On Friday afternoon, the Senate Judiciary Committee voted to send Brett Kavanaugh’s Supreme Court nomination to the Senate floor. The 21-senator committee voted 11-10 to advance the nomination, voting mostly along party lines.
Photo Credit: ABC News
The most discussed event of the day, however, was not the advancement of the nomination. Instead, it was Senator Jeff Flake’s (R-AZ) call to delay the vote until the FBI can perform an investigation into the sexual assault accusations against Kavanaugh.
Jeff Flake’s call for an FBI investigation of Kavanaugh surprised many.
Photo Credit: Vox
Senator Flake’s request for a voting delay came as a surprise to many, given that he announced this morning that he would confirm Kavanaugh’s nomination – which he did. According to CNN, Flake explained before the Senate Judiciary Committee that he was calling for an FBI investigation, “in an effort to bring this country together… this is what I’m trying to do. This country is being ripped apart here. We’ve got to make sure that we do due diligence.”
Some suspect that Flake’s call for such an investigation was motivated by a confrontation he had with two sexual assault survivors in an elevator Friday morning. In a video captured by CNN, Flake refused to make eye contact with the women as they implored him not to confirm Kavanaugh’s nomination.
“Don’t look away from me,” one of the two, Maria Gallagher, said. “Look at me and tell me that it doesn’t matter what happened to me. That you will let people like that go into the highest court of the land and tell everyone what they can do with their bodies.”
As of now, three women have alleged that Kavanaugh sexually assaulted them when they were in high school, according to The New York Times. This includes Dr. Christine Blasey Ford, who gave her three-hour testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday afternoon in which she described Kavanaugh’s attempt to rape her when she was a teenager.
Kavanaugh has a long history of voting against women’s reproductive rights. According to CNN, he accepts Roe v. Wade, the 1973 landmark case that granted abortion rights to women, as settled law. Some are concerned he may try to overturn Roe v. Wade if he is confirmed given his previous rulings on abortion issues. The New York Times reported that last October, Kavanaugh opposed a vote to allow a 17-year-old pregnant undocumented immigrant from immediately receiving an abortion in the Garza v. Hargan case. He claimed that the government would be granting privileges not accorded undocumented immigrants in any set law and that the girl should instead be transferred to a government sponsor before a decision regarding the abortion is made.
Kavanaugh’s appointment to the Supreme Court will be voted on sometime next week, as Democrats and Republicans debate his nomination.
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