Does Kavanaugh Have a 'Better Than 50-50' Chance to Get Confirmed?
*By Amanda Weston*
Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh's chances at confirmation may have increased this week.
"I don't know what Jeff Flake is thinking at the moment, or what these other Senators are thinking, but I think delaying for a week certainly helps them maybe feel a little better about voting yes," Eric Boehm, a reporter at Reason, told Cheddar Thursday.
He put the judge's chances at "better than 50/50, but I don't think it's a done deal yet."
That statement comes as a report detailing the FBI's investigation of sexual assault allegations against Kavanaugh was made available to Senators Thursday morning. Legislators have a day to review the findings, which reportedly do not corroborate Prof. Christine Blasey Ford's account of the incident, ahead of a vote Friday.
Ford's legal team, though, has criticized the investigation, arguing the FBI did not interview her or any witnesses that could have backed up her story.
“We are profoundly disappointed that after the tremendous sacrifice she made in coming forward, those directing the FBI investigation were not interested in seeking the truth," Ford's team said [in a statement](https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/senators-prepare-to-review-fbi-report-on-kavanaugh-after-early-morning-arrival/2018/10/04/394dbaf8-c7be-11e8-b2b5-79270f9cce17_story.html?utm_term=.02c3b4d2620a).
The FBI, under pressure from Senate Majority Leader Lindsey Graham (R-SC), closed its probe on Wednesday, less than a week after the inquiry began. Boehm suggested Democrats would probably have preferred a longer investigation.
He said now it's crucial to keep an eye on the swing voters, Sen. Jeff Flake (R-AZ), Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), and Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME). He said there has also been some indication Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia may vote to confirm Kavanaugh. All three Senators have said the report may sway their decisions.
"We still don't really have a solid indication from any of them whether their positions have changed since last week, when really none of them had solid positions," Boehm said. "So today's the big day because of what might be in this new report."
Shortly after Boehm's interview, Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-IA) released [a statement](https://www.grassley.senate.gov/news/news-releases/grassley-fbi-work-complete-it-s-time-vote) saying the FBI report had "nothing in it that we didn't already know."
"These uncorroborated accusations have been unequivocally and repeatedly rejected by Judge Kavanaugh, and neither the Judiciary Committee nor the FBI could locate any third parties who can attest to any of the allegations," Grassley said.
He went on to call Kavanaugh "one of the most qualified nominees to every come before the Senate."
President Trump continued to focus on the Democrats Thursday, two days after he mocked Ford's testimony at a rally in Mississippi.
"This is now the 7th. time the FBI has investigated Judge Kavanaugh," Trump [tweeted](https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1047853098365079553). "If we made it 100, it would still not be good enough for the Obstructionist Democrats."
As for Grassley's vote, he's all but given Kavanaugh the robe.
“It’s time to vote," Grassley said. "I’ll be voting to confirm Judge Kavanaugh.”
For full interview [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/senators-review-fbi-report-on-kavanaugh-allegations).
Inflation has risen to its highest level in 31 years, sending consumer prices on everything from groceries to gas to rent surging. For many businesses, that's good news as inflation typically means better profit margins. According to data from FactSet, nearly two out of three of the biggest U.S. publicly traded companies have reported fatter profit margins so far this year compared to the same stretch of 2019, before the pandemic. Gregory Daco, chief U.S. economist for Oxford Economics, breaks down how the top businesses are reaping the benefits of inflation, and when consumers can expect inflation to ease.
Meta, the parent company of Facebook, is facing a lawsuit from Ohio's attorney general Dave Yost, who said the company misled the public about safety on the platform.
Cases of covid-19 are climbing in the Upper Midwest, Southwest, and parts of the Northeast. The seven-day national average is sitting at roughly 82,000 new cases which is an 11 percent jump from the week before. Dr. Amesh Adalja, Infectious Disease, Specialist, Sr. Scholar at Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security joined Cheddar's Opening Bell to discuss this recent uptick ahead of the holiday season.
Markets were pointing to a higher open to kick off the third trading week in November. It comes as stocks come off a losing week in reaction to October's consumer price index--which showed inflation at its highest point in over 30 years.
Ryan Detrick, Chief Market Strategist for LPL Financial joined Wake Up with Cheddar to discuss.
Harvard Business School Professor Ranjay Gulati joined Wake Up With Cheddar to break down the massive challenge the Biden Administration faces in ensuring projects in the $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill are completed on time and on budget.
Jill is joined by Baker Machado to talk all things infrastructure: where will the money go and who’s in charge? Plus, Sesame Street has its first Asian-American muppet. And a trailer for the trailer for Spiderman. Huh?
In this week's Cheddar Changemakers, Megan Pratz spoke with a 16-year-old climate activist Sarah Goody. She is the founder of a youth-led climate action group 'Climate NOW.'
We toss around the term "democracy is under attack" quite often without thinking too much, but one organization is actually stepping up to do something about it. The Fairness Project is a group that funds and organizes state ballot measures across the country. It has used ballot initiatives on campaigns aimed at expanding Medicaid, adding more paid time off, and raising minimum wage. It recently launched a new direct democracy campaign to fight back against attempts to make ballot measures inaccessible.
Kelly Hall, executive director of The Fairness Project, joined Cheddar Politics to discuss more about the group's efforts to push for economic and social justice, avoiding partisan gridlock.
Doug Flynn, Certified Financial Planner and Co-Founder of Flynn Zito Capital Management, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell, where he says he believes the news of the infrastructure bill was already priced into the market and that inflation continues to loom large on Wall Street.
President Joe Biden signed into law today his landmark $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill, and it includes approximately $550 billion in new funding for increased broadband access, improving the power grid, and more. But what does this mean for the American economy, and American workers? Eliza Collins, Politics Reporter at The Wall Street Journal joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss what's included in the bill, which former mayor has been tapped to oversee how the bill is implemented, and how these new infrastructure investments will impact the economy.
