpretation by left wing media as so often happens on Twitter.

— Mike Davis (@mrddmia) September 20, 2018

Grassley sent Ford and her attorneys a letter on Wednesday explaining that she must submit a biography and a prepared statement by Friday if she intends to address the committee on Monday.

The Iowa Republican said that by "hearing out both Dr. Ford and Judge Kavanaugh, the Committee will endeavor to discover the truth of the matter, and will be better able to make an informed judgment about Judge Kavanaugh’s nomination."

Davis and spokespersons for the Judiciary Committee did not immediately respond to USA TODAY's request for comment. Grassley's office did not comment but emailed a link to Davis' tweet that he said was intended to "clear up any confusion."

Several Twitter users were unsatisfied with Davis' clarification.

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zedster
@z3dster
Replying to @mrddmia
I don't know, seems like you were pretty proud of yourself there

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sethedel
@sethedel
Replying to @mrddmia
Dude. You wrote “we will confirm judge Kavanaugh”. How we supposed to view that any other way. No worries. Voters like myself will vote out old partisan hacks like your guy & hatch

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Stellaa the 18th angry Democrat
@stellaaaa
Replying to @mrddmia
Darling, there is no misinterpretation, you are rushing to get a tainted political operative on #SCOTUS by any means necessary.

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SCIENCE HAS WORKED MIRACLES IN MY LIFETIME, BUT THERE IS TOO LITTLE OVERSIGHT AND LONG TERM OBSERVATION OF RESULTS. A LIMITED TEST WHICH DOESN’T SHOW A PROBLEM IN THE SHORT TERM IS NOT ENOUGH. THERE ARE DOZENS OF SUCH CASES: BREAST IMPLANTS, FOR ONE. SEE ALSO THE FOLLOWING STORY: https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-39042655.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-45620299
France removes toxic tyres from failed reef project
SEPTEMBER 23, 2018 2 hours ago

PHOTOGRAPH -- The tyres were sunk in the 1980s but are being removed again in stages

Teams of divers are painstakingly lifting an artificial reef made of tens of thousands of old car tyres from the seafloor south of France, after it was found to spread pollution from toxic chemicals.

The operation is costing well over a million euros ($1.1m; £898,000) and is part-funded by the tyre manufacturer Michelin as well as the French state.

The divers are supported by a boat with lifting equipment.

Fish had been avoiding the area.

Local fishing association leader Denis Genovese told AFP news agency that some types of fish swam around the collection of tyres, while "no species really got used to it".

Once upon a time it was seen as a double solution - a way to get rid of old tyres, while creating habitats for marine life and stimulating marine organisms to grow on the rubber.

In the 1980s local authorities agreed 25,000 tyres should be sunk into the waters 500m (1,640 feet) from the shore between Cannes and Antibes, on the French Riviera.

In 2005, researchers found the tyres were leaking chemicals including heavy metals - a risk to human life - into the environment.

RELATED --
Tyres 'major source' of ocean pollution
All the plastic you can and cannot recycle

In 2015, authorities told journalists the tyres were thought to be "completely inert" and to present no risk at the time they were sunk.

Another documented issue is that stacks of tyres can collapse or disintegrate, disturbing life in the area.

A first set of 25,000 tyres was removed in 2015, with 10,000 set to be lifted in the coming weeks and more next year.

Image copyrightAFP
Image caption -- The operation is costing well over a million euros

Artificial reefs using tyres have also been sunk in other parts of the world.

Tens of thousands of tyres have been removed from the seabed at Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

Around Gibraltar in the 1970s, the tyres were washed away by currents. Ships, cars and concrete blocks were later used instead.