The Kavanaugh hearing: Highlights | CNN Politics (2024)

Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh testifies before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Sept. 6, 2018 in Washington, DC.

This week’s hearing for Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh consisted of introductions, questions from senators and testimonies from witnesses. But what happens next?

Here’s a look at the next steps in Kavanaugh’s confirmation process:

The confirmation hearing for Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh concluded Friday afternoon, following days of questions from senators and testimonies.

Republican Sen. John Kennedy, a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, ended the hearing with some searing words to Watergate-era White House counsel John Dean.

Here’s that exchange:

Dean then explained how he tried to end “the cover-up” and offered to send Kennedy a copy of his book, which he said detailed his actions.

Watergate-era White House counsel John Dean said Brett Kavanaugh’s testimony doesn’t reveal if the judge thinks US v. Nixon was correctly decided.

In response to Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, a Democrat from Rhode Island, Dean noted that Kavanaugh lauded the ruling “in the context of a judge needing a backbone, he didn’t say it was rightly decided, and he repeated that several times during the hearings, so I don’t think he has informed this committee of his real position on that very important case.”

One of the witnesses to take the stand on Day 4 of Judge Brett Kavanaugh’s Supreme Court nomination hearing was Aalayah Eastmond. Eastmond is a senior at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, and is a survivor of the mass shooting at the school took that the lives of 17 people.

Eastmond recounted her experience from that day, and how she hid under the dead body of a classmate to remain out of view from the shooter.

Read an emotional exchange between Eastmond and Sen. Richard Blumenthal:

Only five senators attended the testimony of a Parkland shooting survivor who spoke about her concerns about Brett Kavanaugh’s nomination to the Supreme Court.

In her testimony, Parkland shooting survivor Aalayah Eastmond recalled details about the deadly Feb. 14 shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Florida.

Sens. ChuckGrassley, SheldonWhitehouse, CoryBooker, MikeLee and JohnKennedy sat and listened to her testimony, which drew applause from those in attendance.

She also criticized Kavanaugh and his reaction to Fred Guttenberg, the father of a slain Parkland student who tried to give him a handshake earlier this week.

“As you make your final decision, think about it as if you had to justify and defend your choice to those who we lost to gun violence,” Eastmond testified at Kavanaugh’s confirmation hearing.

Guttenberg accused Kavanaugh of ignoring him as he tried to shake his hand. Sources close to Kavanaugh pushed back saying the nominee had no idea who Guttenberg was and that security intervened to end the exchange.

Eastmond also expressed concerns about Kavanaugh’s opinions on assault weapons and said too many dangerous people have access to those guns and use them to terrorize Americans.

What Kavanaugh has said: In 2011, Kavanaugh dissented from a majority opinion of the DC Circuit that upheld a ban that applied to semiautomatic rifles in the District of Columbia.

In his dissent, he wrote that the Supreme Court had previously “held that handguns – the vast majority of which today are semiautomatic – are constitutionally protected because they have not traditionally been banned and are in common use by law-abiding citizens.”

Read her full testimony here.

Watergate era White House counsel John Dean warns that if Kavanaugh is confirmed, “we will have the most pro-presidential powers Supreme Court in the modern era.”

In prepared testimony, Dean says such a court is “deeply troubling” contemporaneous with a “Republican controlled Congress, which has shown no interest in oversight of a Republican president.”

Warning the Supreme Court will be a “weak check, at best, on presidential powers,” Dean says, “There is much to fear from an unchecked president who is inclined to abuse his presidential powers.”

He says he can attest to that “from personal experience.”

Dean tells the committee he is happy to share what he thinks would have happened if the Supreme Court had ruled in favor of Nixon.

Dean also goes through Kavanaugh’s past statements and writings on whether a president can be indicted while in office, and finds, “under Judge Kavanaugh’s view, even if a president shot someone in cold-blood on 5th Avenue, that president could not be prosecuted while in office. And based on Judge Kavanaugh’s thinking at the time, he would give a president plenty of time to destroy the evidence.”

This morning so far Elizabeth Weintraub who suffers from cerebral palsy testified that she worries if Brett Kavanaugh is confirmed, he will turn the clock back and take away the rights of people with intellectual disabilities to make decisions for themselves.

She criticized Kavanaugh’s decision in a case concerning whether DC’s disability services officials needed to determine the wishes of the parent/guardian before authorizing elective medical procedures:

Rochelle Garza, the legal guardian of an undocumented teen who sought access to an abortion last fall while she was in US custody, testified today.

The teen ultimately prevailed before the DC Circuit but Kavanaugh, a judge on that court, dissented from the opinion.

Garza spoke today of “the pain” that Kavanaugh’s decision caused the young woman.She said Kavanaugh’s decision could have led to a process that “could have taken weeks, and might have forced her to carry the pregnancy to term against her will, particularly because Texas bans abortion at 20 weeks and Jane was already 15 weeks pregnant.”

About 20 women from the Women’s March and for Center for Popular Democracy Action just walked up near the hearing room and they are holding at the security ropes.

They’re standing in a “funeral procession” line wearing all black, including black veils and T-shirts with various messages including, “I am part of the thousands working in the revolution.” Their mouths are covered in black tape, their hands up, and some have written the word “dissent” on their palms.

They are not going inside because they don’t have tickets.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell sees no problems getting Judge Brett Kavanaugh confirmed and expects him to be seated on the Supreme Court by “the first Monday in October” – the start of the new term. He said this to radio host Hugh Hewitt earlier this morning.

Here’s the exchange:

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell called Sen. Cory Booker’s move Thursday to break Senate rules and release emails traded by Brett Kavanaugh, the Supreme Court nominee, despite a “committee confidential” marking, “unusual behavior,” and discussed a potential ethics investigation in a radio interview Friday.

“When you break the Senate rules, it’s something the Ethics Committee could take a look at. And that would be up to them to decide,” McConnell told Hugh Hewitt. “They have an obligation to look into violations of the Senate rules, and it wouldn’t surprise me if they did.”

Booker’s announcement, made in front of cameras and with an air of theatrics, was slammed as a stunt by Republicans who pointed out that the documents in question had already been cleared for public release.

But Booker continued throughout the day Thursday to release documents on Twitter – some of which appeared to show Kavanaugh’s personal views on the protection of religious interests – that were confirmed by the Judiciary chairman to still be considered committee confidential.

Senator John Cornyn tweeted the following about Senator Corey Booker’s decision to release confidential documents related to Kavanaugh (he included a link to a video).

Booker said at the time “I’m knowingly violating the rules. Sen Cornyn has called me out for it.”

Now, Cornyn is suggesting the Ethics Committee should investigate:

In follow-up tweets, Cornyn explained why:

The Kavanaugh hearing resumed at 9:30 a.m. this morning after two days of grueling testimony, that were marked by protests over provided documents from Democrats and members of the public concerned about how Kavanaugh might rule on cases related to abortion and healthcare.

Today, however, will be a little different. For starters, Kavanaugh won’t be in the hot seat. Instead, several panels of witnesses, including a Parkland survivor as well as John Dean, the Watergate era White House Counsel, will testify on (or, for some, against) his behalf.

Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh testifies before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Sept. 6, 2018 in Washington, DC.

The public questioning portion of Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh’s confirmation hearing has concluded.

The hearing is scheduled to resume at 9:30 a.m. ET Friday, with testimony from more than two dozen witnesses.

Here are a few things that happened today:

Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Charles Grassley presides over Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh's confirmation hearing on Sept. 6, 2018.

Sen. Chuck Grassley, a Republican from Iowa, wrapped up the public session with Judge Brett Kavanaugh and said the committee will reconvene in a separate room for a closed session with the Supreme Court nominee.

“You made a powerful and convincing case for Senate confirmation and your answers have been compelling and credible,” he told Kavanaugh.

What to expect tomorrow: Grassley said the committee will hear from four panels of witnesses, including from the American Bar Association and 13 majority and 13 minority witnesses.

Judge Brett Kavanaugh would not reveal his personal views on gay marriage, repeatedly rebuffing the query from Sen. Cory Booker and referring to Supreme Court precedent.

He also said he had never officiated a gay wedding.

“I am a judge, I apply the law,” he said. “The law of the land protects that right as dictated by the Supreme Court precedent.”

Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) questions Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh on Sept. 6, 2018 in Washington, DC.

As expected, Sen. Cory Booker has released a dozen additional emails — some of which are labelled “committee confidential.”

Booker has not yet responded to CNN’s query if the materials had been cleared for release.

Here’s what is in some of the emails:

Sen. Thom Tillis listens as President Donald Trump's Supreme Court nominee, Brett Kavanaugh, answers questions during a third round on Sept. 6, 2018.

Sen. Thom Tillis, a North Carolina Republican, took a shot at Sen. Cory Booker late Thursday after the New Jersey Democrat’s earlier cinematic turn, claiming that he was releasing documents in spite of a danger to his spot in the Senate.

The emails that Booker had announced — with flair — that he was exposing had in fact been cleared in the early hours by Senate Judiciary Committee staff and chairman Chuck Grassley.

President Trump, speaking at a rally in Montana tonight, sharply criticized Democrats participating in Brett Kavanaugh’s confirmation hearing.

He described the Democrats’ actions as “sick.”

“As you saw this week, the Senate is now considering atruly exceptional nominee forthe United States Supreme Court,Judge Brett Kavanaugh,” Trump said. “And he is doing really well.But do you believe the anger andthe meanness on the other side?Sick. It is sick.”

He continued: “The whole country is now seeinghis amazing intellect and hisbrilliant legal mind.Judge Kavanaugh deservesoverwhelming bipartisan support,and I think he is going to beone of our truly great toSupreme Court justices.”

Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh looks over his handwritten notes while testifying before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Sept. 6, 2018 in Washington, DC.

In a lighthearted moment during the hearing, Sen. Mike Lee made note that Judge Brett Kavanaugh takes a lot of notes, but then inquired why the Supreme Court nominee used a Sharpie.

“Why do you prefer that pen? I’m just dying of curiosity,” the Utah Republican said.

Kavanaugh responded, smiling, “So I can see it.”

He added, “It’s nothing scientific.”

Sen. Susan Collins, a Republican from Maine, said she had not seen an email showing Judge Brett Kavanaugh commenting on Roe v. Wade while working in the White House.

Although she had not reviewed the email, Collins told reporters:

What he said: Kavanaugh said he was simply questioning the accuracy of a colleague’s interpretation of the scholarly opinion around the case.

“The broader point was simply that I think it was overstating something about legal scholars and I’m always concerned with accuracy and I thought that was not quite an accurate description of all legal scholars because it referred to all,” Kavanaugh said.

He went on to call Roe v. Wade “an important precedent” that has “been reaffirmed many times.”

California Democratic Sen. Kamala Harris — who is also considered a potential 2020 contender — took the opportunity Thursday to grill Supreme Court pick Brett Kavanaugh on whether he talked about the special counsel’s probe with anyone at Kasowitz Benson Torres, the law firm founded by President Trump’s personal attorney.

Harris said she was working on “reliable information” when she quizzed Kavanaugh on Wednesday night on potential conversations he’d been a part of about special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation.

Pressed again Thursday by Harris, Kavanaugh gave his most concrete answer: “The answer is no.”

Judge Brett Kavanaugh took a moment Thursday to share his thoughts about his confirmation hearing.

He also conveyed his optimism for the country’s future and said he hoped people watching the hearing would “understandthat an independent judiciary is the crown jewel of our constitutional republic in my view.”

“And that the judiciary has been, must be, and must continue to be independent of politics. That we don’t make policy decisions we do the best we can to decide the law under the precedent of the Supreme Court and laws passed by Congress,” Kavanaugh said.

Sen. Cory Booker asked Judge Brett Kavanaugh to speak to “credible suspicion” that President Trump only appointed him to protect himself.

Booker notes Trump’s previous demand of “loyalty from the FBI director … from the Attorney General, all the people he seems to be putting in positions of law enforcement.”

“Can you speak to that credible suspicion that people might have that the system is somehow rigged and the President is putting somebody up just to protect him from a criminal investigation?” Booker asked Kavanaugh.

Kavanaugh responded:

Judge Brett Kavanaugh promised he had an “open mind” on the constitutionality of criminally investigating or indicting a sitting president.

Sen. Cory Booker pressed Kavanaugh on issue. Here’s that exchange:

Booker: “You’ve made clear that you’ve never, you know spoken, about these issues in a constitutional matter and I just want to say that in a lot of your statements it seems like that you’re not just talking about this as a matter of policy, you’re making some speculations about the constitutionality of it, which I think sends a clear signal about where you stand on those issues. But I really want to move on because —”

Kavanaugh: “I promise you I have an open mind.”

Booker: “OK.”

The Senate Judiciary Committee is back in session after a 30-minute break.

Sen. Cory Booker is questioning Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh right now.

The Republican National Committee sent out a press release on Thursday jokingly referring to Sen. Cory Booker as the “Spartacus of Newark,” after the New Jersey senator referred to his release of emails that had been labeled committee confidential as “the closest I’ll probably ever have in my life to an ‘I am Spartacus’ moment.”

“Actor/Senator Cory Booker’s (D-NJ) stunt from this morning isn’t the first time he has put on a performance for the cameras,” the release said.

Booker’s comments sparked a back-and-forth between his team and Sen. Chuck Grassley, a Republican from Iowa, who said the emails had already been made public early this morning.

Read more about the showdown here.

The confirmation hearing for Judge Brett Kavanaugh just took a 30-minute break.

Sens. John Cornyn, Thom Tillis, Kamala Harris and Cory Booker will question the Supreme Court nominee when they return from break.

Cornyn said there will be a third round of questioning tonight.

During the break, Kavanaugh took photographs with his daughters’ basketball team and Sen. Orrin Hatch posed with them as well. Kavanaugh also chatted with the players.

Brett Kavanaugh would not comment on President Trump’s attack on Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Judge Gonzalo Curiel.

Sen. Richard Blumenthal, a Democrat from Connecticut, asked Kavanaugh about Trump’s remarks on Curiel’s heritage and the President’s criticism of Ginsberg.

“I’m not going to get within three zip codes of a political controversy here,” Kavanaugh said.

He continued: “I have spoke about my respect and appreciation for the eight justices on the Supreme Court. My, the honor it would be if I were to be confirmed to be part of that team of nine with those eight people all of whom I know and respect and I know they’re all dedicated public servants who’ve given a great deal to this country. And so I’ve made that clear throughout this hearing.”

What Trump said: In 2016, then-candidate Trump called on Ginsburg to resign and said she had “embarrassed all by making very dumb political statements about me.”

In June 2016, with lawsuits still pending against Trump University, then-candidate Trump told CNN’s Jake Tapper that Curiel couldn’t be impartial because he is “Mexican” and added that Curiel made “bad rulings” and that Trump had “been treated very unfairly.” Curiel, who is of Mexican heritage, was born in Indiana.

The “committee confidential” emails Sen. Cory Booker released to great fanfare Thursday morning had been cleared for release before 4am, and senators were told of that fact before today’s hearing started, according to the office of Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley.

Here’s the rundown: Sen. Cory Booker shortly before 10 a.m. ET said he was releasing “committee confidential” documents related to racial profiling. Speaking publicly to Grassley, Booker said he was doing so “before your process is finished.”Booker claimed in doing so he was putting his position on the line, saying, “And I understand that the penalty comes with potential ousting from the Senate.”

In response, Grassley and Bill Burck, a former Bush lawyer who has shepherded the clearing and providing of Bush administration documents related to Kavanaugh to the Senate Judiciary Committee, issued statements.

Burck said:

Grassley’s office, meanwhile, said Democratic senators, including Booker, were notified “before they spoke today” that committee confidential restrictions were waived before 4am today on the documents they sought to release.

Grassley’s office statement:

Booker, asked how Grassley said the documents at issue were cleared before 4 a.m. ET, told CNN’s Manu Raju this afternoon in the Capitol:

Booker spokesperson Kristin Lynch gave a statement this afternoon saying nothing the senator said this morning was incorrect, and taking credit for working with colleagues to “shame the committee into agreeing to make last night’s documents publicly available.”

According to a Democratic source, only four of the 10 documents have been cleared by the committee. The rest are still committee confidential. Booker is about to release six more documents that are considered confidential.

This source pushes back that Booker didn’t violate the rules, saying he did so last night by reading the documents aloud and then through the course of today as he released the documents via his Twitter account.

What’s this all about?

Democrats are angry that some 180,000 documents were labelled by Trump Administratuion and Bush lawyers as “committee confidential,” and therefore not releasable to the public.

It’s been the center of a fight waged by Booker and Leahy and others who object to the fact that Trump administration lawyers + Bush lawyers are the ones who designatedthe documents.

But what was the criteria? And why the designation if it is so easy for Grassley to lift it? Democrats think it was meant to remove embarrassment.

According to a letter sent to the committee by Bill Burck in August here’s why documents are designated “committee confidential.”

The National Archives is reviewing the designation and may overrule designations it doesn’t agree with.

Asked by Sen. Jeff Flake about his beliefs regarding an independent judiciary “in terms of judges and their personal, political or religious beliefs,” Judge Brett Kavanaugh said he thought “all judges are independent.”

A group of about 10 to 15 teenage girls in polo and plaid uniforms just walked into the hearing room, wearing “admin” badges.

A spokesperson for the committee confirmed it’s the team Brett Kavanaugh coaches. They are in the front row now sitting behind the nominee and beside his wife.

When asked about the Kasowitz denial that no one at the firm talked to Judge Brett Kavanaugh about the Mueller probe, Sen. Kamala Harris told CNN:

“They’re not under oath.”

When pressed on if that meant she didn’t believe them, she responded:

“They’re not under oath. The question was asked under oath” and he didn’t answer.

After protesting their classification at the confirmation hearing Thursday morning, Sen. Cory Booker’s office released 12 pages of emails from Brett Kavanaugh’s time in the Bush White House.

Grassley’s office says they were cleared for release before the hearing so were no longer committee confidential.

In one email, Kavanaugh weighs in on an administration working group’s discussion on racial profiling at airports and for law enforcement in the months immediately following the 9/11 attacks.

Kavanaugh writes that he does “generally favor effective security measures that are race-neutral,” but argues that the administration must “grapple now” with “the interim question of what to do before a truly effective and comprehensive race-neutral system is developed and implemented.”

The “interim question,” Kavanaugh wrote in January of 2002, just four months after the attack, “is of critical importance to the security of the airlines and American people in the next 6 months or so, especially given Al Qaeda’s track record of timing between terrorism incidents.”

CNN’s Ariane de Vogue obtained a statement from Bush lawyer Bill Burck who has shepherded the clearing and providing of Bush administration documents related to Kavanaugh to the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Here it is:

Note: Democrats have also questioned the labelling of some documents as committee confidential when they have no clear national security implications.

The law firm Kasowitz Benson Torres has just sent CNN a statement claiming there have been no discussions between anyone there about Mueller with Brett Kavanaugh.

Wait, what? This is about Sen. Kamala Harris’s line of questions last night, which Kavanaugh struggled to answer, on whether he discussed the Mueller investigation with anyone at Kasowitz Benson Torres.

On Wednesday, Kavanaugh said he hasn’t had any “inappropriate” conversations about the special counsel’s Russia investigation “with anyone,” adding he doesn’t “recall any conversations of that kind with anyone” at Kasowitz Benson Torres, the law firm founded by the President’s personal attorney.

“I don’t recall any conversations of that kind with anyone at that law firm,” Kavanaugh said during the hearing. “I haven’t had any inappropriate conversations about that investigation with anyone.”

Grassley’s office says Democratic senators were notified “before they spoke today” that committee confidential restrictions were waived before 4 a.m. ET on the documents they sought to release.

The emails are published on the committee’s website – and the committee notes Sen. Booker’s request to the Chairman to release documents contained the documents Hirono sought to release.

Grassley made a similar point at the hearing today, saying the documents would be produced “imminently.”

A source close to Kavanaugh says:

Sen. Joe Manchin, a Democratic swing vote, didn’t seem bothered by Kavanaugh’s refusal to answer many questions.

“It doesn’t sway me one way or the other,” he said

Sen. Jeff Flake said he’s still inclined to support Kavanaugh even though Kavanaugh wouldn’t answer his questions about investigating a president.

He added: “I wish he could be more forthcoming on something like that.”

Republican Senators Susan Collins (R-ME) and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) discuss their crucial "no" vote that helped sink the "skinny repeal" bill in 2017 interview with CNN's Dana Bash.

Two key GOP swing votes, Sens. Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski, were non-committal about Kavanaugh’s testimony — and didn’t raise any concerns.

Collins said she was going to wait until the hearing is over and wouldn’t discuss the abortion email revelation from this morning.

The Senate Judiciary Committee just took a 30-minute break for lunch after brief questioning by Utah Sen. Mike Lee.

Committee chairman Sen. Chuck Grassley suggested the break could run a bit longer than expected because lawmakers were set to vote this afternoon.

Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, a Democrat from Rhode Island, will open the next round of questioning.

Democratic Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin said Judge Brett Kavanaugh’s nomination must be considered in the “context of this moment in history” during the confirmation hearing Thursday.

“We are in a moment, at a moment where the President has shown contempt for the federal judiciary unlike any president we can recall,” Durbin said. “He has shown disrespect for the rule of law over and over again.”

Durbin noted Trump’s repeated criticism of Attorney General Jeff Sessions and Trump’s call for “blatant partisanship in the prosecution of our laws.” He also mentioned the release of Bob Woodward’s book earlier this week and a New York Times anonymous editorial published on Wednesday —both showing an administration in disarray.

He continued:

Durbin added: “In anticipation that you may face issues involving this President which no other Supreme Court has been asked to face. And that is why I want to address your view of the power of this President, the authority of this President, because it is an important contemporary question which of course has application far beyond this presidency.”

Sen. Patrick Leahy asked Judge Brett Kavanaugh about formerly confidential emails that he suggests should have raised red flags for Kavanaugh because they appeared to contain information from democratic lawmakers.

What happened: In 2004, former Republican Senate staffer Manuel Miranda was forced to resign after allegations that Democratic documents had been stolen.

Leahy asks specifically about a 2003 email Kavanaugh received from another Republican staffer titled “spying,” in which the staffer says,“I have a friend who is a mole for us on the left.”

Kavanaugh said it did not raise red flags, adding that “kind conversation and information sharing was common, so it did not raise the flags.”

Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh organizes his desk before testifying to the Senate Judiciary Committee on the third day of his confirmation hearing on Capitol Hill.

The Senate Judiciary Committee just took a 15-minute break following a new round of questions at Brett Kavanaugh’s confirmation hearing.

Sen. Mazie Hirono (D-HI) questions Supreme Court Nominee Brett Kavanaugh during the second day of his confirmation hearing on Capitol Hill on Sept. 5, 2018 in Washington, DC.

Brett Kavanaugh wrote that government programs targeting Native Hawaiians “as a group” is “of questionable validity under the Constitution” and would be “subject to strict scrutiny” in an email sent during his time in the Bush White House.

Kavanaugh was responding to upcoming testimony from a Treasury Department official regarding investment in “Indian Country.”

Why this matters: The email, marked committee confidential, was released Thursday morning by the office of Hawaii Sen. Mazie Hirono, in a protest that may have flouted Senate rules.

Kavanaugh has publicly questioned the indigenous status of Native Hawaiians in the past, including in an op-ed and an amicus brief, and he was pressed on the issue by Hirono in Wednesday’s hearing.

An exchange between California Democratic Sen. Kamala Harris and Judge Brett Kavanaugh on Wednesday night raised questions about conversations he may or may not have had about the special counsel’s investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election.

Kavanaugh denies having had any “inappropriate” conversations about special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation “with anyone.” He said that he doesn’t “recall any conversations of that kind with anyone at that law firm,” referring to Kasowitz Benson Torres,the firm founded by President Trump’s personal attorney Marc Kasowitz.

Sen. Kamala Harris spoke to CNN about last night’s exchange with Kavanaugh.

When asked what she is basing it off of, Harris replied: “Information that I’ve received that’s pretty reliable and I asked him a clear question and he couldn’t give a clear answer.”

She wouldn’t say who the person was — if it was Kasowitz himself or Rudy Giuliani. Or provide more details.

She also didn’t confirm that she’d bring it up again.

Judge Brett Kavanaugh downplayed the newly released email showing him commenting on Roe v. Wade while working in the White House.

What he said: Kavanaugh said he was simply questioning the accuracy of a colleague’s interpretation of the scholarly opinion around the case.

He went on to call Roe v. Wade “an important precedent” that has “been reaffirmed many times.”

Sen. Cory Booker’s office just sent out an email linking to 12 pages of the documents that were previously marked “committee confidential.”

“As I’ve been saying from the beginning, this process has been a sham,” Senator Booker said in a statement.

He added:

Click here to see them.

The second day of questioning in Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh’s confirmation hearing began with another bitter controversy over the GOP’s handling of the process and the behavior of Democrats seeking to slow his confirmation.

New Jersey Democratic Sen. Cory Booker complained that the late production of documents by the White House about Kavanaugh’s work as a White House operative under George W. Bush and the failure by the committee to make some material public had exposed “this process as a bit of a sham.”

In a striking political gambit, Booker said he was willing to break Senate rules and resort to civil disobedience by releasing a document that is only available to the committee about racial profiling.

“I understand the penalty comes with potential ousting from the Senate … I openly invite and accept the consequences of my team releasing that email right now,” Booker said.

Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, objected to Booker’s use of the word sham.

“Can I ask you how long you are going to say the same thing three or four times?” he asked Booker.

Texas Sen. John Cornyn said that if Booker went ahead he would commit and offense that would be tantamount to releasing classified information.

“Running for president is not an excuse for violating the rules of the Senate,” Cornyn told Booker, a potential Democratic candidate in 2020.

Read more here.

Brett Kavanaugh disputed whether Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court case that widely legalized abortion across the US, was “settled law of the land” in 2003 when he was serving in the Bush White House, according to an email obtained by CNN.

What the draft said: The draft, meant to be submitted under the name of “high-profile, pro-choice” women in support of a Bush judicial nominee, had said that “it is widely understood accepted by legal scholars across the board that Roe v. Wade and its progeny are the settled law of the land.”

The document was first reported by the New York Times.

Meanwhile, senators are once again returning to why certain documents have been designated committee confidential …

And Blumenthalsays, “eventually they will come out” because he thinks that the archives won’t ultimately agree with the designation.

Democratic Sen. Cory Booker said today he is “knowingly violating the rules” and will release a document labeled “committee confidential” on racial profiling, one that he asked Judge Brett Kavanaugh about last night.

Booker says he can be ousted for it. “I am before your process is finished, I am going to release the e-mail about racial profiling,” he said. “I understand the penalty comeswith potential ousting from the Senate.”

Why does this matter? Democrats are angry about the process of keeping some documents committee confidential.

Watch the moment:

At the center of Democrats’ unhappiness with how the Kavanaugh hearings have been conducted are documents that were deemed “committee confidential,” meaning Senators aren’t allowed to ask Judge Brett Kavanaugh questions that specifically reference them.

Many deal with Kavanaugh’s time in the Bush White House. As of last night, they remained private, even as Sen. Cory Booker called the process “rigged” and Sen. Kamala Harris offered thinly veiled questions about one email in particular.

This morning, the New York Times published a story detailing emails from Kavanaugh that addressed hot-button issues such as Roe v. Wade, affirmative action, and the Bush administration’s warrantless surveillance program.

In one email obtained by the Times, Kavanaugh challenged the accuracy of deeming the Supreme Court’s landmark Roe v. Wade abortion rights decision to be “settled law of the land,” the paper reported.

Their publication will likely give Democratic senators the ability to ask Kavanaugh specific questions about their contents. They will likely argue that since they are now public, they can no longer be deemed confidential.

During a tense exchange that came late on the second day of confirmation hearings, Sen. Kamala Harris, a 2020 Democratic presidential prospect, pressed Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh about whether he had discussed special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation with anyone.

After answering he had, “with other judges I know,” Kavanaugh was asked if he had discussed the probe with anyone who works at Kasowitz Benson Torres, the New York law firm founded by President Donald Trump’s personal attorney Marc Kasowitz.

Kavanaugh replied that he’s unsure he knows everyone who works at that law firm and asked the senator if there was a specific person she was talking about.

Later, Kavanaugh said he would like to know the specific person Harris was thinking of.

Harris fired back, “I think you are thinking of someone, and you don’t want to tell us.”

A Democratic aide told CNN that “we have reason to believe that a conversation happened and are continuing to pursue it.”

No further details were provided by Harris to Kavanaugh during the hearing, and she said she would have questions for the record for Kavanaugh about the issue.

Read the full story here.

A group of about 30 protesters have taken over the front lobby of Senate Judiciary Chair Sen. Chuck Grassley’s office in Hart.

They are holding signs that say, “Vote no, save Roe” and “Yes means death.” They are also chanting “My body my choice” among other chants.

His staff at the front desk is working like nothing is going on around them. Capitol Hill Police are preparing outside to arrest people – they are getting the hand ties together now.

A spokesperson for Grassley says he is not in the office at the moment.

The third day of Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh’s confirmation hearing will get underway at 9:30 a.m. ET today on Capitol Hill.

Senators will have 20 minutes each for questions and the hearing is expected to run until 6 p.m. ET.

You can watch it in the player above.

Supreme Court Nominee Brett Kavanaugh testifies during the second day of his confirmation hearing on Capitol Hill on Wednesday in Washington, DC.

The second day of the Senate Judiciary Committee’s hearing for Judge Brett Kavanaugh, who’s been tapped by President Donald Trump for US Supreme Court, has wrapped.

The hearing is scheduled to resume on Thursday at 9:30 a.m. ET.

Here are a few highlights that happened today:

California Sen. Kamala Harris – a potential 2020 presidential candidate – pushed Brett Kavanaugh to answer uncomfortable questions about abortion rights, President Trump’s reaction to the Charlottesville white supremacist rally and his conversations with attorneys at the law firm representing Trump.

As Kavanaugh deflected questions on Roe v. Wade, which legalized abortion rights, Harris asked: “Can you think of any laws that give government the power to make decisions about the male body?”

“I’m not thinking of any right now, senator,” Kavanaugh responded.

Harris, a former California attorney general whose prosecutorial style, was the last Democrat to ask questions in Wednesday’s marathon hearing. But she broke new ground on some issues – and prodded Kavanaugh on Trump’s politics, too.

She pointed to Kavanaugh’s claim after being nominated for the Supreme Court that no one had run a vetting process “more wisely” than Trump.

“Did someone tell you to say that?” Harris asked. Kavanaugh said the words were his own.

After questions about laws protecting minorities’ voting rights, she also pressed Kavanaugh on whether he agrees with Trump’s claim that “both sides” were to blame for the violence in Charlottesville last year.

Kavanaugh responded: “I am not here to assess comments made in the political arena, because the risk is I’ll be drawn into the political arena.”

A number of protesters were led out of the room tonight, following a disruption during the confirmation hearing for Judge Brett Kavanaugh.

One protester shouted, “Be a hero and vote no. You have a responsibility to all Americans.”

Watch the moment:

Special counsel Robert Mueller

Democratic Sen. Kamala Harris pressed Judge Brett Kavanaugh on whether he had spoken with anyone about special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation.

When he said other judges, the California lawmaker asked specifically if he had spoken to anyone at the Kasowitz law firm about the investigation.

Kavanaugh said he wasn’t sure who worked at the law firm. Harris would not reveal who she was thinking of and Kavanaugh said he wasn’t sure who she was referring to.

She then told him: “I think you are thinking of someone and you don’t want to tell us.”

Sen. Mike Lee raised a point of order, saying, “If there is a list of names he can be given of the lawyers to whom she is referring, I think that’s fine, but I think it’s unfair to suggest that an entire law firm should be imputed into the witness’s memory when he doesn’t know who works at the law firm.”

Judge Brett Kavanaugh weighed in on having cameras in the courtroom during his confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Wednesday night.

Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) questions Supreme Court Nominee Brett Kavanaugh during the second day of his Supreme Court confirmation hearing on Capitol Hill September 5, 2018 in Washington, DC.

Democratic Sen. Cory Booker sharply criticized the confirmation process tonight after he was called out by a fellow senator for mentioning a confidential email during his cross-examination of Brett Kavanaugh.

Booker referenced an email during his questioning of Kavanaugh, who, in return, requested to review the document.

At the conclusion of Booker’s inquiry, Sen. Mike Lee, a Republican from Utah, took a moment to address the email, which, he said, was marked committee confidential.

“You can’t cross examine somebody about a document that they can’t see,” Lee said.

Lee went on to say the committee could either go into closed session so that Kavanaugh could review the email, or they can start the process to make it public. He said he would work with Booker because he didn’t see a reason why the email would be marked confidential.

Booker told Lee that he and fellow Democrats had been asking for the documents to be made public.

“That’s why this system is rigged,” he said.

He said one email that was deemed confidential was entitled, “racial profiling.”

“This wasn’t personal information. There was no national security issue whatsoever. the fact that we are not allowing this emails out as we have asked … and that’s why I am saying this system is rigged,” the New Jersey lawmaker said.

Booker called the process “unfair.”

“It’s unnecessary and it’s unjust and it’s unprecedented on this committee,” he said.

Sen. Cory Booker

The Senate Judiciary Committee has resumed following a short dinner break.

New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker is grilling Judge Brett Kavanaugh right now.

At least three more senators are scheduled to question Kavanaugh about his judicial record tonight.

On the second day of his confirmation hearing, Kavanaugh has faced tough cross examinations from Democrats.

The Senate Judiciary Committee just took a 25-minute break for dinner.

Sen. Cory Booker, a Democrat from New Jersey, will kick off the next round of questions.

Judge Brett Kavanaugh declined to discuss a “political controversy” when asked by Republican Sen. Jeff Flake about President Trump’s tweet over the Justice Department’s indictments of two lawmakers who were the President’s earliest supporters in Congress.

Here’s what Trump tweeted:

Kavanaugh said he thought that “one of the principles of judicial independence” is that judges need to careful about “commenting on current events or political controversies.”

He continued: “I don’t think we want judges commenting on the latest political controversy because that would ultimately lead the people to doubt whether we’re independent or whether we’re politicians in robes, and so maintaining that strict independence of the judiciary requires me I think to avoid commenting on any current events.”

Judge Brett Kavanaugh, in response to a question from Sen. Jeff Flake,listed his judicial heroes.

He mentioned his mother, retired Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy and Supreme Court Antonin Scalia, who died in 2016.

Kavanaugh also named Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist and Justice Robert Jackson. He called them “models of independence.”

Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall, he said, “helped bring the end” of Plessy v. Ferguson with Brown v. Board of Education.

Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Connecticut, describing President Trump as an “unindicted co-conspirator in serious wrongdoing,” said issues of the President’s personal liability could come before the court.

Blumenthal asked Judge Brett Kavanaugh if he would commit to recuse himself from ruling in any such case.

Kavanaugh replied by saying the judiciary is independent and he may not make a commitment on any particular case – and that would include those involving the President.

For a second day, much of Washington is talking not about the Kavanaugh hearing, but anonymously sourced allegations that President Trump is unhinged and dangerous to the republic.

Yesterday it was Bob Woodward’s book (which spawned a White House witch hunt).

Today’ it’s an anonymous op-ed in the New York Times from someone who claimed to be part of a resistance inside President Trump’s White House, thwarting parts of the President’s agenda.

The Times said disclosing the name of the official, who is known to the publication, would jeopardize the official’s job, and said publishing the piece anonymously was the only way to deliver an important perspective to readers.

President Donald Trump on Wednesday called the op-ed written by a senior official in his administration “really a disgrace” and “gutless,” assailing the author and the New York Times for publishing the anonymous opinion piece.

“We have somebody in what I call the failing New York Times that’s talking about he’s part of the resistance inside the Trump administration,” Trump said. “This is what we have to deal with. And you know the dishonest media…But it’s really a disgrace.”

Trump went on to assail the anonymously-bylined article as a “gutless editorial.”

Still, senators and Judge Brett Kavanaugh carried on. Today’s hearing is scheduled to go through 9 p.m. ET tonight.

Democratic Sen. Chris Coons pressed Judge Brett Kavanaugh about his views on whether a president can fire at will a prosecutor who is criminally investigating him.

Here’s how that exchange went:

Coons asks:“Please answer directly, do you still believe a president can fire at will a prosecutor who is criminally investigating him?”

Kavanaugh responds: “Well that’s a question of precedent and it’s a question of, that could come before me either as a sitting judge on the DC circuit or if I’m confirmed as a Supreme Court justice so I think that question is governed by precedent that you’d have to consider. United States vs. Nixon, of course, the special prosecutor regulation in that case was at issue in United States versus Richard Nixon in the — “

Coon asks again: “Judge if I could, I’m just asking whether you stand by your record — something that you chose to write in 1998. You expressed a view at the time that a president can fire at will a prosecutor criminally investigating him. Is that still your view?

Kavanaugh: “Well that would depend —”

Coons: “I’m not asking for a recitation of precedent, I … we will get into some precedent later.”

Kavanaugh: “Ok.”

Coons: “I’m just trying to understand if you stand by that publicly expressed view back in 1998.”

Kavanaugh:“I think all I can say, Senator, is that was my view in 1998.”

Note: This post has been updated with Sen. Chris Coon’s remarks.

Judge Brett Kavanaugh didn’t wait for anyone to ask him whether he thought a landmark civil rights opinion was correctly decided, “Brown versus Board,” the Supreme Court nominee said Wednesday, is “the single greatest moment in Supreme Court history in so many ways.”

GOP Sen. John Cornyn had been on a different path asking about precedent when Kavanaugh jumped in to speak about the 1954 opinion that held that state laws requiring separate but equal schools violated the Constitution.

Kavanaugh praised the Brown decision, an 9-0 ruling, several times during the hearing. His answer, however, has been in contrast to some of President Donald Trump’s other judicial nominees. We mentioned Wendy Vitter earlier, whose comments triggered outrage by many, though others agree and say that nominees should not offer up their personal thoughts on decided cases.

Kavanaugh has sought to draw a line: He’s unwilling to speak about more recent decisions like 1973’s Roe v. Wade but he said he is willing to make an “exception” for some older cases like Brown.

It’s a distinction that some Democrats don’t like.

They want to hear his opinions on Roe v. Wade, because they fear that he may be the critical fifth vote to overturn it. But so far, in this hearing Kavanaugh has not tipped his hand. He’s only spoken broadly. He said that it is important precedent that was reaffirmed in a case called Planned Parenthood v. Casey.

Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse focused on the role of the federalist society in the judicial selection process, asking Judge Brett Kavanaugh to discuss when he spoke with White House Counsel Don McGahn about the current nomination.

“When Justice Kennedy retired on the Wednesday, Mr. McGahn called me later that afternoon said we need to talk on Friday,” Kavanaugh explained. “He came over to my office on Friday evening or late afternoon, we talked for three or four hours, uh, interview and going through the usual kinds of questions you would go through when you’re embarking on a process like this, and then I met with, interviewed with, the President on Monday morning,” he said.

Note: Kavanaugh was not on the first list of potential Supreme Court nominees released by the President.His name was added to one issued by the White House in Nov 2017.

President Donald Trump on Wednesday accused veteran journalist Bob Woodward of timing his book release to coincide with the hearings for Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh and once again slammed it as “a work of fiction.”

“It was put out to interfere in my opinion with the Kavanaugh hearings,” Trump said in the Oval Office alongside the Emir of Kuwait.

Some background: Woodward’s new 448-page book, “Fear: Trump in the White House,” provides an unprecedented inside-the-room look through the eyes of the President’s inner circle. From the Oval Office to the Situation Room to the White House residence, Woodward uses confidential background interviews to illustrate how some of the President’s top advisers view him as a danger to national security and have sought to circumvent the commander in chief.

It describes how Trump’s closest aides have taken extraordinary measures in the White House to try to stop what they saw as his most dangerous impulses, going so far as to swipe and hide papers from his desk so he wouldn’t sign them.

Trump called the allegation that officials removed paperwork from his desk to prevent him from signing it “false” and “made up.”

President Trump sharply criticized Democrats participating in Judge Brett Kavanaugh’s confirmation hearings, and said they were “grasping at straws,” while praising the performance of his second Supreme Court nominee.

“I think that the other side isgrasping at straws.And, really, the other sideshould embrace him becauseyou’re never going to findbetter in terms of talent orintellect than what you have inBrett Kavanaugh,” he said.

Trump said he has been watching the hearings and has been impressed by Kavanaugh’s remarks.

Watch:

Without being asked, Judge Brett Kavanaugh again brought up the seminal Brown v. Board of Education decision.“That moment is so critical to remember, the opinion is soinspirational,” he said, citing the unanimity as one particularly great aspect.

He has repeatedly talked today about how it is one of the greatest moments in Supreme Court history.Brown v. Board held that state laws requiring separate but equal schools violated the Constitution.

Some other Trump judicial nominees, however, have refused to discuss whether Brown was correctly decided.In April, for instance, Wendy Vitter wouldn’t touch the question at her confirmation hearing to become a federal judge in Louisiana.

“I don’t mean to be coy,” Vitter said, “but I think I can get into a difficult, difficult area when I start commenting on Supreme Court decisions – which are correctly decided and which I may disagree with.” Vitter emphasized that, if confirmed, she’d set aside “personal, religious or political views” and she would be bound by Supreme Court precedent.

Sen. Joe Manchin, a key swing vote, told CNN that he has seen nothing disqualifying so far in Brett Kavanaugh’s testimony – and he sharply criticized both sides’ handling of the nomination process.

“No, I haven’t seen anything from that standpoint,” Manchin said when asked if he’s seen anything disqualifying yet. “He’s handled himself very professionally … His dialogue is more specific in his approach to being a jurist.”

He said he would reserve judgment until after the hearings.

Manchin, a West Virginia Democrat up for reelection this year, sharply criticized both parties when asked about Democrats’ aggressive posture at the start of yesterday’s hearings.

“Both sides have been deplorable in how they’ve handled themselves,” Manchin said. “That’s what makes people sick.”

“The whole approach to how we’re operating today is nothing like we’ve seen .. No one can say this is normal, this is civil or exemplifying for our kids,” Manchin said, citing the lack of action on Merrick Garland as well.

Manchin added: “Anybody who announces how they’re going to vote before a president makes their appointment, there’s no commonsense or reasoning in that whatsoever.”

A demonstrator dressed as a character from "The Handmaid's Tale" protests outside the hearing room where Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh is testifying before the Senate Judiciary Committee in the Hart Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill on Sept. 5, 2018 in Washington, DC.

The Women’s March claimed at least 36 protesters were arrested at today’s confirmation hearing and a sit-in at Ohio Sen. Rob Portman’s office.

Winnie Wong, senior advisor to the Women’s March, spoke to CNN and explained some of the strategy and activism around the Kavanaugh protests.

The Women’s March has partnered with the Center for Popular Democracy (CPD) this week to provide support to its members who want to participate in the democratic process, though Wong also advised there are approximately 20 groups present here in DC — and emphasized that the groups are getting along and coordinating and supporting one another. Case in point: N.A.R.A.L. president Ilyse Hough walked by during the conversation and air-kissed Wong’s cheek before singing her praises.

The group has been organizing around these Supreme Court hearings for about a month, she estimated.

Wong said that the Women’s March has 300 people committed to “actions” during the week — and that most of their members knowingly signed up for action that could get them arrested. The Women’s March group drew from their 1.5 million member email list to spread the word, drawing a variety of women from around the country who Wong says have traveled to participate.

What happened yesterday: Wong was arrested Tuesday along with Women’s March co-founders Linda Sarsour and Bob Bland. She recounted what she yelled from the back of the room: “I said for any senator who votes yes on the confirmation of Judge Kavanaugh there will be a political price to pay. That to me is an explicit demand and a promise.”

Capitol Police said they had made 70 arrests on Tuesday on the Senate side of Capitol Hill by the end of the first day of hearings.

Police said in a statement that they had “responded to numerous incidents of unlawful demonstration activities within the Senate Office Buildings today that were associated with the first day of hearings held by the Senate Judiciary Committee.”

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, a Democrat from New York, tried to invoke the two-hour rule, which requires unanimous consent for committees to meet for more than two hours after the Senate comes into session – or past 2 p.m. ET – in order to block action in the Judiciary Committee.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Republican from Kentucky, countered by taking the Senate immediately out of session, which nullifies the need for consent for the Committee to meet.

The Kavanaugh hearing went on uninterrupted.

Judge Brett Kavanaugh did not address the confusion around a missed handshake Tuesday with the father of a slain Parkland student, when given the opportunity by Sen. Lindsey Graham to do so.

Asked what he’d like to say to Fred Guttenberg, the Parkland father, and the “many other people here with personal situations,” Kavanaugh spoke generally, saying “I’ve not lived in a bubble. And I understand how passionately people feel about particular issues. And I understand how personally people are affected by issues.”

Here’s the exchange:

Graham:

Kavanaugh:

Senate Judiciary Committee member Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) (L) questions Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh during the second day of his confirmation hearing on Capitol Hill September 5, 2018 in Washington, DC.

Sen. Patrick Leahy, a Democrat from Vermont, questioned Judge Brett Kavanaugh extensively about his knowledge of a scandal that occurred back in 2003 when a Republican staffer obtained internal, Democratic memos that Leahy and others said were stolen from a computer terminal.

At the time,the aide, Manuel Miranda, was working on judicial confirmations on the hill and Kavanaugh was serving in the White House counsel’s office.

Kavanaugh was asked about the issue during his 2006 testimony,where he denied knowing about any memos from Democrats.

Kavanaugh also noted it’s common to prepare for hearings and try to anticipate areas about which senators would like to question nominees.So the fact he would have met with or spoken with Miranda on such issues is not surprising.

Today, Leahy suggested that he had other emails labeled “committee confidential” that could be damaging to Kavanaugh because they would suggest that Kavanaugh knew more than he’s previously suggested.

Leahy said he was unable to produce the documents because they were being held committee confidential.

But Sen. Chuck Grassley, a Republican from Iowa, pointedout that all the documents were available to members and that if members wanted to use them in the hearing, they could have asked ahead of time. Adding that Grassley would work with Bush lawyer Bill Burck and White House lawyers to get them cleared.Leahy did not make that specific request, although, he has requested the release of all documents that have been marked committee confidential.

Grassley told Leahy, “We’ll get them for you,” but to do that he needs permission of Burck and the White House.

Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina followed up and asked Kavanaugh if he had any knowledge of receiving stolen information from Miranda.

He replied no.

Leahy continued questioning on Kavanaugh’s knowledge of the terrorist surveillance program. Additionally, Leahy questioned Kavanaugh on another issue that came up in 2006 — what Kavanaugh’s knowledge of the terrorist surveillance program was before its existence was revealed by the New York Times.

He maintained that he did not know about the program before the New York Times published a story on it.But said he could not rule out having worked on other warrantless surveillance issues before that.He said after Sept. 11, 2001, it was “all hands on deck.”

Graham again asked if he had knowledge of the terrorist surveillance program before the New York Times story appeared and he said “no.”

The confirmation hearing for Judge Brett Kavanaugh, President Trump’s Supreme Court pick, has resumed.

Sen. Dick Durbin, a Democrat from Illinois, is grilling Kavanaugh right now.

The Senate Judiciary Committee just took a 30-minute break for lunch.

Sen. Chuck Grassley advised that the break may take a bit longer because they have an upcoming vote.

“If not, Judge Kavanaugh, we willlet your staff know if it’sgoing to be a little laterbecause you never know whathappens in the United StatesSenate when you have a vote,” he said.

As he left, security quickly assembled around him, perhaps hoping to avoid another confrontation like the one that occurred yesterday.

Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina asked Judge Brett Kavanaugh about his legacy, and if he’s confirmed, how he hopes to be remembered.

“A good dad, good judge” Kavanaugh replies.

In the background, a women’s voice can be heard saying: “Good husband.”

“I think he’s getting it,” Graham says.

Kavanaugh then adds: “Good husband,” leading to some laughter in the room.

“Thanks Dianne, you helped him a lot. It’s gonna be better for you tonight,” Graham says to Kavanaugh’s wife.

Watch:

For approximately 20 minutes, the seats for the general public in the Judge Brett Kavanaugh hearing were empty.

When asked about this, the Capitol Police on site said there was a hold on allowing the public into the room per the committee.

As of 11 a.m. ET, the seats were again full (and soon after the hearing was again interrupted by two protestors).

However, yesterday there were stretches of time where the entire public chairs in the back were empty as Capitol Police rotated the public in and out to accommodate the line, so it’s not completely unusual for the seats to be empty for a short period of time.

Judge Brett Kavanaugh was asked by Sen. Patrick Leahy whether President Trump has an absolute right to pardon himself as Trump has claimed.

“The question of self-pardons is something I’ve never analyzed. It is a question that I’ve not written about. It is a question therefore that is a hypothetical question that I can’t begin to answer in this context as a sitting judge and as a nominee to the Supreme Court,” Kavanaugh replied.

Asked if the President could pardon someone “in exchange for a promise from that person that they wouldn’t testify against him,” Kavanaugh again demurred.

“I’m not going to answer hypothetical questions of that sort,” he told Leahy.

Leahy replied: “I hope for the sake of the country that remains a hypothetical question.”

Judge Brett Kavanaugh recalled his relationship with Judge Alex Kozinski, who retired last year after accusations of sexual misconduct.

Kavanaugh suggested his communications over the last number of years were infrequent except when working on a specific project together.

Kavanaugh denied knowing anything about the allegations before they came to light and said he was “shocked” by them, calling them a “gut punch” for him and the judiciary.

He remembered finding out about the allegations: “And when I heard, when it became public I think it was in December it was a gut punch. It was a gut punch for me, it was a gut punch for the judiciary and I was shocked and disappointed, angry, a swirl of emotions.”

Visit here for more of CNN’s coverage on sexual misconduct in the courts.

Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh held up a small copy of the US Constitution as he told Sen. Orrin Hatch, “If confirmed to the Supreme Court and as a sitting judge, I owe my loyalty to the Constitution. That is what I owe loyalty to. And the Constitution establishes me as an independent judge bound to follow the law as written.”

Sen. Dianne Feinstein asked Judge Brett Kavanaugh directly: “Let me ask you this.Can a sitting president berequired to respond to asubpoena?”

Kavanaugh responded that the question was hypothetical.

Feinstein replied: “So you can’t give me an answer on whether a president has to respond to a subpoena from a court of law?”

Kavanaugh said: “My understanding is that you’re asking me to give my view on a potential hypothetical, and that is something that each of the eight justices currently sitting on the Supreme Court, when they were sitting in my seat, declined to decide potential hypothetical cases.”

Senate Democrats later tweeted the exchange, calling it “troubling”:

Sen. Dianne Feinstein just questioned Judge Kavanaugh’s opinion on assault weapons, specifically what he’s said in the past about how “common use” dictates the rights of Americans to own and continue to use them.

Kavanaugh said he follows Supreme Court precedents on the issue specifically as they relate to the Second Amendment, though admitted that doesn’t mean “that there is no gun regulation permissible.”

Feinstein questioned why assault weapons would be common use – since they aren’t commonly used.

Kavanaugh disagreed, stating there were “millions and millions and millions of semi automatic rifles that are possessed.”

Feinstein asked how he reconciles that with the amount of school shootings in America. “How do you reconcile that?”

Kavanaugh responded:

In an exchange between Sen. Chuck Grassley and Judge Brett Kavanaugh, Grassley asks the Supreme Court nominee if anyone had asked him to “make any promises or assurances at all” regarding how he would rule in various cases.

Kavanaugh replied: “No.”

Grassley followed up by asking Kavanaugh if anyone had asked him about his views on Roe v. Wade — the SCOTUS case that broadly legalized abortion across the United States.

“No,” Kavanaugh said.

Judge Brett Kavanaugh told Sen. Chuck Grassley that he believed a pivotal Supreme Court case ordering President Nixon to disclose information in response to a criminal subpoena was “one of the greatest moments in American judicial history.”

“You think about United States versus Nixon, which I’ve identified as one of the greatest moments in American judicial history, where Chief Justice Burger who had been appointed by President Nixon brought the court together in a unanimous decision to order President Nixon in a response to a criminal trial subpoenaed to disclose information,” Kavanaugh said.

CNN’s Ariane de Vogue notes that he’s said this about US v. Nixon before, but it contradicts one interview he did in the Washington law journal in 1999, in which he said the landmark opinion that ordered President Richard Nixon to turn over White House recordings toward the end of the Watergate investigation might have been “wrongly decided.”

Sen. Chuck Grassley just asked Judge Brett Kavanaugh, in the first segment of questioning led by the chairman, to speak to his thoughts regarding judicial independence from the executive branch – a key subject for anyone concerned about how Kavanaugh would rule on issues directly related to President Trump.

“No one is abovethe law in our constitutional system,” Kavanaugh said. “Under our system of government, the executive branch is subject to the law, subject to the court system … it is an important part of the constitutional structure.”

“We are not supposed to be influenced by political pressure from the executive or from the Congress. We are independent,” he added. “We make decisions based on law, not based on policy, not based on political pressure, not based on the identity of the parties, no matter who you are in our system, no matter where you come from, no matter how rich you are or how poor you are, no matter your race, your gender, no matter your station in life, no matter your position in government.”

Sen. Chuck Grassley, chairman of the Judiciary Committee, opened today’s hearing by talking about the protesters that frequently disrupted yesterday’s. Citing NBC News, Grassley said they were interrupted 63 times and 70 people were arrested. He noted that the Constitution permits freedom of speech, but “we also were finally able to conduct our hearing the way it should be conducted.”

Two protesters, one shouting, “Sham president, sham justice! Stop the slaughter of our children. Sham president, sham justice!” then disrupted him as he continued talking about yesterday’s disruption.

Watch:

The second day of Brett Kavanaugh’s confirmation hearing formally began at 9:35 a.m. ET when Sen. Chuck Grassley gaveled the hearing into session. A few minutes later, we heard from our first protesters.

One is shouting, “Sham president, sham justice!”

Senators today have 30 minutes each to ask questions of Kavanaugh.The hearing is expected to stretch into the evening.

White House counsel Don McGahn is again in the hearing room today.

Day 2 of Judge Brett Kavanaugh’s looks like it’ll be a long one. Here’s the schedule – it includes breaks for lunch and dinner.

After yesterday’s partisan turmoil over process today democrats will dig in on the issues and don’t plan to keep interrupting Sen. Chuck Grassley at today’s Brett Kavanaugh hearing.

Instead Democrats will grill Kavanaugh on abortion, the affordable care act, and executive power. Some will say Kavanaugh misled them 12 years ago in his testimony concerning his involvement on the legal war on terror.

Republicans – meanwhile – remain confident.Kavanaugh has not only testified twice before, he worked on judicial nominations while serving in the Bush White House. He understands the process better than most. He’s been participating in murder boards- practice sessions– with clerks and Department of Justice lawyers taking on the roles of senators, according to a participant. They’ve been serious and intense sessions – one lasting up to eight hours. The only levity is when someone does a particularly good impression of a senator.

Republicans are expected to echo Sen. Lindsay Graham yesterday who said that elections matter.

And they will emphasize that while there were plenty of fireworks yesterday not one senator questioned whether kavanaugh was qualified.

White House counsel Don McGahn is expected to attend today’s session.

The confirmation hearing for Judge Brett Kavanaugh, President Trump’s Supreme Court pick, has ended for the day.

The hearing will resume at 9:30 a.m. ET tomorrow. In case you missed it, here’s everything you need to know:

Judge Brett Kavanaugh laid out his view of the Supreme Court and his optimism for America’s future.

“The Supreme Court must never be viewed as a partisan institution.The justices on the Supreme Court do not sit on opposite sides of an aisle,” he said during his opening remarks. “They do not caucus in separate rooms.If confirmed to the court, I would be part of a team of nine, committed to deciding cases according to the Constitution and laws of the United States.I would always strive to be a team player on the team of nine.”

Kavanaugh then shared his thoughts on the future, and promised to be fair to the poor and rich.

READ: Brett Kavanaugh’s opening statement to Senate Judiciary Committee

President Trump just tweeted about Judge Brett Kavanaugh’s confirmation hearing, calling the Democrats “mean, angry, and despicable.”

Read his tweets:

Earlier today, Senate Democrats staged an aggressive bid to slow Kavanaugh’s confirmation as fury over a selection that could tilt the nation’s top bench to the right for a generation exploded on Capitol Hill.

After more than an hour or interruptions by senators and repeated screaming protests from the public gallery, the business of the hearing went ahead and Democrats tried a new tack – warning that since Trump has challenged legal and constitutional norms, his pick for such a crucial pick deserved extra scrutiny.

Judge Brett Kavanaugh was just sworn in at his Senate confirmation hearing.

Kavanaugh is now delivering his opening remarks.

“As a nominee to the Supreme Court, I understand the responsibility I bear.Some 30 years ago, Judge Anthony Kennedy sat in this seat.He became one of the most consequential Justices in American history,” he said.

Kavanaugh said Kennedy was a mentor and hero.

“He fiercely defended the independence of the Judiciary.And he was a champion of liberty.If you had to sum up Justice Kennedy’s entire career in one word … ‘liberty.’Justice Kennedy established a legacy of liberty for ourselves and our posterity,” he said.

Lisa Blatt, a self-described “liberal feminist lawyer,” praised Judge Kavanaugh as “the best choice that liberals could reasonably hope for” in a political reality where Republicans control the White House, Senate and House.

“Obviously I know that Judge Kavanaugh has a conservative judicial outlook.And if he is confirmed, he will have 1 of 9 votes to definitely decide the meaning of the Constitution, including how far to read it to protect the reproductive rights of women,” she said.

“Now if it were up to me, Justice Ginsburg would have all 9 votes.But that’s not our system, and the reality is, that the Presidency and the Senate, are in Republican hands.Judge Kavanaugh is the best choice that liberals could reasonably hope for in these circ*mstances.”

Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham, speaking at Judge Brett Kavanaugh’s hearing, vowed to defend special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russia’s interference in the 2016 presidential election.

“There’s a process to find out what happened in the 2016 election. It’s called Mr. Mueller. And I will do everything I can to make sure he finishes his job without political interference and I’m here to tell anybody in the country who listens that this is so hypocritical of my friends on the other side,” said Graham, a Trump ally.

He then returned to the issue at hand – Kavanaugh’s nomination.

Speaking directly to President Trump, Graham said, “You do some things that drive me crazy, you do some great things. You have never done anything better in my view than to pick (Supreme Court Justice Neil) Gorsuch and Kavanaugh.”

Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham described today’s hearing – at which Judge Brett Kavanaugh is finally about to speak – as “the hypocrisy hearing,” citing Democrats’ outrage in contrast to their past positions with regards to President Bill Clinton nominating Justice Stephen Breyer while he was under investigation and Sen. Ted Kennedy choosing a “staff person.”

He also brought up Roe v. Wade.

“Who would ever play politics on the campaign trail with Roe v. Wade, what a bastard Donald Trump is,” he said, mimicking Democrats before quoting Hillary Clinton stating, “We need a Supreme Court that will stand up on behalf of women’s rights.”

He added, “If you even suggest that you will pick a nominee that’s not gonna uphold Roe v. Wade that’s the end of you, but you’ve figured that out, you don’t need me to tell you. so this is the way we do politics, this is a big decision called Roe v. Wade, there are two sides and a bunch of nuances.”

Democratic Sen. Kamala Harris explained to Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh why Lady Justice wears a blindfold – because justice is blind to one’s status in life, how much money they have, what they look like, who they’re related to or how they speak.

“Every Supreme Court justice must understand and uphold that ideal,” Harris told the nominee. “And sir, should those cases become before you… I am concerned whether you would treat every American equally or instead show allegiance to the political party and the conservative agenda that has shaped and built your career.”

She added, “I am concerned your loyalty would be to the president who appointed you and not to the constitution of the United States.”

California Sen. Kamala Harris reflected on her life as a black woman to demonstrate the importance of confirming a Supreme Court pick.

She recalled starting her first day of kindergarten and being part of the second class of students to integrate Berkeley public schools.

“This was decades after theSupreme court ruled Brown v.Board of Education that separatewas inherently unequal.As I’ve said many times, hadChief Justice Earl Warren notbeen on the Supreme Court of theUnited States, he could not haveled a unanimous decision and theoutcome then of that case mayhave been very different,” Harris said.

She continued:

New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker told Judge Brett Kavanaugh that he would not support his nomination and urged fellow colleagues to hold off on voting on the Supreme Court nominee.

He continued: “We should not vote now.We should wait.And if we are not waiting, weshould object to yournomination.”

Sens. Cory Booker and Chuck Grassley just shared a moment of bipartisan friendship while talking about their fundamental disagreements with regard to the Kavanaugh documents.

Thanking Grassley, the Republican committee chairman, for the opportunity to make their case, “even though you have not ruled in our favor of which I’m disappointed,” Democratic Sen. Booker told him, “I do hope you understand that I value your friendship” and “I’ve come to have a deep respect for you, sir.”

Grassley responded, “If you worry about our friendship being affected it will not be” and touted the committee’s history of producing bipartisan bills.”

Booker thanked him, and said, “I appreciate that.”

He then added: “It doesn’t detract from the fact that I just fundamentally disagree with the way you’ve been concluding today.”

Connecticut Sen. Richard Blumenthal said Judge Brett Kavanaugh’s nomination and confirmation process will always be considered tainted because it has been clouded in secrecy.

He joined fellow Democratic senators in asking why much of the documents from Kavanaugh’s work in the Bush administration had not been released before Tuesday’s hearing.

Fred Guttenberg, the father of a Parkland student, tweeted that when he walked up to Judge Brett Kavanaugh as the morning session ended and put out his hand to introduce himself, “He pulled his hand back, turned his back to me and walked away.”

A source familiar with the encounter said that Kavanaugh did not know who he was and security intervened to end the exchange before there could even be a handshake.

The source explains an unidentified person approached Judge Kavanaugh. His security detail quickly stepped in because they did not know who the person was. When that occurred, and as security moved Judge Kavanaugh away from the man and toward an exit, the man began shouting at Judge Kavanaugh.

CNN has reviewed the video and it shows Guttenberg holding out his hand and Kavanaugh is seen listening to Guttenberg, expressionless, and then he turns away.

White House spokesman Raj Shah tweeted in response to Guttenberg.

“As Judge Kavanaugh left for his lunch break, an unidentified individual approached him. Before the judge was able to shake his hand, security had intervened,” he said.

To that, Guttenberg responded, “Incorrect. I was here all day and introduced by Senator Feinstein. No security involved. He turned and walked away.”

Watch the moment:

Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal thanked Americans – both watching at home and in the room – for showing passion and interest in Judge Brett Kavanaugh’s confirmation process.

He also thanked Kavanaugh and his family for his “commitment to public service.”

Here’s what Blumenthal said:

Arizona Sen. Jeff Flake cited President Trump’s tweet that blasted Attorney General Jeff Session and Justice Department’s investigation into two lawmakers to express his concerns about presidential power.

Flake warned Judge Brett Kavanaugh to expect questions from him and others about his thoughts on presidential powers.

“Now, I know, and it has beenbrought up today, that a lot ofthe concern on the other side ofthe aisle stems from the concernof an administration thatdoesn’t seem to understand andappreciate separation of powersand the rule of law.I have that concern as well.If you just look at what wassaid just yesterday by thepresident, I think it’s veryconcerning,” the Republican senator said.

Flake then read Trump’s tweet:

Flake continued:

Nebraska Sen. Ben Sasse pleaded with his colleagues to support Judge Brett Kavanaugh and “stop the charades.” He told fellow senators that they shouldn’t be talking about Republican and Democratic judges and justices.

Here’s what he said:

Republican Sen. Ben Sasse, speaking at Judge Brett Kavanaugh’s hearing, said conversations about the Supreme Court have become partisan.

He explained that confirmation hearings should be like Schoolhouse rock civics lesson. Instead, he said the process has become ugly.

Here’s what he said:

Sen. Ted Cruz accused Democrats of opposing Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh as a means of relitigating the 2016 presidential election.

“If it’s not about documents, if it’s not about Judge Kavanaugh’s credentials, if it’s not about his judicial record, what is this fight about?” Cruz asked. “I believe this fight is nothing more and nothing less than an attempt by our democratic colleagues to relitigate the 2016 presidential election.”

The Kavanaugh hearing has resumed. Get caught up here.

The Senate Judiciary Committee just took a 30-minute break from Judge Brett Kavanaugh’s confirmation hearing.

They are scheduled to return to the hearing at 1:17 p.m. ET.

Democratic Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, speaking at Judge Brett Kavanaugh’s hearing, said the American people feel the Supreme Court nominee process is rigged.

He alleged big Republican interest groups were behind high court’s rightward bent.

He also alleged big Republican interest groups were behind high court’s rightward bent.

“Tomorrow, we will hear a lot of ‘confirmation etiquette.’It’s a sham,” Whitehouse said. “Kavanaugh knows the game.In the Bush White House, he coached judicial nominees to just tell senators that ‘they will adhere to statutory text, that they have no ideological agenda.’Fairy tales.”

He also said:

A group of women dressed as handmaids appeared outside the hearing room where Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh is facing senators.

The protesters in the costumes from the Hulu series “The Handmaid’s Tale” are with Demand Justice, a liberal advocacy group fighting Kavanaugh’s confirmation, CNN affiliate The Hill reported.

The protesters released a statement announcing they were there to bring attention to Kavanaugh’s “anti-abortion, anti-healthcare and anti-women” views. “Brett Kavanaugh is an extremist ideologue who, if confirmed to the Supreme Court, will take away women’s basic rights,” the statement read.

Women have been using the hit television show’s iconic red handmaid’s uniform to call out oppression in real life in recent months. “The Handmaid’s Tale” takes place in a dystopia called the Republic of Gilead, a totalitarian society, formerly known as the US, where a class of women called the handmaids are subjugated and used only for reproduction.

Sen. Dick Durbin just spoke directly to Judge Brett Kavanaugh to explain why Democrats – and the demonstrators – were concerned about his potential lifetime appointment on the Supreme Court.

Spoiler: It’s about President Donald J. Trump. Here’s what he said:

The Women’s March released a statement just now claiming credit for disrupting the Kavanaugh hearing and stating that more than 30 women have so far been arrested.

Rachel O’Leary Carmona, chief operating officer of Women’s March, said in the statement, “Women are disrupting this hearing today because our lives are at risk. Women will die if Kavanaugh is confirmed.”

She warned “politicians on both sides of the aisle” that if they failed to stop Kavanaugh “we will make you pay in November and in 2020.” Democrats, they warned, would be primaried. Republican seats would be flipped.

She also warned there would be many more disruptions to come: “Hundreds of women from across the country are still in line waiting to access the Kavanaugh hearings – and we will not stop.”

The group released a series of videos documenting the protests and arrests on Twitter, where they included the hashtag: #CancelKavanaugh.

Sen. John Cornyn, a Republican, assailed Democrats and protesters alike for the “pandemonium” that’s so far delayed Judge Brett Kavanaugh’s hearing by more than an hour.

“I’m amazed at the poker faces I’ve seen on the front row during all of this pandemonium,” Cornyn said, adding it was “unlike anything I’ve ever seenbefore in a confirmation hearing.”

He was later interrupted by no less than seven protesters, who shouted things like “He is not the voice of the people” and, “Hell no, Kavanaugh.” They were removed from the room by Capitol Police.

Toward the end, he added, “I sincerely hope this week we can all take a deep breath. We’re not doing very well so far and get a grip and treat this process with the respect and gravity it demands.”

Sen. Hatch lost his cool as a protester interrupted his opening statement, shouting about health care. Here’s the exchange:

WOMAN: “I would die without it. I’m a pre-existing condition”

HATCH: “Mr. Chairman I think we ought to have this loudmouth removed.”

WOMAN: “I would die. I would die without it.”

HATCH: “We shouldn’t have to put up with this kind of stuff.”

WOMAN: “We need health care.”

HATCH: “I hope she’s not a law student.”

Sen. Orrin Hatch accused Democrats who hope to run for president in 2020 as chasing “that coveted TV clip” in their appeals this morning and wishing “we could drop all the nonsense.”

He described Judge Kavanaugh as “unquestionably qualified” and said he was “one of the most widely respected judges in the country.”

Here’s the full quote:

Just a quick programming note: Sen. Chuck Grassley, the committee chairman, began his opening remarks at 10:47 a.m. ET, more than an hour after the hearing began.

He was delayed by Democratic appeals to adjourn and protesters who repeatedly interrupted the proceedings.

About 10 protesters have been escorted out in the last 10 minutes – some sharing personal reasons for their protest, like one woman who was in a wheelchair and expressed concern over her pre-existing condition.

Here is some of what was yelled:

TheCapitol Police are arresting people.

Judge Brett Kavanaugh’s two daughters just left the hearing.

A source close to Kavanaugh tells CNN “that was always the plan, they’d stay for an hour and go back for intros” later in the day.

There were ongoing discussions throughout the holiday weekend, including a call, led by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, where leadership and Senate Judiciary Committee Democrats agreed to do this at the beginning of the hearing, per a person familiar.

Their goal: Democrats want to slow the process and protest the document issue. Efforts will ebb and flow throughout the day. They were given new ammunition with the 42,000 documents sent to the Hill last night.

During the hearing, Republican Senator Thom Tillis called out Democrats during the hearing, and Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) confirmed the call.

CNN legal analyst Joan Biskupic, who has covered the Supreme Court for 25 years and is the author of several books on the judiciary, tells us she’s “never seen such a disruption” at a hearing such as today’s.

Here’s her quick take on what we’re witnessing:

Don’t make any weekend plans yet – Sen. Chuck Grassley just threatened his colleagues that the hearing could extend through Saturday and Sunday.

“I have found that it takes longer to argue why you shouldn’t do anything then let people argue why they wanted,” he told Democratic colleagues who were raising concerns about the late-night document dump and asking for an adjournment.

“These things are going to be said throughout this hearing. We are going to be in session Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday till we get done this week, so however long people want to take we’re going to not necessarily accommodate all obstruction, but if people got something to say, this chairman is gonna let them say it, but it it gets pretty boring to hear the same thing all the time.”

Sen. Dianne Feinstein, in her opening statement, appealed to Republicans to give Democrats more time to review the recently released documents before continuing with today’s hearing.

“I really regret this, but I think you have to understand the frustration on this side of the aisle,” Feinstein said.

“Every one on this side of the aisle wants to do a good job,” Feinstein added. “They want time to be able to consider what the findings are and there are tens of thousands of pages of emails and other items which could institute findings on a whole host of major subjects that this nominee may be faced with, and they’re serious.”

“It’s not to create a disruption,” she explained. “It’s not to make this a very badprocess. It is to say, ‘Majority, give us the time to do our work so that we can have a positive and comprehensive hearing on the man who may well be the deciding vote for many of Americans’ futures.”

Sen. Cory Booker appealed to Sen. Chuck Grassley to ask why they were “rushing through this process” in light of the late-night document dump.

Here’s what Booker said:

Sen. Chuck Grassley, chair of the Senate’s judiciary committee, just started today’s hearing but was quickly interrupted by Democrats who argued they had not had time to review the 42,000 documents delivered last night.

Sen. Kamala Harris said, “We cannot possibly move forward, Mr. Chairman with this hearing. We have not been given an opportunity to have a meaningful hearing on this nominee.”

Sen. Richard Blumenthal asked to adjourn the hearing if the motion was not heard.

Sen. Cory Booker – to cheers – asked for a debate on the issues and asked why they were rushing through this.He appealed to Grassley’s decency and integrity which Grassley said Booker was taking advantage of.

Grassley said he wanted to move forward, and protestors began shouting.

Grassley told his colleagues they ought to give the American people the opportunity to hear if Kavanaugh should become Supreme Court justice.

Supreme Court Justice Nominee Brett Kavanaugh just entered the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing room.

Kavanaugh was holding the hand on one of his daughters, and his other daughter and wife followed behind. Don McGahn was also accompanying Kavanaugh today.

He was smiling then took his seat before the cameras.

Democrats from the Senate Judiciary Committee held a press conference on the steps of the Supreme Court less than an hour before the committee’s confirmation hearings for Supreme Court Nominee Brett Kavanaugh gets underway.

Senator Dianne Feinstein, flanked by colleagues, said this is her 9th Supreme Court hearing and she has “never had a hearing like this where documents are so difficult to get.”

She hit her Republican colleagues for the 42,000 page document dump from yesterday, saying “obviously no one has been able to look at them yet.”

She added that the Judiciary Democrats have sent a letter to the White House counsel asking for more of the documents that are being withheld to be released. “We go to these hearings under protest,” she concluded.

Watch:

Judge Brett Kavanaugh, in his first major test as a Supreme Court nominee on Capitol Hill, is expected to tell members of the Senate Judiciary Committee that he is a “pro-law judge” at his confirmation hearing later today.

“A good judge must be an umpire—a neutral and impartial arbiter who favors no litigant or policy,” he will say, according to excerpts of his prepared remarks.

Likening a judge to an umpire could be a reference to Chief Justice John Roberts’ confirmation hearing back in 2005, when he said his “job is to call balls and strikes and not to pitch or bat.”

President Donald Trump’s second Supreme Court nominee is poised to succeed swing vote Justice Anthony Kennedy, the conservative-centrist who joined with liberals in some key decisions to uphold abortion rights. Kennedy was also the decisive vote for same-sex marriage and university affirmative action.

“To me, Justice Kennedy is a mentor, a friend, and a hero. As a Member of the Court, he was a model of civility and collegiality.He fiercely defended the independence of the Judiciary. And he was a champion of liberty,” Kavanaugh will say, per the excerpts.

Brett Kavanaugh, President Trump’s Supreme Court pick, will face senators who will likely grill him on where he stands on key issues during his confirmation hearing, which starts today.

If confirmed, Kavanaugh would replace a frequent swing vote on the bench, retired Justice Anthony Kennedy, who often sided with his liberal colleagues on issues such as abortion, affirmative action and LGBT rights.

Kavanaugh met privately with senators in the days and weeks before his hearing.

Here’s what we know about Kavanaugh: