Jeff Flake Confronted by Protesters in Wake of Kavanaugh Vote
*By Carlo Versano*
For a second straight day, Room 226 at the Dirksen U.S. Senate Building was the site of tension and high drama as Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee ー to the fury of Democrats, some of whom walked out in protest ー pushed ahead with Judge Brett Kavanaugh's Supreme Court nomination.
Sen. Jeff Flake (R-AZ), a moderate conservative, issued a statement Friday morning indicating he was a "yes" on the nomination.
He said he found both Prof. Christine Blasey Ford and Kavanaugh to be credible in their Thursday testimonies, but "the constitution's provisions of fairness and due process" swayed him to support the nomination.
Flake, who some thought might break from his party and oppose Kavanaugh, then voted along with the rest of the committee Republicans against a motion to subpoena Mark Judge, Kavanaugh's friend who was allegedly in the same room during the assault that Ford described during her testimony.
After Flake's vote was made public, he was confronted by sexual assault survivors in an elevator in a [video] (https://twitter.com/jiveDurkey/status/1045669527491694597?s=20) that immediately went viral on social media. Cheddar's J.D. Durkin witnessed the confrontation and spoke to one of the survivors afterward, saying it was an "incredibly raw" moment in what is rapidly becoming a flashpoint event for the country's political divide.
As the committee, chaired by Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA), held a procedural vote to set the time for its full vote, Democratic Sens. Cory Booker of New Jersey and Kamala Harris of California refused to vote and then left the hearing room in protest.
The vote passed, 11-8 on party lines ー clearing the way for Kavanaugh's nomination to move out of committee at 1:30 p.m ET.
Meanwhile, the American Bar Association, in an unusual move, [said](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-09-28/american-bar-association-seeks-delay-in-kavanaugh-nomination) it supported a full FBI investigation into the alleged assault and that Kavanaugh's final confirmation vote should be postponed until such an investigation is completed. A prominent Jesuit magazine, which had previously endorsed the nomination, [rescinded](https://www.americamagazine.org/politics-society/2018/09/27/editors-it-time-kavanaugh-nomination-be-withdrawn) its support in light of Ford's testimony. (Kavanaugh attended Georgetown Prep, a Jesuit high school.)
Whether Kavanaugh can muster the 51 votes needed for confirmation still relies on a small handful of moderate Senators. With Flake now in the "yes" column, the focus will shift to Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) and Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME).
Inflation remains hot as the January PPI has increased by 1 percent, twice what analysts had been expecting with a jump of 9.7 over the year. Beth Ann Bovino, the U.S. chief economist, for S&P Global Ratings, joined Cheddar News to discuss the rapid pace of inflation alongside higher wages, predicting the Federal Reserve will act quickly and forcefully this year. "They haven't changed their forecast, yet, that's gonna come out soon. But we expect that a March rate hike is basically pretty much baked in the cake," she said. "We think six rate hikes in total for 2022."
For black history month, Cheddar is highlighting black business leaders who are driving the need for representation forward. On February 10, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce hosted an event called 'Developing the Black-Owned Business Ecosystem.' The virtual event was organized under the lobbying group's two initiatives -- the Equality of Opportunity Initiative, and the Coalition to Back Black Businesses. The event highlighted the developments needed to develop more black-owned businesses in the U.S. Dr. Anthony Wilbon, Dean of the School of Business at Howard University, joined Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss his experience as a speaker at the event.
A newly declassified letter by senators Ron Wyden and Martin Heinrich claimed the CIA. has been conducting a Secret Surveillance Program which has been collecting a bulk of data from American citizens. The letter which was written in April of 2021 urges the CIA to come clean about the kind of data it collects and how many Americans have been impacted. According to these two senators, the program did not have the safeguards of congressional oversight.
Art Hogan, Chief Market Strategist at National Securities, joined Cheddar News' Closing Bell, where he says investors are taking a wait-and-see approach when it comes to the situation between Russia and the Ukraine and elaborates on the impact higher oil prices stemming from the conflict would have on the market.
Last week, Senators Ron Wyden of Oregon and Martin Heinrich of New Mexico, Democrats on the Senate Intelligence Committee, wrote a a letter airing concerns that the CIA is collecting the data of American citizens without their consent. The lawmakers fear that the program might be exploiting private data. Morgan Wright, the chief security advisor at cybersecurity firm SentinelOne, joined Cheddar News to discuss the ramifications of the letter. "We don't have all the dots in one place to connect them," said Wright, cautioning against jumping to conclusions.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that diplomacy is still possible, while U.S. officials warn that an attack on Ukraine is imminent. Cheddar News speaks with James Astill, Washington bureau chief of The Economist on the latest developments in Eastern Europe.
As the number of Russian troops rose to 130,000 along its Ukrainian border, hopes for a diplomatic solution remain among world leaders. Jason McMann, head of geopolitical risk analysis at Morning Consult, joined Cheddar News to break down the fluid situation. "We saw signs pointing towards an increase in tensions between Ukraine and Russia, whereas today we're seeing some signs that the Russian government may be willing to continue down a path of diplomatic negotiations to try and find some sort of non-military solution," he said.
Nancy Pelosi and House Democratic leaders are now planning to amend the stop trading on congressional knowledge act, otherwise known as the 'Stock' Act. This 2012 law governs how members disclose the purchase or sale of stocks and amending it would close a loophole, eliminating the trading of individual stocks by members of congress. Pelosi has consistently opposed a ban on stock trading by lawmakers and congressional staff...so what's changed? Kedric Payne, Vice President of Campaign Legal Center, joins Cheddar News to discuss.
In a 5-4 vote, the U.S. Supreme Court allowed for a controversial new version of the Alabama congressional map to remain in place. The lower court had previously ordered that the state must redraw that congressional map because it violates the Voting Rights Act by diluting the political power of Black voters. Redistricting expert Yurij Rudensky joins Cheddar News to weigh in.
