President Trump has been briefed on the FBI report reviewing allegations of sexual misconduct against Brett Kavanaugh by aides but has not pored over the information himself.
It was unclear on Thursday morning as the White House barreled ahead with the judge's Supreme Court nomination whether the president had spoken to Kavanaugh since the report came out by phone.
A spokesman for the president and Kavanaugh couldn't say when the last time they spoke was and whether they had talked face-to-face since the judge was accused of sexually assaulting at at least three women, including Christine Blasey Ford.
Rah Shah said that White House officials who had read the FBI's supplemental background check report were confident that Kavanaugh would be seated on the bench when the Senate takes a vote this weekend.
'We stand 100 percent with Brett Kavanaugh,' White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders declared on Fox News two hours later.
She indicated that the president still hadn't read the report yet continues to back his nominee based on his aides' description of it. 'Let's put this to a vote and do it quickly,' she said.
A single copy of the report was sent to senators to read on Thursday morning, in a secure room in the U.S. Capitol's basement, ahead of an expected final vote on Kavanaugh's nomination on Saturday.
Senate Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley said after a briefing from staff on its contents that his support for Kavanaugh remains unflinching.
If other senators draw the same conclusions from the report as the White House, they will mostly be left in the same position as last week - weighing contradictory and heartfelt testimony from two individuals about an incident that allegedly took place more than 35 years ago.
FBI completed a background check into claims that Brett Kavanaugh sexually assaulted Christine Blasey Ford at a gathering in the 1980s on Wednesday, it is reported
The report finds no corroboration to Ford's claims that Kavanaugh pinned her down, tried to pull her clothes off, then covered her mouth as she called out, sources say
HOW SENATE IS READING THE KAVANAUGH FBI REPORT
The Senate received the results of the FBI 'supplemental background investigation' into Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh early Thursday.
Republican lawmakers took part in the initial review of the restricted, single copy report between 8am-9am, with Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman, Chuck Grassley going first.
By 9am, Democratic senators accessed the report, with California Senator Dianne Feinstein to start, as the ranking member of the Judiciary Committee/
No photographs are allowed of it and any notes made from it have to stay in the room.
Secure room: Behind these doors is the Secure Compartmentalized Information Facility - known as a SCIF - where senators will read the report.
Following initial review, all 100 senators will alternate. Alternating one copy of an FBI report between senators is typical for judicial nominees, Republican aides said in a statement.
Also briefed on its contents are 10 Senate staffers who can then brief other senators.
Senators are not permitted to discuss the specific contents of the document with anyone who has not seen it.
The review of the 302 form takes place in a Sensitive Compartmentalized Information Facility in the basement of the Capitol.
Having the single copy viewed in a secure room will supposedly help to stop leaks, which are expected to hit within seconds of the document arriving in the building, if not before.
The vote will decide the make-up of the nation's highest court for years to come. Kavanaugh's confirmation will cement conservative control of the judicial system, giving Trump's party the upper hand in legal disputes that will define the next generation.
The FBI finished its investigation late Wednesday, two days ahead of schedule, and distributed it in the wee hours of Thursday morning.
Shah said in a statement just after 2:20 am EDT that the White House had received the report and it was being transmitted to the Senate.
'This is the last addition to the most comprehensive review of a Supreme Court nominee in history, which includes extensive hearings, multiple committee interviews, over 1,200 questions for the record and over a half million pages of documents,' the White House spokesman said.
'With this additional information, the White House is fully confident the Senate will vote to confirm Judge Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court.'
Grassley told reporters on Thursday morning: 'I’ve now received a committee staff briefing on the FBI’s supplement to Judge Kavanaugh’s background investigation file. There’s nothing in it that we didn’t already know.
'These uncorroborated accusations have been unequivocally and repeatedly rejected by Judge Kavanaugh, and neither the Judiciary Committee nor the FBI could locate any third parties who can attest to any of the allegations. There’s also no contemporaneous evidence,' he said.
'This investigation found no hint of misconduct and the same is true of the six prior FBI background investigations conducted during Judge Kavanaugh’s 25 years of public service.'
Sen. Minority Leader Chuck Schumer slapped back at a Democratic news conference, telling reporters he disagreed that there 'was no hint' of misconduct in the FBI's limited report.
'The fact that there is only one document in there for 100 senators is another example of constraining the ability of all senators and the American public to see the whole truth and nothing but,' Schumer said.
Sen. Dianne Feinstein lit into the White House at the presser, saying, 'It now appears that they also blocked the FBI from doing their job.'
Feinstein, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee, said her party believes that the scope of the FBI investigation should be limited.
'We do not agree that the White House should tie the FBI's hands,' she said.
The California Democrat swatted back at Trump's press team and said 'it is simply not credible' to say that testimony from Ford and Kavanuagh is a substitute for FBI interview.
'In my view, from what I saw, the interview was very limited, and it will be interesting after all of the members have an opportunity to read the documents,' she said.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell remarked on the Senate floor that nomination had went way off the rails, with 'wild tales of violent gangs' and 'fist fights' in high school and college.
He accused Democrats of 'an outrageous smear' campaign
'Brett Kavanaugh is stunningly and totally qualified for this job,' he said, calling his academic and legal credentials 'second to none.' He attended Yale, had three clerkships on the court and worked in the White House counsel office.
Five senators riding the fence will determine Kavanaugh's fate; their counterparts have already announced their positions on the nomination. It wasn't clear on Thursday whether Trump had talked
Aside from the sexual assault allegations brought by Ford and other women, Democrats say that Kavanaugh lied to senators about his drinking during his Judiciary Committee hearing.
Republicans have meanwhile poked holes into Ford's claims, including her assertion she developed claustrophobia as a result of her alleged assault and had to delay her testimony because she has a related fear of flying on planes.
Trump ripped into Ford at a rally on Tuesday for fuzzy testimony that didn't nail down the location of the party at which she says she was nearly raped.
Imitating the university professor and Kavanaugh accuser, Trump said, 'I had one beer. Well, do you think it was? Nope, it was one beer.'
'How did you get home? I don't remember. How'd you get there? I don't remember. Where is the place? I don't remember. How many years ago was it? I don't know,' Trump said.
The impression roiled senators, including three Republicans that Trump was supposed to be courting.
Sen. Jeff Flake said he was 'appalled' by the president's conduct. Swing-voting Sens. Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski also indicated that they were offended.
Sanders said that the White House has been 'in close contact with the Senate' without confirming that the president had talked to any of the three about their reservations.
She suggested that he hadn't talk to the wavering Republicans or two red-state Democrats who voted for his last Supreme Court nominee, either. Sens. Heidi Heitkamp of North Dakota and Joe Manchin could vote again with Republicans.
Democrats like Sen. Chuck Schumer, the Senate minority leader, added the Trump impression to a growing list of problems they have with the proceedings.
They say that the FBI did not speak to enough witnesses and that all the sexual assault accusations against the D.C. Circuit court judge should be probed.
They have also alleged that Kavanaugh does not have the temperament to be on the court after last Thursday's hearing, where he became outwardly emotional.
During a testy exchange with Sen. Amy Klobuchar, the judge denied drinking to excess and barked at her, 'You’re asking about a blackout? I don’t know, have you?'
The White House put forward character witnesses for Kavanaugh such as old friends and women who have worked with him. Two former classmates, one of whom was a college roommate, attested that they had never seen Kavanaugh black out.
On Wednesday a former roommate of Kavanaugh's, James Roche, accused him of showing 'contempt for the truth, for the process, for the rule of law, and for accountability' during his hearing.
Roche and Kavanaugh shared a three-person room at Yale College for several months in 1983, when he claims the freshman 'regularly' drank until blacked out.
The report will be forwarded to senators on Thursday with Mitch McConnell promising a vote on Kavanaugh's nomination some time this week
Democrats are now expected to focus their attentions on whether Kavanaugh lied during his hearing, after Jeff Flake - who helped order the probe - indicated he would vote 'no' if it could be proved he was untruthful
Chad Ludington, Liz Swisher, and Mark Krasberg, former Yale students who knew the now-judge, have also indicated that he lied about his past drinking.
Meanwhile Kerry Berchem, another Yale alum, claims to be in possession of texts that show Kavanaugh knew about allegations from another sex accuser - Deborah Ramirez - days before they were made public.
In sworn testimony, Kavanaugh said he didn't know about the claims until after they were published in the New Yorker.
Democrats have also raised concerns that the probe was not thorough enough amid concerns that the White House limited its scope.
FBI agents contacted 10 people and interviewed nine of them, the New York Times reports, though it is not clear why the tenth was not interviewed.
Senators will be allowed to review the report from 8am in a secure room at the Capitol, or else be briefed by select members of staff.
A preliminary vote is then expected to take place on Friday, before a final vote as early as Saturday.
Roche, Ludington, Swisher, Krasberg and Berchem say they were not contacted by the FBI, despite going public with their claims against Kavanaugh.
Meanwhile two other anonymous figures told CNN that they contacted the FBI with evidence - including the names of people who may have witnessed Kavanaugh allegedly exposing himself to Ramirez at a party.
However, both those people say they were brushed off by the agency.
Democrats have already raised concerns that the White House limited the FBI investigation and that key suspects were not interviewed (pictured, protesters outside the Supreme Court)
Dems are also expected to attack Kavanaugh on wider concerns that he lied to senators during sworn testimony (pictured, protesters in Washington DC)
Ramirez is the only one of Kavanaugh's three named accusers to have been interviewed by the FBI, who did not speak with Ford or Julie Swetnick.
Swetnick claims she witnessed Kavanaugh behaving inappropriately to women at parties while drunk.
President Trump has denied that he ordered the FBI to limit its probe, saying he instructed agents to question whoever the wish.
Democrats have asked to see a copy of the directive that was sent to the bureau for the sake of transparency, but have been brushed off.
Mitch McConnell has also said the report will not be made public, as is typical for such background checks.
However, colleagues across the aisle have argued that the extraordinary nature of this case warrants full disclosure.
McConnell has insisted that a vote to confirm Kavanaugh will take place this week.
https://textbacklinkexchanges.com/category/the-sun-world/
https://textbacklinkexchanges.com/fbi-report-does-not-corroborate-christine-blasey-fords-claims/
News Pictures FBI report 'does NOT corroborate Christine Blasey Ford's claims'
You don’t have to pack away your bikini just because you’re the wrong side of 20. These body-beautiful stars reveal their secrets to staying in shape and prove you can smoulder in a two-piece, whatever your age. Read on and be bikini inspired!
TEENS
Hayden Panettiere
Size: 8
Age: 18
Height: 5ft 1in
Weight: 8st
To achieve her kick-ass figure, Hayden – who plays cheerleader Claire Bennet in Heroes – follows the ‘quartering’ rule. She eats only a quarter of the food on her plate, then waits 20 minutes before deciding whether she needs to eat again.
Hayden says: “I don’t have a model’s body, but I’m not one of those crazy girls who thinks that they’re fat. I’m OK with what I have.”
Nicollette says: “I don’t like diets – I see it, I eat it! I believe in eating healthily with lots of protein, vegetables and carbs to give you energy.”
kim cattrall
Size: 10-12
Age: 52
Height: 5ft 8in
Weight: 9st 4lb
SATC star Kim swears by gym sessions with Russian kettle bells (traditional cast-iron weights) and the South Beach Diet to give her the body she wants. To avoid overeating, Kim has a radical diet trick – squirting lemon juice on her leftovers – so she won’t carry on picking.
Kim says: “I am no super-thin Hollywood actress. I am built for men who like women to look like women.”
https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1/2018/10/04/09/4753918-6238949-image-a-20_1538643546313.jpg
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