Tag: Judge Brett Kavanaugh

Kellyanne Conway Defends Trump’s Mockery of Dr. Ford: ‘Pointing Out Factual Inconsistencies’

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White House special advisor Kellyanne Conway ran defense for President Trump on Wednesday after he seemed to mock Christine Blasey Ford‘s misconduct allegations against Brett Kavanaugh.

Conway spoke to Bill Hemmer and Sandra Smith on Fox News, and the discussion started off with the condemnation Trump has received for his rally remarks last night. Conway argued that Trump was merely highlighting the argument that no evidence or new witnesses have turned up in support Ford’s claims ever since they became public.

“We are not managing the scope, the witnesses, anything like that. At the same time, the president is pointing out factual inconsistencies. By Ford’s own testimony there are gaps in her memory, there are facts that she cannot remember. How she got home, how she got there. Where the house was, what the date was. If those pretending they want to find the truth, don’t say we can’t find the truth when she doesn’t know all the facts. That’s part of the testimony she put in under sworn statements”.

Conway went on to argue that the Democrats have weaponized the #MeToo movement against Kavanaugh, somewhat suggesting that they only care as long as they are the victims. She also bragged about how many likes Trump got on a tweet of his shortly after Kavanaugh testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee.

“That’s a lot of likes for a presidential tweet,” she touted.

[Mediaite]

Trump Attacks Democrats For Treatment of Brett Kavanaugh: ‘VICIOUS AND DESPICABLE’

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Piggybacking off of comments he’s made at rallies over the past two nights, President Donald Trump is attacking Democrats for what he deems to be “VICIOUS AND DESPICABLE” treatment of Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh.

In a Wednesday morning tweet, the president — again liberally using capital letters — shredded Democrats for their handling of the Kavanaugh nomination.

“I see it each time I go out to Rallies in order to help some of our great Republican candidates,” Trump wrote. “VOTERS ARE REALLY ANGRY AT THE VICIOUS AND DESPICABLE WAY DEMOCRATS ARE TREATING BRETT KAVANAUGH! He and his wonderful family deserve much better.”

The new tweet comes after Trump’s widely condemned remarks at a Tuesday night rally in Mississippi in which he mocked Kavanaugh accuser Christine Blasey Ford.

[Mediaite]

Trump makes fun of Dr. Christine Blasey Ford for not remembering the night of her alleged assault: ‘I only had one beer!’

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During a Mississippi rally for Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS), President Donald Trump made fun of Brett Kavanaugh accuser Dr. Christine Blasey Ford for not remembering details about the night of her alleged assault 36 years ago.

“I had one beer!” the president said, mocking Ford’s insistence that she wasn’t as inebriated as Kavanaugh at the time of the alleged sexual assault.

He then proceeded to mock the woman’s back-and-forth questioning with prosecutor Rachel Mitchell, responding “I don’t remember” to questions about the time and location of the incident.

“I had one beer, that’s the only thing I remember,” Trump said, continuing to make fun of Ford. “A man’s life is in tatters. A man’s life is shattered.”

[Raw Story]

Media

‘A very scary time for young men in America’: Trump says boys fear being unfairly accused of sexual assault

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President Donald Trump on Tuesday warned that it is a “very scary time for young men in America” after his Supreme Court nominee, Brett Kavanaugh, was accused of sexual assault.

The president made the remarks to reporters as he was boarding Marine One.

Trump explained that he was sticking with the nominee because he had not seen enough evidence of Dr. Christine Blasey Ford’s sexual assault claims.

“My whole life, I’ve heard you’re innocent until proven guilty,” Trump said. “But now you’re guilty until proven innocent. That is a very, very difficult standard.”

“I say that it’s a very scary time for young men in America when you can be guilty of something that you may not be guilty of,” he continued. “This is a very difficult time. What’s happening here has much more to do than even the appointment of a Supreme Court justice. You can be somebody that was perfect your entire life and somebody could accuse you of something.”

[Raw Story]

Reality

Research from the National Sexual Violence Research Center proves the opposite.

“False allegations of sexual assaults are somewhere between 2 and 10 percent,” Cooper explained. “Yes, they happen, but they’re not the norm. Not to mention sexual assault is widely underreported, out of every 1,000 sexual assaults, only 310 are reported to the police, according to the nation’s largest anti-sexual violence organization, RAIN.”

Angry Trump tries — and fails — to shut down CNN’s Kaitlan Collins for asking about Brett Kavanaugh

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President Donald Trump on Monday angrily tried to shut down CNN reporter Kaitlan Collins for trying to ask him a question about embattled Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh.

During a press conference about Trump’s renegotiated trade deal with Canada and Mexico, Collins tried to squeeze in a question about Kavanaugh — and Trump frantically tried to shut her down.

“Don’t do that!” the president exclaimed. “Excuse me, do you have a question on trade?”

Nevertheless, Collins persisted.

“You’ve already answered several questions on trade…” Collins began.

“Don’t do that, that’s not nice!” Trump again interrupted.

The president then tried to get some other reporter to ask a question about his trade deal — but Collins kept talking.

“You said the FBI should interview whomever they believe is appropriate,” Collins said.

“Does that include Julie Swetnick, the third accuser? And can you promise to release the full findings when they finish the report, Mr. President?”

[Raw Story]

Media

Trump to press: ‘I consider you a part of the Democrat Party’

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A combative President Trump initially deflected questions about Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh during a White House press conference on trade, and also accused reporters of working for the Democratic Party.

During an extended attack on Democrats for their handling of Kavanaugh, Trump accused the media of taking the party’s side.

“I consider you a part of the Democrat Party,” Trump said.

Trump shot down questions three times from reporters on Kavanaugh following remarks in the Rose Garden, instead demanding they first ask questions about the newly negotiated version of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).

He signaled he would eventually take questions on Kavanaugh, but didn’t do so until almost an hour into the press conference.

“What does that have to do with trade?” he said when asked by ABC reporter Cecilia Vega about his tweets on Kavanaugh. “I don’t mind answering the question, but I’d like to do the trade questions, too.”

“We’ll do the Kavanaugh questions,” he told another reporter shortly after.

When a third reporter sought to ask him about Kavanaugh — and from CNN, one of the president’s usual media targets — Trump grew irritated.

“Don’t do that,” Trump told CNN reporter Kaitlan Collins when she tried to ask about reports the White House had put limits on the FBI investigation into sexual assault allegations against Kavanaugh. “Excuse me, do you have a question on trade?”

When Collins persisted, Trump directed another reporter to be given the microphone and ask a question on trade.

When he agreed to take questions on the controversy surrounding his Supreme Court pick, Trump criticized reports that the White House had not allowed the FBI to interview accuser Julie Swetnick as inaccurate.

Trump insisted he was deferring to the Senate on the investigation, saying he wants it to be “comprehensive” but completed quickly.

Throughout the news conference, Trump continued to squabble with reporters and accuse the press of misleading coverage, charges that have become a hallmark of Trump’s presidency. He accused the press of treating him “unbelievably unfairly.”

“You’ve had enough,” Trump told Collins at a later point, refusing to take another question from her about Kavanaugh.

[The Hill]

Donald Trump Contradicts Brett Kavanaugh, Saying Nominee Admitted to ‘Difficulty’ With Drinking as Young Man

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President Donald Trump appeared Monday to contradict the testimony and public comments by Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh about his drinking during his high school and college days, with the president stating Kavanaugh had noted he had “difficulty as a young man.”

Trump defended Kavanaugh, stating he had been forthright with the Senate Judiciary Committee despite attacks from Democrats. The president said that Kavanaugh had explained his drinking as having “difficulty as a young man with drink…He was very strong on the fact that he drank a lot.”

However, Kavanaugh had stated before the committee on Friday and during his interview with Fox News a week ago that his drinking was not overly excessive and was in line with his peers.

“And yes, there were parties. And the drinking age was 18, and yes, the seniors were legal and had beer there. And yes, people might have had too many beers on occasion and people generally in high school—I think all of us have probably done things we look back on in high school and regret or cringe a bit, but that’s not what we’re talking about,” Kavanaugh told Fox.

Kavanaugh also told Fox that he never drank to the point of blacking out, which he also reiterated to the committee during his often combative testimony and defense.

“Sometimes I had too many beers. Sometimes others did. I liked beer. I still like beer. But I did not drink beer to the point of blacking out, and I never sexually assaulted anyone,” Kavanaugh said in his statement.

The federal judge was also grilled by senators about his drinking and he repeatedly said he had never blacked out or did not drink to the point that he could not remember what happened the evening before.

Trump was also asked if the allegations of sexual assault against Kavanaugh were proved to be true by the FBI’s current investigation would he consider pulling support for Kavanaugh.

The president said he was “open” but vehemently defended Kavanaugh. He challenged the way in which Democrats had conducted themselves during the confirmation process while blasting numerous senators like Diane Feinstein and Cory Booker, and even claimed to know of a Democratic senator in “very very bad situations … somewhat compromising.” Trump did not name the senator and said he would save the answer “for a book like everybody else.”

Trump’s press conference Monday was originally planned to discuss a new trade deal with Mexico and Canada, and the president fought off questions about Kavanaugh until he could answer inquiries about the trade deal.

[Newsweek]

Media

Trump Insults ABC Reporter, Saying She ‘Never’ Thinks

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President Donald Trump insulted a female reporter for ABC News on Monday during a Rose Garden news conference, telling her that she “never” thinks even before she had a chance to ask her question.

As the reporter, Cecilia Vega, turned to retrieve a microphone to ask Trump a question, Trump joked “she’s shocked that I picked her. Like in a state of shock.”

Vega responded, “I’m not, thank you Mr. President.”

Trump appeared to misunderstand her. “That’s OK, I know you’re not thinking, you never do.”

“I’m sorry?” she responded.

“No, go ahead. Go ahead,” Trump said.

Vega tried to ask a question about the FBI investigation of sexual assault allegations against Trump’s Supreme Court nominee, Brett Kavanaugh, but the president initially insisted she ask about trade. He returned to Vega later for a Kavanaugh question.

“A news conference means you get to ask whatever question you want to ask,” Vega tweeted later, adding the hashtag “#FirstAmendment.”

[Bloomberg]

Media

Trump knocks ‘Saturday Night Live’ after season premiere: ‘It is just a political ad for the Dems’

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President Trump on Sunday bashed “Saturday Night Live” after its season premiere, claiming that the show “is just a political ad for the Dems.”

The president in a tweet claimed he does not watch the show, despite previously hosting it and regularly being a focal point of its sketches.

“Like many, I don’t watch Saturday Night Live (even though I past hosted it) – no longer funny, no talent or charm. It is just a political ad for the Dems,” Trump wrote.

“Word is that Kanye West, who put on a MAGA hat after the show (despite being told ‘no’), was great. He’s leading the charge!” the president added.

“Saturday Night Live” opened its 44th season with actor Adam Driver hosting and West, a vocal Trump supporter, serving as the musical guest.

The opening of the show skewered Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh’s fiery testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee, mocking how frequently he referenced his affinity for beer and his use of a calendar from 1982 as proof that he did not attend a party where Christine Blasey Ford alleged he sexually assaulted her that year.

During the show’s “Weekend Update” segment, co-anchors Colin Jost and Michael Che again largely focused their attention on Kavanaugh, with additional barbs aimed at Trump.

West, who wore a “Make America Great Again” hat during promotional ads for the show, did not make any overt political statements during his two performances on Saturday, but delivered a pro-Trump message onstage while the show was off the air.

West pushed back on criticism of his support for Trump, and was booed loudly by the audience.

“There’s so many times I talk to, like, a white person about this and they say, ‘How could you like Trump? He’s racist,’ ” West said. “Well, uh, if I was concerned about racism, I would’ve moved out of America a long time ago.”

[The Hill]

Trump blasts Avenatti as ‘low-life’ and ‘third-rate lawyer’

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President Trump on Wednesday blasted Michael Avenatti as a “third rate lawyer” and a “total low-life” after the attorney revealed new sexual misconduct allegations against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh.

“Avenatti is a third rate lawyer who is good at making false accusations, like he did on me and like he is now doing on Judge Brett Kavanaugh,” Trump tweeted.

The president accused the attorney of simply “looking for attention” and insisted he is trying to deter people from looking into “his past record and relationships.”

“A total low-life!” Trump exclaimed.

Trump has previously avoided directly mentioning Avenatti, and Wednesday’s tweet is believed to be the first time the president has specifically criticized the lawyer on Twitter.

Avenatti earlier on Wednesday released a declaration from a client who accused Kavanaugh of attending a party where she was drugged and raped.

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