Christine Blasey Ford’s lawyer has been negotiating with the US Senate staff on testimony to given to the US Senate Judiciary Committee….
Ford would appear before the committee by maybe Thursday is certain conditions are met….
One of them is that Kavanaugh NOT be in the room , especially NOT sitting next her like someone suggested …She will also have her lawyer present….And she will have to have her safety assured against the threats of violence that have been aimed at her…
Any deal must be approved by the committee chair and Senate Majority leader McConnell….
They will be have to bend to accept most of Ford’s requests with her saying she will come in to talk….
Christine Blasey Ford’s attorneys held a high-stakes call with Republicans and Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee Thursday night that ended with no decision on when or if Ford will testify about allegations that Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh sexually assaulted her, according to two sources familiar with the matter.
One source described the call as “positive,” though there is no ironclad agreement to have Ford appear and Ford’s attorneys made some requests that the committee won’t accommodate — such as subpoenaing Mark Judge, whom Ford alleged was in the room when Kavanaugh groped and forced himself on her while both were in high school.
Ford lawyers Debra Katz and Lisa Banks spoke to staff from Senate Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and ranking member Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) about possible scenarios for an appearance next week. The lawyers requested a Thursday hearing in which Kavanaugh appears first, said Ford is opposed to be being questioned by outside counsel and mentioned having just one camera in the hearing room, a second source said.
Grassley is now set to consult with his staff and Republicans on his committee to determine his next steps. Ford’s attorney Debra Katz cancelled two media appearances on Thursday night, which Republicans took as a positive sign….
Note…
It’s hard to imagine that Ford will cut anything other than a sympathetic figure in front of the committee. An accomplished professional woman sacrificing her privacy — and her safety — to step forward to tell her story, facing down a group, at least on the Republican side, of mostly men? It’s a visual Republicans badly wanted to avoid. It now seems likely they will not dodge that scene.
For Kavanaugh’s part, he has already repeatedly denied the Ford allegations. He is likely to do so again — and to lean heavily on a series of testimonials from women in his life over the years to argue that this is a case of mistaken identity or misremembering on Ford’s part. And if his past testimony during his confirmation hearing is any indication, he will come across as a genuine and self-effacing.
What Kavanaugh can’t control is how the senators questioning him and Ford act. And how the public watching the proceedings react to all of it. Ford testifying injects a massive amount of fluctuation and uncertainty into the proceedings. And uncertainty is Kavanaugh’s enemy — and the enemy of Republicans desperately trying to get him confirmed before the 2018 midterms.
The Point: None of the above means Kavanaugh can’t or won’t be confirmed to the Supreme Court….
More @ The Point with Chris Cillizza
At what point would Kavanaugh say ‘Enough’?
I certainly don’t believe he is anywhere near that point presently.
Me neither….
But I COULD see doubts about the whole thing being on his mind…
BTW?
Christine Blasey Ford is meeting with FBI in San Francisco to discuss the death threats she’s gotten…..
Yeah I’ve seen no sign that Kavenaugh is ready to give up.
He would crawl naked through broken beer bottles to be a Justice.
You know, like when he was in Prep School.