Charges and Denials Fuel an Emotional Hearing as Kavanaugh Nomination Hangs in the Balance.

‘This is not a good process’: A raw, emotional hearing exposes partisan divide.

Judge Brett M. Kavanaugh and his accuser, Dr. Christine Blasey Ford faced off Thursday in an extraordinary, emotional day of testimony that ricocheted from a woman’s tremulous account of sexual assault to a man’s angry, outraged denial, all of which played out for hours before a riveted nation and a riven Senate.

The two very different versions of the truth, unfolding in the heated atmosphere of gender divides, #MeToo and the Trump presidency, could not be reconciled. The testimony skittered from cringe-worthy sexual details to accusations and denials of drunken debauchery to one juvenile exchange over flatulence.

It was a raw, draining day, even by the standards of a raw, draining era.The hearing, which was supposed to bring clarity to the nomination process, was a scorched-earth confrontation of men against women, right against left — a cascade of recriminations, anger, tears and sobs. The day ended with discord bordering on dark visions of a hopeless future.

 When asked her degree of certainty it was Kavanaugh, Ford leaned down into the microphone and said: '100 percent.' In one of the more emotional moments of the morning, Democratic Sen Patrick Leahy asked Ford what stuck out to her in her memory.

'Indelible in the hippocampus is the laughter,' Ford said, her voice breaking up. 'The laughter, the upraised laughter between the two and their having fun at my expense.'

'You never forgot that laughter?,' Leahy asked as Ford nodded and one of her lawyers patted her back for reassurance.

'I was under one of them while they laughed. Two friends having fun together,' Ford said. 

'When I got to the small gathering, people were drinking beer in a small living room on the first floor of the house. I drank one beer that evening. Brett and Mark were visibly drunk. Early in the evening, I went up a narrow set of stairs leading from the living room to a second floor to use the bathroom. When I got to the top of the stairs, I was pushed from behind into a bedroom. I couldn't see who pushed me.'

'I believed he was going to rape me. I tried to yell for help. When I did, Brett put his hand over my mouth to stop me from screaming,' she recalled.

'This was what terrified me the most and has had the most lasting impact on my life. It was hard for me to breathe, and I thought that Brett was accidentally going to kill me.'

'For a very long time, I was too afraid and ashamed to tell anyone the details. I did not want to tell my parents that I, at age 15, was in a house without any parents present, drinking beer with boys,' she said.

'I tried to convince myself that because Brett did not rape me, I should be able to move on and just pretend that it had never happened.' 

At several moments throughout her time before the panel of 21 senators, Ford grew emotional, fighting back tears and struggling to keep her composure. 

Ford was also almost in tears at another point in the questioning when Blumenthal praised her courage.

After Christine Blasey Ford gave her account of an assault, an angry, tearful Brett M. Kavanaugh called the accusations “a calculated and orchestrated political hit.” 

 Panel Democrats blasted the charge, saying they believed Kavanaugh's accuser or at least wanted the FBI to investigate to discern more information and interview Mark Judge - a witness to the alleged attack.Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer also wondered why Republicans weren't demanding the White House order the FBI to reopen their background investigation if they were 'so certain' of Kavanaugh's story.

Republicans say they will move ahead on trying to confirm nominee to Supreme Court

Senate Republicans announced that the Judiciary Committee would meet Friday morning for a vote on Kavanaugh’s confirmation.
Kavanaugh is expected to clear the committee to head to the Senate floor. That would set up a key procedural vote as early as Saturday with a final deciding vote to follow next week. Key undecideds, Republican senators Jeff Flake, Susan Collins, Lisa Murkowski and West Virginia Democrat Paul Manchin huddled in the Capitol on Thursday evening, as the main contingents of Republicans and Democrats joined their respective camps. In the main Senate vote, Republicans can allow just two defections if they want to confirm the nominee 

On Thursday night it was revealed that George W Bush had personally reached out to all four senators, hoping to help sway them to Kavanaugh's side.  

Bush reportedly decided to personally reach out to the key four because of their strained relationships with Trump, according to the Washington Post. 

The former president has a long history with Kavanaugh, who worked for Bush during the crucial Florida recount in the 2000 presidential election. Bush nominated Kavanaugh to the US Court of Appeals in 2003.   

A different Kavanaugh comes out swinging hard at ‘search and destroy’ Democrats

The Supreme Court nominee aligned himself with President Trump in claiming that the sex assault allegations against him were orchestrated to derail his confirmation.

The embattled nominee began with a 45-minute, 5,200-word opening statement, throwing away a far briefer statement he had already submitted as he instead launched into conspiracy theories that the hearing was the Democrats' 'revenge for the Clintons'.  'This whole two-week effort has been a calculated and orchestrated political hit fueled with apparent pent-up anger about President Trump and the 2016 election,' Kavanaugh claimed.

'Fear that has been unfairly stoked about my judicial record, revenge on behalf of the Clintons, and millions of dollars in money from outside left-wing opposition groups.'

'This confirmation process has become a national disgrace. The constitution gives the Senate an important role in the confirmation process. But you have replaced advice and consent with search and destroy,' he said.

Questions about Kavanaugh's alcohol habits became especially contentious when he was asked by Sen Amy Klobuchar if he had ever drank to the point of blacking out after she referenced her own father's struggle with alcoholism.

'I don't know. Have you?' he shot back in an incredible moment that was criticized by many on social media. 

After a brief recess, Kavanaugh apologized to Klobuchar and said: 'I'm sorry I did that. This is a tough process.'  

Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham angrily defended Brett Kavanaugh on Thursday, charging Democrats with using a Supreme Court nomination to try to win the midterm elections and saying Kavanaugh was no Bill Cosby.Graham, who has been one of Kavanaugh's biggest defenders in the Senate, pounded on his desk, tossed papers and yelled at his Democratic colleagues across the dais, ending his tirade with a dramatic plea to his GOP colleagues to vote for Kavanaugh's confirmation.The outburst was an instant viral moment for conservatives - with two of Donald Trump's most senior aides tweeting their approval.