Trump’s selection closer to court win
A DEEPLY divided US Senate has pushed Brett Kavanaugh’s Supreme Court nomination past a key procedural hurdle, setting up a likely final showdown this weekend.
It is part of a battle that has seen claims of sexual assault against the nominee, which he denies, threaten President Donald Trump’s effort to tip the court to the right for decades to come.
The Senate voted 51-49 to limit debate, effectively defeating Democratic efforts to scupper the nomination with endless delays and nearing the climax of a fight that has captivated the country since summer.
With Republicans controlling the chamber 51-49, one Republican voted to stop the nomination and one Democrat voted to send it further.
Of the four politicians who had not revealed their decisions until Friday – all moderates – Republican senators Susan Collins and Jeff Flake voted yes, as did Democrat Joe Manchin.
Republican Lisa Murkowski voted not to move the nomination ahead.
While the vote was a victory for the Republican Party, politicians can vote differently on the climactic confirmation roll call, and Ms Collins told reporters she would announce later how she would go.
That left unclear whether yesterday’s tally signalled that the 53-year-old federal appellate judge was on his way to the nation’s highest court, though it would be unusual for politicians to switch their votes on such a high-profile issue.
Confirmation would be a crowning achievement for Mr Trump, his conservative base and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.
Ms Murkowski sat solemnly during the roll call and whispered “No” when it was her turn to vote.
As the tally neared an end, she spoke with Ms Collins, a Democratic friend.
All four politicians who had been undeclared said little or nothing to reporters as they left.
Mr Trump weighed in shortly afterwards, tweeting: “Very proud of the U.S. Senate for voting ‘YES’ to advance the nomination of Judge Brett Kavanaugh!”
Yesterday’s vote occurred a day after the Senate received a roughly 50-page FBI report on the sexual assault allegations.
Republicans said the document – detailing interviews conducted with 10 witnesses – failed to find anyone who could corroborate allegations by his two chief accusers, Christine Blasey Ford and Deborah Ramirez.