- Collins, a centrist Republican, had the power to kill the Kavanaugh nomination but decided to stick with her party, virtually guaranteeing her party leadership’s success
- ‘I will vote to confirm Judge Kavanaugh,’ Collins said, adding: ‘My fervent hope is that Brett Kavanaugh will work to lessen the divisions in the Supreme Court’
- Saying she planned to vote ‘no’ would have practically killed Kavanaugh’s Supreme Court nomination
- Confirmation was not guaranteed until Democrat Joe Manchin of West Virginia said he would also back Kavanaugh
- ‘We feel good about where we are,’ President Trump’s Press Secretary Sarah Sanders told reporters outside the White House hours earlier
- After Collins spoke, Sanders thanked her on Twitter ‘for standing by your convictions and doing the right thing’
- Democrats argued Brett Kavanaugh is unfit to be a Supreme Court justice because of a sexual assault allegation that dates back to 1982
- He denied it flatly and the hearings didn’t establish any corroboration to the claim
- Same is true of FBI report demanded by Dems last week and delivered Thursday
- Friday’s ‘cloture’ vote passed by a simple majority, something that was unthinkable just a few years ago
- Until Democratic Majority Leader Harry Reid changed the rules, invoking ‘the nuclear option,’ judicial nominees needed 60 votes at this stage in the process
- Reid took his precedent-setting action to help then-president Barack Obama; Republicans expanded it stepwise to include Supreme Court nominees
- A key test vote Friday morning ended in Republicans’ favor with 51 ‘yes’ votes, a number that will hold
- Democrat Joe Manchin of West Virginia crossed the aisle, but so did Republican Lisa Murkowski of Alaska
- When the morning vote was over, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and other Republicans ate with Collins in the Senate dining room to hear what she planned to do and say
- Next story Brett Kavanaugh confirmed by Senate in 50-48 vote, will ascend to Supreme Court
- Previous story Wilbur Ross: Leveling the playing field for American workers
The Washington Times stories
- Joe Biden sworn in as 46th president of the United States, takes office amid pandemic, economic woesWASHINGTON (AP) - Joe Biden sworn in as 46th president of the United States, takes office amid pandemic, economic woes, deep divisions.
- Detroit Lions hire New Orleans Saints tight ends coach Dan Campbell as head coachDETROIT (AP) - Detroit Lions hire New Orleans Saints tight ends coach Dan Campbell as head coach.
- Trump grants pardon to ex-husband of Fox News host 'Judge Jeanine' PirroPresident Trump granted a last-minute pardon on Wednesday to Albert Pirro Jr., the ex-husband of Fox News Channel personality Jeanine Pirro, for his conviction of tax evasion. In November 2000, Pirro, at the time an influential GOP businessman in New York state, was sentenced to 29 months in federal prison. ...
- Former Dothan superintendent seeking $584,000 from systemDOTHAN, Ala. (AP) - A former Dothan city school superintendent who left the job last year is seeking almost $600,000 that she claims she is due from the system, news outlets reported. Phyllis Edwards is threatening to sue the system unless it turns over the money, according to a letter ...
- Augusta ex-pharmacist pardoned by Trump on health care fraudAUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) - A former Georgia pharmacist convicted of health care fraud is among 73 people pardoned by outgoing President Donald Trump. John Duncan Fordham of Augusta was convicted in 2005 of one count of health care fraud after an eight-day jury trial. Prosecutors alleged that Fordham kicked back ...
- Michigan man in UP arrested in investigation of Capitol riotCALUMET, Mich. (AP) - The FBI arrested a man in Michigan's Upper Peninsula who is accused of joining the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol. The detail was disclosed in a request to search a car for evidence about Karl Dresch's trip to Washington. The car was seized after ...
- Massachusetts drops student flu vaccine mandateBOSTON (AP) - Massachusetts has dropped a requirement that all students get the flu shot this academic year in part because it has been a mild flu season so far. The state announced in August that all students attending in-person classes, with some exceptions, would be required to get a ...
- California winds bring wildfires, power outages to thousandsLOS ANGELES (AP) - A windstorm that fanned brushfires, toppled trees and left thousands of Californians without power focused its remaining energy Wednesday on the southern end of the state, where forecasters warned of the additional threat of heavy rain and flash flooding. Strong winds were expected to continue through ...
- Houston event off as men’s tennis tour makes schedule tweaksLONDON (AP) - The U.S. Men’s Clay Court Championship in Houston was canceled for the second year in a row because of the coronavirus pandemic, part of a series of changes to the men’s tennis calendar announced by the ATP on Wednesday. The Houston tournament was supposed to be played ...
- Lil Wayne, Kodak Black get clemency; Joe Exotic does notTwo rappers were among the entertainment figures included in a list of 140 people who were pardoned or had their sentences commuted by President Donald Trump in a last-minute clemency flurry early Wednesday. But the news was not as good for one hopeful celebrity. - Rapper Lil Wayne, whose real ...
CNBC TOP NEWS
- S&P 500 rises more than 1% to an all-time high, Netflix leads Nasdaq to a recordBiden will succeed President Donald Trump as the 46th president of the United States shortly after noon ET.
- Biden expected to extend the national ban on evictions through March 2021President Joe Biden on Wednesday plans to extend the federal ban on housing evictions through March 2021 in one of his first acts following inauguration.
- Meet 22-year-old Amanda Gorman, the youngest inaugural poet in U.S. historyThe 22-year-old LA resident will recite her poem “The Hill We Climb” for President-elect Joe Biden's swearing-in ceremony Wednesday.
- Twitter creates new 'SecondGentleman' account for Kamala Harris' husbandTwitter on Wednesday confirmed that it has transitioned institutional White House accounts from the Trump administration to the Biden administration.
- Trump issues last-second pardon to Fox News host Jeanine Pirro's tax-cheat ex-husband AlTrump also pardoned Steve Bannon, Elliott Broidy and Lil Wayne in his last hours in office before Joe Biden became president.
- Kamala Devi Harris is sworn in as the country's first female, Black, Asian American vice presidentKamala Harris was sworn in Wednesday as the nation's first female, Black and South Asian American vice president.
- SpaceX expands public beta test of Starlink satellite internet to Canada and the UKElon Musk's company is now offering early public access to its Starlink satellite internet service in Canada and the U.K.
- Joe Biden is sworn in as president: 'Democracy has prevailed'Joe Biden was inaugurated in a smaller and heavily fortified bipartisan ceremony, facing economic and health crises and he succeeds Donald Trump.
- Stocks making the biggest moves midday: Netflix, Alibaba, Ford, Penn National Gaming & moreCheck out the companies making headlines in midday trading.
- Spike in lumber and land prices causes homebuilder confidence to fall from epic highThe rising costs of getting homes built is making builders less optimistic.
The Fact Checker
- Fact-checking Trump’s farewell addressTrump's farewell address was like a mini version of campaign rally -- lots of falsehoods but no applause.
- Biden’s claim about employment of ‘mom-and-pop’ businessesThe president-elect said "mom-and-pop" small businesses employ more than big corporations. That might be a stretch depending on the metric you use.
More
RealClearPolitics – Homepage
- How Long Will Washington Have to Be an Armed Camp?
- It's No Time for Biden to Be California Dreamin'
- An Open Letter to Stevie WonderDear Stevie: We've never met, but like untold millions of people around the world, I'm a huge fan. I can still remember flipping through my father's vinyl albums as a boy and stumbling across "Songs in the Key of Life." Your music continues to bring tremendous joy to people in all walks of life. So […]
- Antiracism Comes to the HeartlandA Missouri middle school forces teachers to locate themselves on an "oppression matrix" and watch a video of "George Floyd's last words."
- Trump Is Out. Can We Now Talk About How He Got In?The First White President, revisited
- The Media Are Lying About the 1776 ReportPresident Trump created the 1776 Commission by executive order last year as part of an effort to counter the leftist narrative taking over our public schools. Unsurprisingly, the commission's first report has been met with nothing but hostility.
- One Last Bit of Jaw-Dropping Racism From TrumpOn Monday, the Trump administration released the first, and only, report from the President's Advisory 1776 Commission. Its authors insist that the 45-page document is an effort to set the historical record straight. "In order to build up a healthy, united citizenry," they write, "scholars, students, and all Americans must reject false and fashionable ideologies […]
- Vaccine Ad Void: What We Have Here Is a Failure to CommunicateHUNTSVILLE, Ala. -- On Interstate 59, a neon billboard used by the Alabama Department of Health advises motorists to get their flu and pneumonia vaccines. Placards placed atop gas pumps around the state also promote the flu vaccine.
- 5 Ways Hospitals Can Help Fix Vaccine Rollout DebacleHospitals have come under sharp criticism for their part in the chaotic COVID-19 vaccine rollout. That's because in the rush to get the vaccine out quickly, many hospitals were shipped more vaccine than anticipated and fewer staff took it than anticipated. As a result, hospitals accrued a vaccine surplus and offered it to their low-risk […]
- How the U.S. Could Lose to ChinaAmerica's unserious political class is totally unequipped to deal with the threat.
The Hill
- LA residents joke small earthquake during inauguration was state celebratingAn earthquake shook portions of California on Wednesday morning, prompting jokes on social media that it was caused by residents celebrating former President Donald Trump's term coming to an end.The quake, which wa...
- Biden sworn in on family Bible his son Beau usedPresident Joe Biden on Wednesday took the oath of office on a family Bible used by his late son, Beau, when he was sworn in as Delaware Attorney General, the Hill confirmed. ...
- Biden urges Americans to join together in appeal for unityJoe Biden on Wednesday made an appeal for unity to Americans across the political spectrum in his inaugural address as the 46th president of the United States, seeking to turn the page on the divisions of the Trump era....
- Biden faces 100 days of crisisPresident Joe Biden's incoming administration has planned an early blitz of executive and legislative actions meant to build momentum in his first days in office, conscious of both the scale of the crises facing the natio...
- Social media users celebrate Kamala Harris's relatability after brief stumble heading to inaugurationVice President Kamala Harris (D) briefly stumbled on her way down the Capitol steps before being sworn in on Wednesday.
Daily Beast
- President Joe Biden’s Plea for America: ‘End This Uncivil War’Rob Carr/GettySpeaking from the West Front of the Capitol after a violent insurrection claimed five lives there on Jan. 6, President Joe Biden sought to comfort a distressed country still suffering from the strife of simultaneous national calamities.Biden’s earliest words as president offered Americans direct reassurance that the most fundamental component of the nation’s government […]
- Mitch McConnell Is Already Trying to Train Wreck the Biden AdminPhoto Illustration by The Daily Beast / GettyIt is said that before Barack Obama’s inauguration in 2009, a group of Republicans got together and vowed to oppose everything that he would do, or rather, try to do. Did the Trump loyalists on the hill and Mitch McConnell’s Republicans huddle together last night and make a […]
- Trump Pardons Fox News Host’s Ex-Husband With Minutes Left in OfficeEDUARDO MUNOZ ALVAREZPresident Trump had one last pardon up his sleeve in the last hour of his presidency—for the ex-husband of one of his favorite Fox News hosts.On Wednesday, Trump pardoned Albert Pirro Jr., ex-husband of Judge Jeanine Pirro, The Daily Beast confirmed.Albert Pirro, a real-estate development lawyer and a top Republican fundraiser in New […]
- Fox News, OANN, and Newsmax Pretend Trump’s Not Leaving in DisgracePhoto Illustration by Elizabeth Brockway/The Daily Beast/GettyDepending on which cable channel you were watching on Wednesday morning, it was a tale of two exits.On Fox News, Newsmax, and One America News Network, Donald Trump’s departure from the presidency—complete with “Hail to the Chief” and a 21-gun salute—was “graceful,” “elegant,” “poignant,” and properly celebratory of “vast […]
- Chuck Todd Calls Trump Farewell Speech ‘Almost Sort of Normal’Countless times over the last four years, cable-news pundits have strained to give Donald Trump credit for acting somewhat like a “normal” president, from CNN’s Van Jones saying he “became president” the night he made his first speech to Congress to Dana Bash saying just two weeks ago that his pre-taped video following the U.S. […]
- Why The Donald Pardoned Lil Wayne and Other Hip-Hop NotablesTim Mosenfelder/GettyLong before Donald Trump got into politics and struck a hard bargain with U.S. voters to enable their racism, sexism, and xenophobia in exchange for a brand boost to save his bumbling empire, he’s been cutting deals and playing shell games with Black entertainers to profit off of their celebrity and, after his hustle […]
- Billionaires Seek to Reintroduce Large Predators to Scottish Highlands After 500 Year IntervalJEAN-CHRISTOPHE VERHAEGEN / Getty ImagesTwo billionaire Scandinavians who own vast swathes of land in remote regions of Scotland are hoping to reintroduce wild lynx on their land.Anders Holch Povlsen, 48, a Danish billionaire worth $6 billion who is thought to be the U.K.’s largest landowner, with an empire of some 220,000 acres, and Lisbet Rausing, […]
- Trump’s Parting Words to U.S.: ‘Have a Nice Life. See You Soon’MANDEL NGAN/GettyDonald Trump is finally gone. For the time being, at least.After a half-decade of dominating the news cycles and American and global politics, President Trump is leaving Washington, DC, as the one-term loser he long feared he’d become. He leaves behind him a trail of still-rising mass death, scandal, and colossal failure, as well […]
- Trump Waves Goodbye to the White House After One Last WhineALEX EDELMAN/AFP via Getty ImagesDonald Trump has left the White House for the last time as president, ending the most chaotic and divisive presidency in American history.The one-term president flew away from Washington, D.C., having petulantly refused to attend the inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden. Early Wednesday morning, Biden announced a list of 17 executive […]
- Shameless Trump’s Last Act Is Pardoning Crooks and CreepsREUTERSPardons have become Donald Trump’s favorite sport, after golf. Oh the fun of ‘You get a pardon, you get a pardon’ with nobody to stop you, the kind of absolute power Trump wished he had in all aspects of the job over these last four years ending today.The list of those getting final-day grants is […]