*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."
These are the headlines you Need 2 Know for Friday, Aug. 23, 2019.
The Democratic presidential candidate from Vermont drew praise from activists and advocates after revealing his $16.3 trillion plan to combat climate change.
Planned Parenthood is standing by its decision to withdraw from the federal government’s family planning program rather than comply with the Trump administration’s new rule barring referrals to doctors who provide abortions.
These are the headlines you Need 2 Know for Thursday, Aug. 22, 2019.
President Trump on Wednesday reversed his position on lowering payroll taxes to bolster economic growth, telling reporters that “we don’t need it.” The reversal comes as a growing number of economists have warned that a recession in the U.S. is on the horizon.
The new rule, ending the so-called Flores agreement, will allow officials to hold families in detention indefinitely for the duration of immigration cases, which could be much longer than the current 20-day limit.
The minutes released from the July Federal Reserve meeting showed that the interest rate cut was a "mid-cycle adjustment to policy."
China's e-commerce giant is delaying its potential $15 billion listing in Hong Kong because of the region's political instability, according to the Reuters news service.
On World Humanitarian Day, the United Nations honored women aid worker for the vital role they play in emergency situations, and the increasing risk female aid workers put themselves in to help others.
Democratic Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney of New York who co-sponsored the universal background check bill in February slammed President Donald Trump and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell for the lack of movement on gun reform.
