*By Carlo Versano*
The FBI will likely conclude its investigation into sexual assault allegations against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh on Wednesday night and issue a report to Senators on Thursday, sources told Cheddar's J.D. Durkin.
Investigators are under extreme pressure from Republicans to deliver a report in time for a Friday vote, a deadline Sen. Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) has demanded.
CNN reported late Tuesday that the FBI has actually widened the scope of its investigation, adding a specific party from Kavanaugh's calendar to its inquiry.
Sen. Angus King (I-ME) told Cheddar Wednesday that, even if Kavanuagh is confirmed to the high court, the nominee has revealed himself to be so partisan that it will be difficult for the judge to impartially decide certain cases. King alluded to a portion of Kavanaugh's testimony in which he blamed the allegations against him on a Democratic witch hunt. The Senator called that moment "very disturbing."
"I don't see how he can sit on a case involving partisan gerrymandering, for example," King said.
Meanwhile, President Trump shed all his prior restraint on the topic of Kavanaugh's first accuser, Prof. Christine Blasey Ford. Days after saying he found her to be a "credible witness" and a "very fine woman, he mocked and questioned Ford's testimony at a rally in Mississippi on Tuesday night to roaring applause from the audience. Earlier in the day, Trump also expressed concern that the #MeToo movement had made it "a very scary time for young men in America."
Sen. Jeff Flake (R-AZ), a key swing vote in the Kavanaugh confirmation process, told NBC's "Today" show he found Trump's comments "kind of appalling."
A nurse at an immigration detention center in Georgia says authorities performed questionable hysterectomies, refused to test detainees for COVID-19 and shredded medical records.
Automakers Daimler AG and subsidiary Mercedes-Benz USA have agreed to pay $1.5 billion to the U.S. government and California state regulators to resolve emissions cheating allegations.
The Treasury Department says that the U.S. budget deficit hit an all-time high of $3 trillion for the first 11 months of this budget year.
Senate Democrats have scuttled a scaled-back GOP coronavirus rescue package, saying the measure shortchanges too many pressing needs as the pandemic continues its assault on the country.
Cheddar's JD Durkin writes how former VP Joe Biden could steal the thunder from his incumbent opponent Donald Trump: by announcing his former boss President Obama as a hypothetical candidate for SCOTUS.
A huge fire broke out Thursday at the Port of Beirut, the site of last month's catastrophic explosion that killed nearly 200 people and devastated parts of the capital.
A new book reveals that President Donald Trump seemed to understand the severity of the coronavirus threat even as he was telling the nation that it was no worse than the seasonal flu and insisting that the U.S. government had it totally under control.
A new federal report shows vaping rates among U.S. teenagers fell dramatically this year.
Dr. Anthony Fauci says AstraZeneca's suspension of its COVID-19 vaccine study shows “one of the safety valves” built into the research to spot any potential problems.
A far-right Norwegian lawmaker said Wednesday that he has nominated U.S. President Donald Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts in the Middle East.
