*By Carlo Versano*
Day one of Brett Kavanaugh's Senate confirmation hearings got off to a raucous start Tuesday: protesters interrupted the proceedings, Democrats called for an adjournment, and Sen. John Cornyn of Texas said he'd never before seen a hearing "led by mob rule."
It took seven hours before the nominee could deliver his opening statement.
The tactics, while good fodder for television, are unlikely to be very effective for Democrats, said Erin Delmore, a senior political correspondent for Bustle. They also reveal the level of Democrats' desperation, she said Tuesday in an interview on Cheddar.
"It does show you how weak their hand is here," she said.
Democrats, in a futile effort to delay the hearing, were responding to growing frustrations from their base that the party has not been vocal enough in protesting the successor to Anthony Kennedy. If Kavanaugh, a staunch Republican, is confirmed, he may well tilt the court's ideology right-ward for at least a generation, as he'd replace a man who often acted as a swing vote on landmark decisions.
Justice Kennedy authored the majority opinions for [*Lawrence v. Texas*](https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/539/558/), which lifted the state's ban on sodomy, and 2013's [*Windsor v. U.S.*](http://www.scotusblog.com/case-files/cases/windsor-v-united-states-2/), the landmark decision that granted same-sex couples the right to marry in certain states.
The ever-polarizing *Roe v. Wade* is among the cases Kavanaugh's vote could turn. He has been asked about where he stands on choice by several moderate female senators, including Susan Collins (R-ME) and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), who both said Kavanaugh told them he considered Roe to be "settled law."
The key question is, "does he believe *Roe v. Wade* was settled correctly," said Delmore. That's one interrogative he's unlikely to answer in this hearing.
"If \[Collins and Murkowski\] seem like this is enough for them, then this is over," Delmore said, referring to the chance that Kavanaugh could not be confirmed.
For full interview [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/the-women-who-will-determine-brett-kavanaughs-fate).
President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin started their heavily scrutinized one-on-one meeting in Helsinki, Finland, on Monday. "[Putin] has been in power for a very long time, almost 20 years now, he is a former KGB officer, and he's not interested in playing nice," says Natalia Antonova, former editor of The Moscow News. The meeting comes just days after the U.S. Justice Department indicted 12 Russian military officers for trying to influence the 2016 presidential election. Before the meeting, Trump described the federal investigation as a "Rigged Witch Hunt!"
While the Trump baby blimp flew over London, tempers flared on the streets. Many of the same passions that help fuel Donald Trump's popularity in the U.S. are very much alive and well in the UK.
Special Counsel Robert Mueller's move Friday was the first time the probe has targeted the Russian government. The Russian-orchestrated conspiracy didn't, however, influence vote counts, says Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein.
The president denied that he criticized British Prime Minister Theresa May's handling of Brexit in an interview with The Sun newspaper, calling it "fake news." His comments come just a day after The Sun posted its recorded interview online. Trump and May held a joint press conference on Friday where they both confirmed that the UK and the U.S. would strike up a special trade deal after Brexit.
These are the headlines you Need2Know:
*President Trump is in England preparing for a joint news conference with Theresa May. While the duo dined last night, The Sun newspaper published a sit-down interview with the president where he criticized May’s handling of Brexit. Trump warned trade deals with England could be nixed if Brexit isn’t handled properly.
*FBI agent Peter Strzok was removed from working on the Hillary Clinton email probe and the Trump-Russia investigation after text messages were discovered in which he criticized the president.
*Stormy Daniels made an encore appearance at the same strip club she was arrested at the night prior.
*A Kansas City water park will not reopen after a 10-year-old boy died on a water slide.
*Serena Williams beat Julia Görges of Germany yesterday to reach her 10th Wimbledon final.
Cheddar Big News's Jill Wagner gives us the details.
President Trump, on his last day at the NATO summit in Brussels, declared that other members of the alliance had agreed to increase defense spending. Minutes later, however, French president Emmanuel Macron disputed those claims, saying that all members had committed to the previous spending target. Trump is now in London for his first visit to the British capital since winning the White House.
These are the headlines you Need2Know:
* Confusion at the NATO summit after President Trump said allies will add billions of dollars to defense spending. But French president Emmanuel Macron rebuffed those claims.
* Stormy Daniels was arrested after an alleged misdemeanor at a Columbus, Ohio, strip club. Her lawyer, Michael Avenatti, has also been working to reunite families at the southern border.
* The U.S. Senate voted yesterday on a non-binding resolution giving it a say on what tariffs are levied and against whom.
* New evidence prompted the Department of Justice reopened the case of Emmett Till, a 14-year-old boy who was killed in 1955 in Money, Miss.
* John Schnatter, founder and former CEO of Papa John’s, has resigned his chairman role after a racially-charged comment on a conference call.
* Americans made it to both the men’s and women’s Wimbledon semifinals, the first time since 2009.
Cheddar Big News' Jill Wagner tells us the latest.
President Donald Trump's aggressive stance at the two-day NATO summit in Brussels, on top of his antagonizing trade policies, have "brought the transatlantic alliance to the lowest point,” says Joshua Meltzer, senior fellow of global economy and development at the Brookings Institute.
Stocks dipped today after the White House threatened to impose a new set of tariffs on China on $200 billion worth of goods. However, Kate Warne, investment strategist at Edward Jones, says this could be an opportunity for investors. "Put money to work today."
These are the headlines you Need2Know:
The NATO Summit got off to a heated start as President Trump already criticized member countries for not paying their fair share of defense spending.
The Trump administration also missed its promised deadline to reunite dozens of migrant families.
A natural gas leak in Sun Prairie, Wisc., turned deadly when an explosion erupted for several hours.
Brett Kavanaugh, the president's pick for the open Supreme Court seat, met on Capitol Hill with the vice president and senators yesterday.
The NFL Players Association is challenging the anti-kneeling policy, which requires players to remain in the locker room if they choose to protest the national anthem.
Hurricane Chris makes its way up the East Coast, but shouldn't make a major impact on land.
Cheddar Big News' Jill Wagner gives us the details.
