Judiciary Committee To Vote On Kavanaugh Friday, With Eyes On Undecided Jeff Flake

Sen. Jeff Flake, R-Ariz., listens as Christine Blasey Ford testifies before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday. As the committee takes up the nomination of Brett Kavanaugh for the Supreme Court on Friday, Flake is the only undecided vote.

By Scott Detrow

September 28, 2018

Thursday's Supreme Court confirmation hearing was not a trial, as senators repeatedly pointed out, but Brett Kavanaugh's confirmation is quickly moving towards a verdict with the Senate Judiciary Committee set to vote Friday morning.

There were two distinct juries whose opinions of Kavanaugh and Christine Blasey Ford, the woman who testified that he sexually assaulted her, matter: the millions of Americans who followed the proceedings and will vote in a bit more than a month, and more immediately the small handful of senators who remain undecided about whether or not they'll vote to confirm Kavanaugh.

Thursday's searing and lengthy hearing has not changed Republicans' confirmation timeline. The Senate Judiciary Committee will meet at 9:30 a.m. ET Friday to vote on the nomination, with a plan for the full Senate to start proceedings over the weekend. A procedural test vote is expected Saturday, and Republican leaders' goal is to hold a final Senate vote early next week.

In the coming days, all eyes will be on Republicans Susan Collins, Lisa Murkowski, and Jeff Flake, along with Democrat Joe Manchin. Republicans hold a slim 51-49 majority in the Senate, and with every other vote likely decided, any two no votes would tank Kavanaugh's nomination.

In the hours after the hearing Thursday, one previously undecided Republican came out in support of Kavanaugh. Senator Bob Corker said in a statement that, "while both individuals provided compelling testimony, nothing that has been presented corroborates the allegation. There is no question that Judge Kavanaugh is qualified to serve on the Supreme Court, and in a different political environment, he would be confirmed overwhelmingly."

Of the remaining undecided votes, only Flake sits on the Judiciary Committee. He paid close attention throughout the entirety of Thursday's hearings and expressed being torn over who was telling the truth. While nearly every other Republican on the panel was leaning forward and appearing sympathetic to Kavanaugh as the judge angrily decried Democratic tactics and emotionally defended himself, Flake notably leaned back, at times with his arms crossed, at times scowling.

Like other Republicans, Flake did not speak or ask questions during Ford's testimony, instead ceding his time to outside prosecutor Rachel Mitchell. Flake only made a brief one-minute statement at the very end of Kavanaugh's testimony.

The statement did not indicate which way Flake was leaning. "I would just urge my colleagues to recognize that, in the end, we are 21 very imperfect senators trying to do our best to provide advice and consent," he said. "And in the end, there is likely going to be as much doubt as certainty going out of this room today."

Flake will put his cards on the table during this morning's committee vote, and it will then be much more clear whether this toxic, partisan, and emotional confirmation process will end with Kavanaugh on the Supreme Court, or with voters possibly going to the polls with an open Supreme Court seat on the line for a second election in a row.