
Earlier in the day, NBC News’ Andrea Mitchell made an interesting remark regarding the 1991 Clarence Thomas–Anita Hill hearing, and comparing it to today:
“Clarence Thomas turned a corner when he came back after Anita Hill’s testimony and said, ‘this has been a high-tech lynching.’ Angry and furious and that really did turn the corner. The difference is that he didn’t cry. He was emotional and angry but he was as emotionally raw as the subsequent testimony so it’s a roll coaster here. You don’t know how that is going to play.”
Well, Kavanaugh’s “Clarence Thomas” moment actually came courtesy of Sen. Lindsey Graham, as discussed in the previous post, and with that boost Judge Kavanaugh became more confident and comfortable in his seat than he was before Sen. Graham’s intense remarks.
5:15 ET:
For instance, Kavanaugh decided to fire questions back at Sen. Klobuchar after she asked him about his drinking (he apologized for his action later).
Sen. Klobuchar: There’s never been a case where you drank so much that you didn’t remember what happened the night before?
Judge Kavanaugh: “I don’t know. Have you?”
…
Klobuchar: “I have no drinking problem, Judge.”Kavanaugh: “Nor do I.” pic.twitter.com/kWDrg2dR3J
— NBC News (@NBCNews) September 27, 2018
He also seemed to not take some of the questions from Connecticut Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal particularly seriously.
Kavanaugh was not the only one who seemed to gain confidence from Graham’s outburst. It also seemed to spark a confidence in the other Republican senators on the Committee to take control of the questioning without needing to bring back the paid prosecutor Rachel Mitchell.
Pretty clear Graham’s explosion was tactically a way of cutting off their own prosecutor from askng questions so that GOP senators could ask less probing and accusatory ones.
— Chris Hayes (@chrislhayes) September 27, 2018
6:15 p.m. ET:
It seems to be looking like a partisan fight, with Republican members expressing frustration about the entire process. There hadn’t been an intense back-and-forth between Kavanaugh and a committee member about the sexual assault allegations until Cory Booker’s turn at 6:20 p.m. ET:
Sen. Booker: “Do you wish she never came forward?”
Kavanaugh: “Senator, I did not do this –”
Booker: “That’s not my question sir. Would you try to answer my question, sir? Do you wish she never came forward?”
Kavanaugh: “The witnesses who were there say it didn’t happen.” pic.twitter.com/uyhr6bqf6A
— CBS Evening News (@CBSEveningNews) September 27, 2018
California Sen. Kamala Harris asked a number of questions, including if Kavanaugh had watched any of Dr. Ford’s testimony. Kavanaugh said he did not, but that he had planned to.
History will show Dr. Blasey Ford is a true profile in courage. pic.twitter.com/bG36lOA7AD
— Kamala Harris (@SenKamalaHarris) September 27, 2018
Later, Arizona Republican Senator Jeff Flake asked for civility and said that “there will be doubt when everyone walks out of the courtroom today…but at the end of the day, we’re still 21 imperfect human beings up here.”
The fact that Sen. Flake declined to ask any questions of Kavanaugh means that he will probably vote “Yes” on Kavanaugh, according to experts.
President Trump weighed in after the hearing ended at around 6:45 p.m. ET, praising Kavanaugh and referring to the process as a “sham.”
Judge Kavanaugh showed America exactly why I nominated him. His testimony was powerful, honest, and riveting. Democrats’ search and destroy strategy is disgraceful and this process has been a total sham and effort to delay, obstruct, and resist. The Senate must vote!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 27, 2018
The Senate Judiciary Committee is planning to vote Friday at 9:30 a.m ET to advance Kavanaugh’s nomination to the full Senate floor. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell then plans a Saturday vote to formally move to the nomination, with a potential confirmation vote as early as Tuesday.
Hitting the gas pedal, with the midterms coming up in early November.
POSTGAME
The postgame analysis across the TV news spectrum seemed to be that Kavanaugh will get the necessary votes to move forward, despite Dr. Ford’s testimony, but that in general, this isn’t a good process and it wasn’t a particularly great day in American history, exposing a deep divide in Washington.
After Dr. Ford’s passionate testimony this morning/afternoon, it seemed, according to the pundits/analysts, there may have been a chance for Kavanaugh to fall flat. But by sundown, that feeling seemed to dissipate.
MSNBC’s Lawrence O’Donnell hosted a special report in the 10 p.m. hour, a wrapup of the day with NBC News correspondents and MSNBC commentators and contributors. Kasie Hunt reported that Sen. Flake will sleep on his decision:
.@kasie says Sen. Flake was “visibly in turmoil” over confirmation vote on President Trump’s Supreme Court pick, following testimony today from Dr. Ford and Judge Kavanaugh. pic.twitter.com/1uR4Ap6z0S
— MSNBC (@MSNBC) September 28, 2018
Chris Cuomo had multiple guests on his program on his 9 p.m. program with various degrees of connection to Kavanaugh. One vouched for him in-studio
Former Kavanaugh classmate @DavidMMcintosh vouches for his longtime friend: “What he presented today is who he is. He’s not perfect… but he’s very credible, very much a gentleman, and I believe he was totally sincere in saying ‘I never did this.’” https://t.co/ewgVCrZMBD pic.twitter.com/pDhGTiK74k
— Cuomo Prime Time (@CuomoPrimeTime) September 28, 2018
Another called in, and didn’t exactly vouch for him:
Lynne Brookes, a former classmate of Kavanaugh, alleges he was misleading about the extent of his drinking at Yale.
“There is no doubt in my mind that while at Yale, he was a big partier, often drank to excess and there had to be a number of nights where he does not remember.” pic.twitter.com/YTnWRlXoyC
— Cuomo Prime Time (@CuomoPrimeTime) September 28, 2018
A former Trump campaign senior advisor came on the program, and reiterated what many Republicans had been saying throughout the day: They respect Dr. Ford, but they don’t seem to think Kavanaugh did to her what she’s alleging.
Former Trump aide @MichaelRCaputo says he found Christine Blasey Ford’s testimony today “courageous,” but that he “didn’t see any more evidence of this assault at the end of the day… than we saw before.” https://t.co/ewgVCshntb pic.twitter.com/Ixwfunrwur
— Cuomo Prime Time (@CuomoPrimeTime) September 28, 2018
Lindsey Graham, who, outside of Kavanaugh and Dr. Ford was the most talked-about figure of the evening, appeared on Hannity:
Big day in the Senate. About to join @seanhannity on @FoxNews. @ChickfilA to refuel! pic.twitter.com/CSvBoY2aqI
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) September 28, 2018
“The one thing I learned beyond any doubt today is that they [Democrats] never intended to protect Dr. Ford, and everything I believed I knew about Brett Kavanaugh, I am now more convinced than ever that he didn’t do it. That he’s the right guy to be on the court, and that Ms. Ford has a problem and destroying Judge Kavanaugh’s life won’t fix her problem…’
During the previous hour, Brit Hume told Tucker Carlson that we were more or less back to where we were before everything started.
.@brithume on Kavanaugh hearing: “These allegations against him were uncorroborated when the day began. And they were uncorroborated at the end of the day.” #Tucker https://t.co/lAYkRldzCK pic.twitter.com/cSEmDibnpE
— Fox News (@FoxNews) September 28, 2018
Kellyanne Conway appeared on The Ingraham Angle in the 10 p.m. hour, and sang Kavanaugh’s praises. She also said she thinks people will ultimately remember Kavanaugh’s performance more than Ford’s.
.@KellyannePolls: “What the @POTUS saw in Judge Kavanaugh when he first met with him and considered nominating him to the United States Supreme Court is what the whole country saw today.” @IngrahamAngle pic.twitter.com/h8nEzUfqEm
— Fox News (@FoxNews) September 28, 2018
Rachel Maddow explained how the explosive temper Kavanaugh showed during the hearing will be an issue for him:
There is a brand new temperament issue with Judge Kavanaugh that had not previously been an issue for him. And it will be controversial for him for as long as he is a judge. pic.twitter.com/E0YqnWcXVu
— Maddow Blog (@MaddowBlog) September 28, 2018