Kavanaugh is confirmed to Supreme Court by 50-48 vote

The Senate voted late Saturday afternoon to confirm Judge Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court, marking the end to one of the most rancorous confirmation fights in modern times and securing a rightward shift on the nation's highest court. The chamber voted 50-48 to confirm Kavanaugh, mostly along party lines, after a weeklong FBI probe helped settle concerns among most wavering senators about the sexual assault allegations that nearly derailed his nomination and led to a dramatic second hearing.

The crime of being a man

Back in the mid-1970s, when I was an undergraduate at North Carolina State University, Germaine Greer, author of The Female Eunuch and militant feminist, came to our campus to speak. During her speech, she relentlessly disparaged all men, asserting that every one of them wanted to rape women, but that most had not yet acted on that impulse.

The compromise on Brett Kavanaugh’s Supreme Court confirmation

Sen. Jeff Flake explains why he insisted on a week-long FBI investigation into the allegations of sexual assault against Brett Kavanaugh. 60 Minutes spoke with Flake and other members of the Senate Judiciary Committee about the drama on Capitol Hill last week .

As Ford Polygraph Made Public, Senate Judiciary Democrats Unified: Kavanaugh Should ‘Immediately Withdraw’

Senate Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Senator Dianne Feinstein , speaks during a news conference denouncing the White House's withholding of documents on Supreme Court Nominee Brett Kavanaugh outside of the U.S. Supreme Court on September 4, 2018 in Washington, DC. Also pictured are Sen. Mazie Hirono , Sen. Chris Coons , Sen. Cory Booker , Senate Minority Whip Dick Durbin , Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse , Sen. Richard Blumenthal , Sen. Kamala Harris , and Sen. Patrick Leahy .

Sen. Chris Coons: Burden of proof lies with Brett Kavanaugh to prove his innocence

Sen. Chris Coons, Delaware Democrat, drew double-takes on the right Monday after insisting that the burden of proof lies with Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett M. Kavanaugh to prove his innocence. Ms. Coons said that Christine Blasey Ford and Deborah Ramirez "have nothing to gain" and have put themselves "at legal risk" by accusing Mr. Kavanaugh of sexual misconduct in his teen years.

This is not politics as usual — it is political pyromania

One of the dubious advantages of a Supreme Court nomination battle is how it brings into the open some of the vicious, ideological arguments that are normally hidden by shame and discretion. That has certainly been true on the right, with some figures demonstrating a callousness toward the charge of attempted rape that would presumably change if their own children were even remotely threatened.

Dem Sen. Mazie Hirono says abuse allegations against Keith Ellison should be investigated

Hawaii Democratic Sen. Mazie Hirono on Sunday called for an investigation into allegations of physical and emotional abuse against Minnesota Democratic Rep. Keith Ellison, who is running for attorney general of Minnesota. Ellison has denied the allegations and suggested they were politically motivated -- coming just days before Minnesota's Democratic primary for attorney general.

OP-ED: We need to hear from Christine Blasey Ford

In amoral political terms, Senate Republicans have been skillful in handling Christine Blasey's Ford's allegations that the Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh sexually assaulted her when they were both in high school.

GOP, Kavanaugh accuser in standoff over her Senate testimony

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., with Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, left, joined by former students from Holton Arms School, speaks to reporters in support of professor Christine Blasey Ford, who is accusing Supreme Court... . Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, walks through a tunnel towards the Dirksen Senate Building on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Sept.

Telling men to ‘step up,’ Sen. Hirono strides into spotlight

Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, with Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., left, is applauded by demonstrators as the arrive to speak to reporters in support of professor Christine Blasey Ford, who is accusing Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh of a decades-old sexual attack, during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, Sept. 20, 2018.

Anti-Kavanaugh voices Hirono, Feinstein took campaign cash from Dem…

Speaking at a press conference Tuesday evening, Hawaii Democratic Sen. Mazie Hirono urges men to 'do the right thing' amid allegations of misconduct against President Trump's Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh.
 U.S. Sen. Mazie Hirono, who told men to "just shut up and step up" in the wake of sexual misconduct allegations against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh, might have some explaining to do about her campaign cash. U.S. Sen. Tom Carper's First State PAC donated $1,000 to Hirono's political campaign in June, despite the Delaware lawmaker's confession of abuse.

Low-key senator steps into spotlight, tells men to ‘step up’

Hawaii Sen. Mazie Hirono, one of only four women on the 21-member Senate Judiciary Committee, asked Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh the same questions on sexual harrassment she has asked dozens of other nominees. Had Kavanaugh "made unwanted requests for sexual favors" or committed verbal or physical harrassment of a sexual nature since he became a legal adult? And had he ever faced discipline or settled with anyone over that kind of conduct? Kavanaugh said "no" to both questions at his confirmation hearing earlier this month.

Hirono’s blunt style makes her a favorite of liberals looking…

Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, talks with reporters after receiving a letter signed by Holton-Arms School alumnae in support of Christine Blasey Ford on Thursday. Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, talks with reporters after receiving a letter signed by Holton-Arms School alumnae in support of Christine Blasey Ford on Thursday.

Senate Judiciary votes 11 to 10 to forward Ryan Bounds’ 9th Circuit nomination to Senate floor

The Senate Judiciary Committee Thursday voted 11 to 10 along party lines to forward the nomination of Oregon assistant U.S. Attorney Ryan Bounds for a vacancy on the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to the Senate floor for confirmation. The vote followed recriminations by Democratic senators who accused Republicans of "gutting checks and balances,'' in their rush to stack the federal courts with conservative judges who are ideologically aligned.

Connie Schultz: You, too, would do this to save your child

Three years ago, on the 50th anniversary of the march from Selma to Montgomery for voting rights, I sat in an Alabama church pew with then-Sen. Jeff Sessions. He wore the flushed, impatient face of someone who had to be there.

Bipartisan Senate group reaches immigration deal, but votes unsure

A group of bipartisan senators Wednesday struck a much-anticipated deal on a narrow immigration compromise -- but it remains unclear whether the proposal could garner the elusive 60 votes needed to advance legislation in the Senate. According to a draft obtained by CNN, the bill would offer nearly 2 million young undocumented immigrants who came to the US as children before 2012 a path to citizenship over 10 to 12 years.

Blumenthal Dubious of White House Interim Security Clearance Trend

Democratic lawmakers have grown increasingly concerned - and frustrated - over the White House's position on matters of security confidentiality. Last week, President Donald Trump withheld the release of a Democratic House Intelligence Committee memo rebutting one from the Republican side, citing the need for heavy redaction to protect national security interests.