the allocation of would report. the allocation of miss ramirez. and then, stormy daniels‘s lawyer comes up ramirez. and then, stormy daniels's lawyer comes up with this incredible story accusing you of the most sordid salacious... story accusing you of the most sordid salacious. .. supreme story accusing you of the most sordid salacious... supreme court nominee brett kavanaugh has been testifying about charges made earlier today by christine blase ford that he sexualized democrats actually assaulted her in high school. he had vehement —— vehemently denied the accusation and we will come back to the hearing and prosper as progress. the burden under our system when you accuse someone under our system when you accuse someone of a criminal conduct, it is on the person making the accusation. i understand this is not a trial. but i just want to make sure we are understood. it is hard to reconstruct what happened 36 years ago, andi reconstruct what happened 36 years ago, and i appreciate what you said about dr ford, that perhaps she has had an incident at some point in her life, and you are sympathetic to

that. but your reputation is on the line, andi that. but your reputation is on the line, and i hope people understand the gravity of the charges made against you, and what a fair process looks like. thank you, mr chairman. we're talking here about decency and you understand we have this constitutional duty to advise and consent. and for me, windows evidence —— when this evidence came forward , evidence —— when this evidence came forward, i decided i need to look at this and find out about it i needed to ask you questions about it as well as others that were involved. again, i'm not going to take quite the same approach as my colleagues here and talk about don mcgann or any of this. why don't we just asked the president? dr ford cannot do this. we truly have not been able to do this butjust this. we truly have not been able to do this but just asked the this. we truly have not been able to do this butjust asked the president to reopen the bia investigation. do this butjust asked the president to reopen the bia investigationlj think to reopen the bia investigation.”

think the committee is doing... your duty the investigation. i'm here to answer your questions. i should say something, which is i appreciate our meeting together and i appreciate how you handled the prior hearing andl how you handled the prior hearing and i have a lot of respect for you. thank you. all of that aside, here's the thing. you could actuallyjust get this open so we can talk to these witnesses and the fbi can do it instead of us, and you come before us but we have people like markjudge who dr ford says was a witness to this. we have this polygraph expert that my colleagues we re polygraph expert that my colleagues were raising issues about the polygraph. we would like to have that person come before us. and i just think if we could open this up,... just think if we could open this .i just think if we could open this up,... i don't mean to interrupt, but markjudge has provided sworn statement saying this did not happen and that i never did or would do...

but we will like the fbi to be able to follow up and ask him questions. we talked about past nomination processes and you talked about those andl processes and you talked about those and i know the president, george bush,in and i know the president, george bush, in the anita hill — justice toms case can be opened up the mess again this ignition and let questions we asked and i think it was helpful for people. was his decision reasonable?” was helpful for people. was his decision reasonable? i don't know the circumstances of that. what i know, senator... the circumstances are that he opened up the investigation of the fbi could ask some questions. the open of the background check. i'm new to answer questions about my yearbook or about... i'm not going to ask about the yearbook. most people have done some drinking in high school and couege some drinking in high school and college and many people even struggle with alcoholism and binge drinking. my own dad struggled with

alcoholism most of his life and he got in trouble for it and there were consequences. got in trouble for it and there were consequences. he is still in aa at age 90 and he is sober. and in his words, he was "pursued by grace," and he was —— that is how we got to this. in your case, you have said here and other places that you never drank so much that you do not remember what happened. but yet, we have heard, not under oath but we have heard, not under oath but we have heard, not under oath but we have heard your college roommate say that you did drink only — these are in use report—... another colleague that he was not credible that he did not have memory lapses... actually don't think that's the second quote. on the first book, i provided some material that still redacted about the situation with the freshman year remake andl the situation with the freshman year remake and i don't really want to repeat that in a public hearing but

just so you know, there were three people in a room with dave white, jamie roach and me, and he was a contentious situation where jimmy did not like dave white. at all. so... ok. so dave white came home one weekend and jamie had moved all of his furniture out to the courtyard. that's your source on that. the drinking is one thing... there's much more if you look at the redacted portion about what i said. i will. can ijust ask one more question? tricking is one thing, but the concern is about the truthfulness, and in your written testimony, you said sometimes you had too many drinks. was there ever a time when you drink so much that you couldn't remember what happens or part of what happened the night before? no, ira member what happened, andl

before? no, ira member what happened, and i think you probably have had beers, senator, and so... and there's never been a case for you drank so much that you did not remember what happened the night before or part of what happened? you're asking about a blackout. i don't know. have you?” you're asking about a blackout. i don't know. have you? i could you answer the question? -- could you answer the question? -- could you answer the question? that's not happened? i'm curious if you have. i have no drinking problem, judge. nor do i. thank you. since this fbi thing keeps coming up, all the time, let's get back to basics. first of all, anybody, including any senator this brought up this issue, could ask for an fbi investigation. with the fbi does is gather information from the white house, then the file is sent to the committee for us to make our own evaluations. we are

capable of making our own... the fbi has put out a statement over, now, i suppose it's a month ago stating this matter is closed as far as the b sent to them and there is no federal kind to investigate. if senate democrats over the to draw any conclusions on this matter, i'm going to remind you whatjoe biden said. i sent this in my statement but maybe people aren't listening when i say and maybe they won't even hear this. joe biden," the next person refers to an fbi report is being worth anything obviously doesn't understand anything." the fbi explicitly does not in this or any other case reached a conclusion period. they say, he said, she said, they say, period. when people are

waving the fbi report your even bringing up now, something respectively, that was not in this book to understand they do not, they do not, they do not reach conclusions, they do not make recommendations. senator hatch. mr chairman, may i say for the record that actually can we have asked... i actually have. i think others have. i think the issue is that part of what an fbi report does is to investigate and seek either corroborating or exculpatory evidence, not so much the conclusion of trust as the breath of the evidence that is sought out to the investigation and the difference between what somebody might say to an fbi agent when they being examined and, for instance, mr judge's letter signed by his lawyer

sent in. it'sjust judge's letter signed by his lawyer sent in. it's just a judge's letter signed by his lawyer sent in. it'sjust a different thing. i believe still but this is the first background investigation in the history of background investigations that hasn't been reopened with new credible derogatory information was raised about the subject, about the nominee. i did not want to let the point you made it stand without referencing what we had tried to do. pardon me but i would just add to the point you made. the letter was sent to the fbi. the fbi sent it to the white house with a letter saying... we're taking a break now. 15 minute break. that extremely dramatic and emotion filled hearing is just taking a break. dramatic and emotion filled hearing isjust taking a break. and dramatic and emotion filled hearing is just taking a break. and what a day it's been here in washington. after that testimony of christine blasey ford, we've heard judge

kavanaugh blasey ford, we've heard judge kava naugh really fighting blasey ford, we've heard judge kavanaugh really fighting back in the last hour the mistake say in his good name has been ruined. we're also see what a partisan process this is as republican and democratic senators really go at each other and just showing the high stakes here. remember, thejudge just showing the high stakes here. remember, the judge has just showing the high stakes here. remember, thejudge has been nominated for what is the pivotal swing vote on the supreme court. the bbc‘s north america editorjon sobel has been watching events unfold all day and his report. judgment day has arrived for thejudge. it's hard to overstate the passions, the conspiracy theories, the mistrust and division this supreme court appointment has stirred. but today before the judiciary committee, christine blasey ford, who's faced death threats since coming forward, will face her alleged attacker, brett kava naugh, potential supreme courtjustice. the chairman of the committee started with

an apology to them both. both dr ford and judge kavanaugh have been through a terrible couple of weeks. they and their families have received vile threats. but with that 90s ability, the gloves ca m e but with that 90s ability, the gloves came off in what was a partisan dogfight. this is not a trial for dr ford. it's an job interview forjudge kavanaugh. then there was the turn of christine blasey ford to set out her case, nervously at first... i am here today, not because i want to be. i am terrified. i am here because i believe it is my civic duty to tell you what happened to me while brett kavanaugh and i were in high school. and then the distressing detail of what she said happened that night... i was pushed onto the bed and brett got on top of me. he began moving his hands over my body and grinding into me. i yelled, hoping that someone downstairs might hear me, and i tried to get away from him but his weight was heavy.

brett groped me and tried to take away my clothes. he had a hard time because he was very inebriated. and because i was wearing one—piece bathing suit underneath my clothing. i believed he was going to rape me. i tried to yelled for help. when i did, brett put his hand over my mouth to stop me from yelling. this is what impacted me the most and had the most impact on my way. she then spoke of the toll this is taken since going public. my family have been the target of constant harassment and death threats and i have been called the most vile and hateful names imaginable. then it was time for questions. what is the strongest memory you have? the laughter. the uproarious laughter between the two, and they're having fun at my expense. brett kavanaugh has said he is a victim of mistaken identity. so is he?

dr ford, with what degree of certainty do you believe brett kavanaugh assaulted you? 100%. every republican on the committee is a white man, so they brought in a female prosecutor to ask the questions. why did you decide to take a polygraph? i didn't see any reason not to do it. were you are advised to do that? i was happy to undergo the polygraph test, although i found it extremely stressful. it was then the turn of brett kavanaugh, who arrived at the hearing with his wife alongside him. in his opening statement he came out swinging, his voice straining, sounding alternately indignant... my family and my name have been totally and permanently destroyed. you may defeat me in the final vote, but you'll never get me to quit. never.

i'm here today to tell the truth. i've never sexually assaulted anyone. not in high school, not in college, not ever. and then he sounded angry... and then, as no doubt was expected, if not planned, came a long series of false, last—minute smears, designed to scare me and drive me out of the process, before any hearing occurred. crazy stuff, gangs, illegitimate children, fights on boats on rhode island, all nonsense, reported breathlessly and often uncritically by the media. and finally emotional... the other night... the other night, ashley and my daughter liza said their prayers. and little liza, all of ten years old, said to ashley,

"we should pray for the woman." that's a lot of wisdom from a ten—year—old. his fury was plain as he answered questions about some of the other women who have made allegations against him. we hear from the witnesses, but the fbi isn't interviewing them and isn't giving us any facts, so all we have... you're interviewing me, you're interviewing me. you're doing it, senator. i'm sorry to interrupt, but you're doing it. there are no conclusions reached. and what you are saying, if i understand it, is that the allegations by dr ford, ms ramirez, and ms swetnick are wrong. that is emphatically what i am saying. emphatically. the swetnik thing is a joke.

that is a farce. donald trump flew back into washington today, every tv tuned in to the hearing. he is watching, as is the rest of america, and the effect has been mesmerising. then the near impossible question senators need to answer. who do you believe? jon sopel, bbc news, washington. joining me now is our north america correspondent. it's been a riveting and incredibly emotional day of testimony. are we at any further forward in terms of we have essentially, he said, she said here? that's certainly the case. this morning, the focus of the testimony was christine blasey ford, and now is continuing shortly, we're also hearing from brett kavanaugh. the democrats have consistently been saying to this hearing and before that this is not a conference of luck at the accusations made against brett kavanaugh, luck at the accusations made against

brett kava naugh, accusations luck at the accusations made against brett kavanaugh, accusations he of course vehemently denies. there is more than one woman who came forward. he also said the first and most independent way of doing this is by making the fbi look into these accusations. i think no one at the moment is satisfied on that front, but at what we are here from the white house this evening is that they are pretty pleased with the performance that brett kavanaugh has given this afternoon. and it's been such a study, hasn't it done in contrasting tones? christine blasey ford and then the rather defined demeanour ofjudge kavanaugh. even watching the hearing all day, what struck you about the differences in the way he testified?” struck you about the differences in the way he testified? i think of firstly, one of the things that was surprising in terms of the reaction this morning when we looked at christine blasey ford is how people across the political spectrum thought she was credible, she spoke with passion, detailed what she could remember but she was very honest about what she could remember. and often with survivors

of sexual violence, or sexual assault, they can only be together certain things. one thing i think we played and played again on the nightly news here in the us is the laughter she heard in the two men accused of this incident. also his friend, markjudge, who she said was there. other than the other thing was the contrasting tone. we then saw this afternoon, bread, not, was very angry, and he got very personal. he mentioned his children, his family. —— we saw this afternoon, brett kava naugh, his family. —— we saw this afternoon, brett kavanaugh, was very angry. because christine blasey ford went first, brett kavanaugh had to react you that i think his way of doing that with her anger and passion. i know you've been monitoring political reaction also gender reaction. what have you there? i've been taking some of the truck supporters i met... a couple of the older white voters in states like michigan and virginia don't

believe a word of what christine blasey ford said. they believe this isa blasey ford said. they believe this is a political thing that the democrats have somehow put her up to. on the other hand, i've spoke to a couple of women down in florida, one is a survivor of sexual assault who we do believe this woman. makes them very difficult. thanks so much for joining them very difficult. thanks so much forjoining us. the hearing on capitol hill is commanding attention right across the united states. the ideological bounds of the supreme court at stake, obviously this is a fight both sides are willing to wage. our correspondent has been watching the hearings with people in bloomsburg, pennsylvania. across the nation generations of americans stopped what they were doing and watched as christine blasey ford and brett kavanaugh testified on capitol hill. this is a pivotal moment because the nature of the supreme court will shake america, from cities to small towns like bloomsburg, pennsylvania.

brett's assault on a drastically altered my life... at this gathering, friends were emotional watching the hearing. they sympathised with dr ford and felt she was unfairly on trial. she was very candid and straightforward. my heartjust went out to her. you know, it's heartbreaking to listen to her account. she is tremendously brave, tremendously brave to be able to make this statement and take this risk for herself. while they dread the consequences of a conservative majority on the court, the issue for them is even bigger than that. they feel it could set back progress made by the #metoo movement. i don't have a problem with innocent until proven guilty, but my problem is the same consideration is not given to the victims of domestic violence or sexual assault. there is a sort of immediate sense of, "the reason they are coming forward is because they are political pawns," and she herself, dr ford, said, "i'm nota pawn."

the state fair, politics mixed with rides and games. there are just six short weeks before november's midterm elections and the road to congress runs through these swing states. brett kavanaugh‘s nomination has become a rallying cry, not just for democrats but republicans, too. the supreme court was a key reason voters here elected president trump and so far, they're standing by his pick. i am very happy withjudge kavanaugh and i hope he gets confirmed. so in this country as far as i am concerned, you are still innocent until proven guilty, and they have not proven anything. she said to lawmakers what motivated her to come forward was truth... no, it was democrat politics, that's what has motivated her. this country has been deeply divided ever since the 2016 election. the supreme court is supposed to be above the political fray, but this hearing has shown the nation is more divided than ever.

nada tawfik, bbc news, pennsylvania. our north america editor... a really riveting day. where is the domination right now?” riveting day. where is the domination right now? i chose the two parts of today. —— that shows the. the knife fight. he got in intense human drama. asa as a committee room ever seen such raw room ever seen such raw emotion in the course of one day from two people giving very different accounts? my assessment of this is, in the assessment changes... i think, actually can if republican

for whatever reason to get back on board with brett kavanaugh, they've been provided with it. it was fierce at times. it was partisan. it was emotional. it was angry. but he looked to all the world like he was fighting for his reputation. and for conservatives who want to seek a supreme court that has a conservative direction, this fight is critical because they voted for donald trump. an awful lot of people voted for donald trump back in 2016 because they thought he would deliver the conservative majority under the supreme court. as of this moment and as you say things are changing by the second, the senate judiciary committee is expecting to vote tomorrow on whether this nomination moves forward. do you see that happening or whether have to be more evidence? at the evidence is... that is an old—fashioned idea. this isa that is an old—fashioned idea. this is a political fight between you diminish the most... and the republicans have got the votes in the belief they have, and if they've

won over the doubters who may be in between, then i think it will try and push this through a vote. because they believe that... this just a partisan the this. you had a discussion at the hearing a little while ago. republicans think it is all a ruse, a play by the democrats to drag the process out after the midterms. that hearing is about to resume. senators are filing back into that room. they're taking their seats but in the meantime, just remind us that this is going to come down to when it comes to devote. you've got three or four republican senators who for various reasons mightjust be senators who for various reasons might just be on senators who for various reasons mightjust be on the margins. you've got lisa murkowski, you have got susan collins from maine, who are known to be kind of rather unhappy and have said that christine blasey ford should be heard and we needed to assess what she, and even people

likejeff to assess what she, and even people like jeff flake and to assess what she, and even people likejeff flake and bob corker, who are not standing for election. you cannot muscle them and what you may be able to do others. that's on the republican side. then you've got democrats who are in states they call red states were traditionally, for example, you mentioned in west virginia. this people think, i have to vote with the republicans because i don't want to be seen to lose the republican base that needs to vote for me if i'm going to face what i'm facing reelection a few weeks' time. there the doctors and then there are the people who are scared of what the people who are scared of what the process is unfolding —— there are the doubters. this vote is coming fast. we know the president was watching. what are we hearing from the white house?” was watching. what are we hearing from the white house? i think we're hearing from the white house... remember yesterday, donald trump gave himself from wiggle room. i

think everything the white house has heard so far is what they wanted to hear. aggressive, punchy, pugnacious, cross, emotional from brett kavanaugh. pugnacious, cross, emotional from brett kava naugh. defending pugnacious, cross, emotional from brett kavanaugh. defending himself, defending his honour, defending his position on the supreme court if he gets nominated and if he gets elected. i think the white house is happy with what they've seen so far andi happy with what they've seen so far and i think that maybe at lunchtime, they thought this was not going well andi they thought this was not going well and i think if they are having an afternoon cup of tea, or a diet coke more likely in donald trump's case, they will be feeling more comfortable... the senators are about to resume that high—stakes hearing. do you thinkjudge kavanaugh took a risk being so aggressive with democratic senators and my pic and thing of being revenge for the clintons having lost him as he put it? it was that or bus, wasn't it? he had to gamble. there was no point in playing it soft because i would have done it.

—— because that would not have done it. the danger within the that he would not get those votes and although i think the chairman, chuck grassley, has been try to do his best to help, although i would suggest some of his interventions have been rather odd, and it's hard to... i'm trying to think of when the last committee hearing that we've had that has been... it's been like watching a movie all day. and at times, i found like watching a movie all day. and at times, ifound it like watching a movie all day. and at times, i found it very uncomfortable. i feel like you at times, i found it very uncomfortable. ifeel like you need to have go and have a shower again. you've had this heartbreaking testimony from both christine blasey ford and brett kavanaugh. and also the raw emotion that has been on display, both of them talking about how their lives have been carried upside down. it's been brutal in the age of social media. you wonder why anyone would want to go into public life? why would anyone want to put

their head above the parapet it that is what you get? i was reflecting, 1986, antonin scalia, a conservative, not to the taste of many democrats at all, it goes through unanimously. we were saying, this hearing is about to resume. it's truly high—sta kes this hearing is about to resume. it's truly high—stakes hearing. he was pretty aggressive and very much on the offensive in the first hour oi’ s0 on the offensive in the first hour or so of this afternoon testimony. he's had a bit of a break and the questioning will be about to resume. you can see there, imagine what it has been like for him. he says it has been like for him. he says it has been like for him. he says it has been brutal for has been like for him. he says it has been brutalfor his family, that is permanently tarnished... beyond help. beyond help, exactly. notjust dramatic but riveting, emotional, andi dramatic but riveting, emotional, and i guess the question at the end of the day is where do we end up

with it when it comes to that vote? we will find out. diane feinstein taking her seat... can i say one thing? ijust taking her seat... can i say one thing? i just want taking her seat... can i say one thing? ijust want to say, i was saying to senator club which are... idid not... saying to senator club which are... i did not... i'm sorry i did this. i'm sorry about that. i appreciate that. when you have apparent alcoholic, pretty careful about drinking and the second thing is i was trulyjust trying to get to the bottom of the facts and the evidence and again, believe we do that by opening up the fbi investigation and i would call it a background check instead of investigation. thank you. thank you. we're happy to have you here. my friends from... record from

arizona emphasise yesterday we have before us today to human beings, dr ford and judge kavanaugh. .. you're watching bbc world news america. supreme court nominee brett kavanaugh supreme court nominee brett kava naugh has supreme court nominee brett kavanaugh has been testifying about charges made earlier today by christine blasey ford that he sexually assaulted her in high school. he's been vehemently denied the accusation and we can rejoin the hearing now in progress. judge kavanaugh has been a great federaljudge in the second highest court in the nation. he has earned a reputation for decency. his clerks love him. his students, he teaches in law school, his students love him. his colleagues love him. this man is not a monster, nor is he what has been represented here in these hearings. we are talking today about judge kavanaugh‘s conduct in high