*By Carlo Versano*
Did Donald Trump overplay his hand on Brett Kavanaugh?
All three of the swing Senators ー who could collectively on Friday decide the Supreme Court nominee's fate ー reacted with indignation to President Trump's mocking imitations of Prof. Christine Blasey Ford at a Tuesday evening rally in Mississippi.
"Appalling," Sen. Jeff Flake (R-TX) said.
"Unacceptable," Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) said.
"Just plain wrong," Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) said.
However, none of the legislators indicated that Trump's ridiculing of an alleged sexual assault victim ー met by applause from his supporters ー would be a deciding factor in how they will vote on Kavanaugh's confirmation.
As Ben Dreyfuss, editorial director at Mother Jones, told Cheddar, the vote is a no-win situation politically ー at least for Murkowski and Collins, who are both seeking re-election. Flake, on the other hand, is not running for re-election.
No Senator wants to be the deciding 50th vote to sink the nomination, Dreyfuss said. "A lot of them would be willing to be the 51st, or 52nd, or 53rd."
As of midday Wednesday, the in-progress FBI investigation remained the focal point of Capitol Hill, and eyes turned to the Senators who will end up deciding Kavanaugh's fate. As Sen. Chris Coons (D-DE) told Cheddar in a separate interview, the "scale and scope" of the FBI probe is still unknown.
Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) has demanded a vote by the end of the week, and the swing Senators have been tight-lipped on their positions, opting instead to express their disgust about Trump's remarks.
"They haven't shown their cards a lot here," Dreyfuss said.
For full interview [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/president-trumps-comments-about-kavanaugh-accuser-draw-criticism-from-key-senators).
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