captioning sponsored by newshour productions, llc >> woodruff: good evening, i'm judy woodruff. on the newshour tonight, the nation tunes in and now thena must decide: christine blasey ford testifies she is 100% sure brett kavanaugh sexually assaulted her and the supreme court nominee vehemently denies her claims. >> i am here bause i believe it is my civic duty to tell you what happened to me while brett kavanaugh and i were in school. >> i have never done this to her or to anyone. not who i am. not who i was. >> woodruff: we devote all of tonight's pbs newshour to this remarkable day of testimony.

>> major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: >> and by the alfred p. sloan foundation. supporting science, technology, and improved economic performance and financial literacy in the 21st century. >> carnegie corporation of new york. supporting innovatio education, democratic engagement, and the advancement of international peace and security. at carnegie.org. ortand with the ongoing su of these institutions: and individuals.

>> thiprogram was made ssible by the corporation for public broadcasting. and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. >> woodruff: this has been an extraordinary day before the u.s. senate judiciary committee. high drama and strong emotions played out in a day-long hearing on the sexual assault allegations against supreme court nominee brett kavanaugh. amna nawaz begs our coverage. >> we believe christine ford. we believe anita hill. >> nawaz: on capitol hill today, demonstrators were firsto have their say: supporters of christine blasey rd, the university professor who alleges brett kavanaugh sexually assaulted her in high school, and those backing kavanaugh, who adamantly denies

the allegations. >> we are the silent majorit and we are silent no more! >> nawaz: then, inside this senate hearing room, ford's much-awaited testimony began. >> 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. >> nawaz: ford recounted a summer day in 1982 when she says kavanaugh, along with his friend mark judge, assaulted her at a party in suburban maryland. >> brett groped me and tried to take off my clothes. he had a hard time because he was so drunk, and because i was wearing a one-piece bathing suis under my clo i believed he was going to rape me. i tried to yell for help. when i d over my mouth to stop me from screaming.

this was what terrified me the most, and has had the most lasting imct on my life. it was hard for me to breathe,ou and i t that brett was accidentally going to kill me. >> nawazthe committee's publican staff says it has interviewed two unidentified men who claim theyad the encounter with ford, not kavanaugh and judge. but under questioning by democrats, ford said she is "100%" certain of her account. california senator and jude iary committeranking member, dianne feinstein: >> so what you are telling us is this could not be a case of mistaken identity. >> absolutely not. >> nawaz: democrat patrick leahy asked ford about her strongest memory of the incident, 36 years later. >> indelible in the hippocampus is the laughter-- the uproarious laughter between the two and their having fun at my expense.

>> nawaz: democrats also, repeatedly voiced moral support for ford. >> you've given america an amazing teaching moment. >> you are not on trial. >> nawaz: republicans on the committee, all of them men, yielded their time to rachel mitchell, a sex crimes osecutor from phoenix, w meticulously walked ford through details of the incident. >> do you recall prior to getting there-- so, i'm only talking about up to the gathering-- had you had anything to drink? >> not at all. >> were you on any sort of medication? >> none. >> mitchell probably ford's decision to go forward with allegation including takina polygraph. >> why did you decide to take a polygraph? >> i didn't see any reason not to do it. >> for the first part of the day, republaians remd largely silent in the hearing room, but during breaks, weighed

in. >> i feel ambushed as the majority. we're going to hear from mr. kavanaugh, judge kavanaugh, and i have been a judge, prosecutor and defense attanorny here's what i'll tell you, when it comes to where it happened, i still don't know, ih don't knowen it happened, she said she's 10 certain it did happen. i bet you judge kavanaugh will say i'm 100% sure i diddon' it. >> democrats asked again today that the f.b >> nawaz: democrats askeatagain today he f.b.i. investigate ford's claims, something president trump has declined to order. and, committee republicans haveo said it'necessary. >> thank you for your bravery for coming here. >> after four hours of testimony the committee dismissed dr. ford and turned to judge kavanaugh. >> will you affirm the testimony you're about to give before the committee will be the truth,ol whtruth and nothing but the truth to help you god is this. >> i do. defiant as he mads

defense, blasting democrats for what he called a "calculated and orchestrated political hit." >> i was not at the party described by dr. ford. this confirmationrocess has become a national disgrace. when i did at least okay enoughn at the he that i looked like i might actually getew confirmed, aactic was needed. some of you were lying in wait and had it ready and, as we all know, in thest unitetes' political system of the early 2000s, what goes aroundomes around. kavanaugh emphaticall continued to deny allegations made by dr. ford. >> i am innocent of this charge. i catorically and unequivocally deny the yllegation against my b dr. ford. >> and he struggled to maintain his composure throughout, emotional as he spoke about his family. >> 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 them woan. it's a lot of wisdom from a ten-year-old. we mean no ill will. >> under questioning by mitchell kavanaugh was similarly put through the paces on the details of his high school years, specifically at one point his alcohol consumption.ed >> when you tao fox news the other night you said there were times in high school when people miffed too many beers on occasion. does that inclu you? >> sure. as the ranking democrat senator feinstein questioned him about two other women who accused him of sexual misconduct and assault this week, kavanaugi frequentterrupted with frustration. >> i'm sorry to interrupt but you're doing it. >> he bece increasingly agitated as democratic senator leahy asked about mark judge, who wrote about a fictitious

bart' kavanaugh. democrats ve not interviewed judge. >> i'm trying toet a straight answer, are you the bart' kavanaugh he's referring to? >> you would have to ask him. i agree with you there. that's why i wish the chirman happened him here under oath. >> when it came to the question of whether or not kapanaugh would port an f.b.i. investigation into these matters -- >> senator, i'll do whatever the committee wants. >> -- he dferred to the committee. >> your coordinated and well fued effort to destroy my good name and destroy my family will not drive me ou. >> for the "pbs newshour," i'm amna nawaz. >>byoodruff: we're joined no our congressional correspondent lisa desjardins and white house correspondent yamiche alcindor. lisa, you were in the room as this hearing unfolded. tell us what you were seeing, what stood out to you and, in particular, what you were hearing from senators. >> it is very hard to start with this unprecedented

hearing for this particular committee andre any s court nominee where there was an ac ser and a literosecutor in the room. i have to say, judy, the entire day was charged with so emotion that my heart rate and i didn't think anyone's heart rate in that room was very high l wel as for viewers as well. i want to tell people there were tears both for dr. blasey ford when she testified and also audge kav. but their testimony and tone waf so very rent. blasey ford was confident but quiet. you can telel she's inxperienced on capitol hill, for example. senators seemed to tker in more gentle striets as did the prosecutor, versus judge kavanaugh who came in like ar thunoudy, a man who at times were aangry andd and emotions were thunderous, and democratic senators felt that gave them the room to push back with equal strength. one other note, dr. blasey ford's team tells me she did not

watch judge kavanaugh's testimony. >> woodruff: so, yamiche, probably at no place wyre the watching this more closely than the white house. what were they saying about all this? >>hite house said the president watched this hearing very, very closely. so far, as of this hour, president trump is sticking by brett kavanaugh. he has not said anything updating us about whether or not he wants to withdraw is nomination. however, i will say that brett kavanaugh spoke a lot like donald trump i his testimony, and i say that bruise brett kavanaugh said this is about-u perevenge from the clintons, invoking the name of hillary clinton, which trump used over and over again even after he won th campaign, and said thipewasntup anger about president trump's win in the 2016 election. he said these are people who are angry trying tcome as me. we have heard from donald trump, jr. who tweed this was rid calling dr. ford's fear of

flying, saying she was scared tl for vacations but could fly in for this testimony. republicans i've talked t though, say they think the president will stick with brett kavanaugh and republicans, if they can get just a couple of votes of people that are kind of shaky now notably senator jeff flake, that they can push this through. >> woodruff: speaking of that, lisa, what about the reaction of senators not on the judiciary committe what are you hearing? >> that's absolutely the key. it seemed like judge kavanaugh, at times, was broadcasting a message for and to the white hous a tone that the white house liked. it is very much a big question now how senators lisa murkowski and susan collins of maine take that tone. i have been in touch with their offices, nothing from them yet. those two senators alone perhaps jeff flake, could cause a delay in this voting right w. a reminder this very committee hasn't finished this hearing yet is setono vot judge kavanaugh's nomination at 9:30 tomorrow morning.

it's hard to know ho process all of this, but i think if coming hours, we should hope to ar from senators collins and murkowski on whether they think ould happen. of course, they matter because, in the end, when it gets to the senate, those two women can determine if brett kavanaugh can pass or not. so while he was strong and booming in committee, the question one republican source told me, they're not sure yet if it's going to comacross as strong, cofident and sure or aggressive and a man who might have been capable more than people realize. it's unclear yet, republicans aren't sure themselveoo >>uff: quickly, lisa, to clarify, at this hour, it's not absolutely clear they're going to take a voe tomorrow, the committee? >> at this hour, the vote is scheduled for 9:30 a.m. tomorrow. but senator grassley, the mittrmannen of the com said yesterday that he might revisit that after today's hearing. he has not said that today, but yesterday he indicated that this aring would determine th next

steps. >> woodruff: yamiche, just finally, in the background of all this, of course, midterm elections looming, less than six weeks away. you're talking to republicans and others, what are they saying? >> been talking to republicans all day. ap former reublican of the republican national committee told me republicans are ready to die on this political hill. he said while this might bad for them and hurt them in the mid transportation, republicans said they reallyno want thiination to get pushed through. karl rove was a senior advisor to george w. bush also said he thought republicans and the president wanted to get this through but also said this is going to be a cause to celebrat mocrats. there were democratic women all over the country really wave and supporting dr. ford. i'll read quia ckly from man i talked to today, she's a colleague of dr. ford. her namis debra shaffer and she told me it's not her duty as a victim to educate us, but she's educating us about the impact of being a victim of a sexual assau what it means

to be disregarded when two people are having fun and you're suffering. so really women, so many women watch this and said, that could be me, that could be my daughter, and we ned to rally around this woman. >> woodruff: reactions, of course, playing out across the country, not just on a purely political but human level to what we saw today. yamiche alcindor, lisa desjardins, we thank you both. f woodruff: we will listen to more pivotal momenm the hearing throughout the program: in her opening testimony, ford described the alleged attack, and why she didn't tell her story publicly until years later. let's listen to what she told wmakers. >> brett's assault on me drastically altered my life. for a very long time, i was too afraid and ashamed to te anyone these details. i dinot want to tell my parents that i, at age 15, was in a house without any parents present, drinking beer with boys.

i convinced myself that because brett did t rape me, i should be able to move on and just pretend that it didn't happen. over the years, i told very few friends that i had this traumatic experience.hu i told mand before we were married that i had experienced a sexu assault. i had never told the details to anyone, the specific details, until may 2012, during a couplen ling session. my husband recalls that i named my attacker as brett kavanaugh. after that may 2012 therapy session, i did my best to ignoe memories of sault because recounting the details caused me to relive the experience, and caused panic and anxiety. occasionally i would discuss the assault in individual therapy session, but talking about it caused me to rele the trauma,

so i tried not to think about it or discuss it. but until july 2018, i had never named mr. kavanaugh my attacker outside of therapy. this all changed in early july 2018. i saw press reports stating that brett kavanaugh was on the" short list" of potential supreme court nominees. i thought it was my civic duty to relay the information i had about mr. kavanaugh's conduct so that those considering his potential nomination would know about the assault. >> woodruff: we take a closer look at this extraordinary day with three people who have been here all day as part of our coverage of the hearing: elizabeth holtzman, who served four terms in congress, representing new york. she was a democratic member of the house judiciary committee and later served as the district attorney in brooklyn. she's now a private attorney and her book "the case for impeaching trump" will be released next month.

and amy walter of the "cook political report." michael gerson is a columnistto for the "washipost." he also worked as a speechwriter ident george w. bush at the same time brett kavanaugh served in the white house. welcome back to all of you. we have been together all day long. now it's te "newshour". ettes rea-- it's real. amy, just getting back to how christine blasey ford introduced herself, it seems to me she was, in many ways -- what was coming across was a genuine, sincere effort to elain why she did this and that it wasn't politically motivated, which is what the republicans are saying. >> this is somebody nobody had seen before, had never heard he spfore, we had only seen what had been reported in news reports, and this is someone who came across as very genuine, as very real. as lisa pointed out, she's not very familiar with the ways of

washington. she was unfamiliar with some of the queu stions. but alked away thinking as much this is -- this is somebody who was not interested in trying to make a broader case again the system. she was there because of what had happened to her and, as we note ohere, shepened by saying, when i saw his name on th"short list," that's when i came forward. but it was pretty clear as well as she was getting queioned t again by the republican senators but by the person they had selected to do th questioning that the case they e was whethero mak or not she was genuine in her recollection and whether or not she had ulterior motives, andit r of those things came through. >> woodruff: and michaelw gerson, id she do at trying to come across as genuine and real? >> well, i think the advantage was she didn't try to come across. shdwas actually genuine a real. you know, was she plausible?s,

think she was absolutely plausible. was she moving? yes, receives very moving. at the end of that testimony, you had th emotional feel -- o i did -- that this may be ove because of the way that she had done. she simply did not look like she was trying to be a part of some larger political cause, whatever it was, even the #metoo movement, it was about her and her story and it seemed quite authentic. so i think it was an excellent performance precisely because it was not a performance. >> woodruff: and it came, elizabeth holtzman, inthe middle of this very political hvironment we were in. it was as ifere's a real human moment in the middle of something that's become very political. >> right, and i agree with my two colleagues here. she was very authentic, she was disarming becse she ha no

motive. she was humble, she wasn't arrogant, and she tried to make her specific duty in coming forwd to try to help the committee make the right decision. she wasn't anti-conservative people on the supreme court, she wasn't pro them. she just wanted this erson, the committee, the president to understand what he had done, in her view. i mean, the allegations. so i thought she was very, very strong and convincing. >> woodruff: and, amy, you did co away from that part of the hearing with the sense that she had heerld own. >> well, absolutely, and there were mny people wondering whether it was a good idea for republicans to have given this -- the way that this y thatg was set up, the w it was a woman, asking her these questions only gave her -- it seemed to give her mucmh e credibility, and it took it away, too, from the partisan.

there weren't republicans going after her, making it look if they had an agenda, and, so, it allowed her, then, to look like she was there just telling a story rather than trying to pursue something else,ome ulterior motive. >> woodruff: so speaking of the woman who was doing some of those questions for the let's go to another set of exchanges from the hearing. this is the woman who also took some of the spotlight to rachel mitchell, a sex crimes prosecutor from maricopa county, arizona.pu the icans ceded their time to her for their questions to christine blasey ford while democrats used their time to question blasey ford dirtly. some republicans asked their qutions during brett kavanaugh's testimony. lose listen to the prosecutor and some of their >> i want to talk to you about the day that this happened, leading up to the gathering. >> oy.

>> in your statement this morning, have you told us everything you remember about the day leading up to that? >> yes. >> let me ask you a few questions to make sure you've thought of everything, okay? you indicated that you were ate untry club swimming that day? >> that's my best estimate of how this could have happened. n? may i ask, dr. ford, how did you get to washing >> in an airplane. >> okay. i ask that, because it's beenre o ed by the press that you would not submit interview with the committee because of your fear of flying. is that true? >> well i was willing-- i was hoping they would come to me, but then realized that was an unrealistic request. >> i noticed on your c.v. you that list the followin interests of surf travel, and ia nthesis, you put hawaii, costa rica, south pacific

islands, french polynesia. have you been to all those places? >> correct >> by airplane? >> yes. >> and your interests also include oceanography, hawaiian and tahitian culture. did you travel by air as part of those interests? >> correct. >> okay. thank you very much. >> easier for me to travel, going that directi, when it's a vacation. >> we all know that the prosecutor, even though this clearly is not a criminal proceeding, is asking dr ford all kinds of questions about what happened before and after, but basically not during, the tack. the prosecutor should know that sexual assault survivors oftentimes do not remember information, such as what happened before or after a traumatic event. >> when we left off, we were still talking about the polygraph, and i believe you said it hasn't been paid for yet. is that correct? >> let me put an end to this misery: her lawyers have paid for her polygraph.

>> as is routine. >> as is routine. >> woodruff: so, michael dpersen, there were some attempts by the prosecutor rachel mitchell to try to look for weaknesses in christine blasey ford's explanations whether who's paying for your lawyers, are you afraid of flying. how much of a dent, do you think? >> not much. if the goal was to poke holes in the main story, i don't think it was veivry effe she was consistent in her story, she had explanations for thngs that seemed natural. you know, the tone of the questioning was not rude or -- and i think -- but it also did not seem particularly effective. you know, the points like the sflying point seemed jut as irrelevant to this as school year books, in my view, so i think, you know, she spent some time on some blind alleys. but for the most part, i think her story held to

>> woodruff: what about you, elizabeth holtzman, did it hold up completely in your mind? >> yes, and, actually, i think she strengthened the case about itbeing not politically t tivated because she very much clarified the fat she only came forward on this and she came forward in a secret way -- she didn't want publicity about it -- when there were other people being considered. in other words, there wash a t list. she didn't come forward when he was the nominee -- only when he was a nominee, she came forward before that, hoping there would be other -- she said there were other qualified people on the short list and sheug th people should know, the president and senate should kno so th wouldn't be included on the short list. that didn't mean she had an anti-republican orat anti-consee agenda. so i thought that became very clear. k the idea, i mean i think this is where brett kavanaugh went way overboard, i mean, talk about a well-funded

effort against him, she's going online with a go fund me kind op gn, she doesn't quite understand what that is, and she's not paying for her lawyers and she's not raising money locally to pay for the scurity. so this is not a well-funded campaign from anooody else. >>uff: so, amy, as you look at the republicans' decisions not to ask the questions turn it over to the female prosecutor, they called her a female woman assistant, did that turn out to be a smart move? well, i think it was undermined when we got to the next section, which is when brett kavanaugh then took the stand -- or said in the hearing -- it's not a trial, not taking the stand -- it felt in many ways like one -- and she started -- ms. mitchell started asking him questions in thin sae nd way that she asked of

dr. ford, but then senatorgr lindseam took the microphone and made a very partisan case against theth democrats on committee, turned it completely away from dr. ford, completely away from the events that happened that night and on to the way in which this story got in to the press, how it dropped at the last minute, and then, from then on, every single other questioner was a republican, who then went from what was a very -- we just talked about this wasn't really very partisan, this was a very deliberative process in the morning to an absolute focus on partisanship in the second half, and it was all directed at democrats on the commiy ee and the which they held on to this letter and the way in which they, as they said, constantly dropped it, sprung it, ambushed them. >> woodruff: it's almost as if we were lifted away from the partisanship for a brief period and plunged rig back into it with kavanaugh.

let's take a closer look now at some of judge kavanaugh's testimony. he came after christine blay ford. we played shorter clips earlier in the progm here is a loger selection.rt >> s after i was nominated, the democratic senate leader said he would oppose me with everything he's got a democratic senator on this committee publicly referred to me as evil. evil think about that word. and said that teose who suppme were complicit in evil. i understand the pas moment.the but i would say to those senators, ur words have meaning. millions of americans listened carefully to you. given comments le those, is it any surprise that people have been willing to do anything.ys to make any al threat against my family. to send any violent email to my

wife. to make any kind of allegation against me and against my iends. to blow me up d take me down. you sowed the wind f decades to come. i fear the whole country will reap the whirlwind. this whole two week effort has been a calculated political hit fueled by pent-up anger over president trump and the 2016 election. fear that has been unfairly stoked on my judicial record. revenge on behalf of the clintons. millions of dollars from left- wing outside opposition groups. this is a circus. >> woodruff: this was an angry brett kavanaugh, michael gerson. there were emotional points, but i think e just heard were

some of the angry moments, very angry, as we were saying earlier, at the democrats. and puing this in perspective, saying hit job rather than some genuine -- >> yeah, he came across at his not moments as defendi just his nomination but his life, his character, hisy, integris family, and a charge of sexual assault is a very serious charge, and he reacd, i think, in way that was deeply offended and emotnal in those sections, and he seemed utterly convinced of his innocence, you know, at every stage. there were, then, some elements that were a little bit morere the top, particularly on thed partisan side n some of his confrontation with the senators where he see be throwing the dice and saying what a lot of nominees would like to say im a ciance like this and never would. but, so, think those parts

were maybe less effective, except maybe effective with the partisan group of republicans. >> woodruff: yeah. but it did humanize him in a completely different way than her testimony humanizeder. >> i think he y have helped himself vis president trump because his references to clinton and his references to revenge and his references to the partisanship, but i think, for a thoughtful ewer, they have to see that, basically, the position that mr. kavanaugtook was demeaning to the victim because -- the alleged victim because whahe was saying was, basically, it's all orchestrated, funded by left-wingroups. she became a pawn in this process. but if you listen to her, at the beginning, you would see that

she is a human bng whose whole life had been turned upside down by ths, so -- and who came across as very authentic. so i feel that peple looking at this will see very partisan, very demeaning of the victim and somebody whose temperament may not be the right teng for th u.s. supreme court. >> woodruff: so we've got one more, as weave been discussing, during your questioning of judge kavanaugh, democrats also zeroed in on the idea of an f.b.i. investigationm it is hing they have been pushing for ever since theseon allegaemerged. senator dick durbin of illinois posed that question direcy to brett kavanaugh, which caused republican lindsey graham of south caroli push back forcefully. >> if you, judge kavanaugh, turned to don mcgahn and to this mmmittee, and say, for the sake of my reputation afamily name, i'm not going ac be an ob to an f.b.i.

investigation, i would hope that all of the members of the committee would say we are going to abide by your wishes and we will have that investigation. >> i welcome whatever the committee wants to do because i'm telling tht truth. >> i w know what you want to do, judge! >> i'm innocent. i'm innocent of this charg >> judge kavanaugh, will support an f.b.i. investigation right now? >> senator, i will do whatever the committee wants. >> personally, do you think that's the best thing for us to do? you won't answer? >> look senator. i said i was welcome to a hearing. i'd welcome anything. i'm innocent. this thing was held when it could have been presented in the ordinary way. >> if you wanted an f.b.i. investigation, you could have come to us. what you want to do is destroy's this gife, hold this seat open, and hope that you win in 2020. you said that.

not me. you've got nothing to apologize for. when you see sotomayor and kagan, say lindsey said hello. because i voted for them! i would never do to them what you've done to this guy. >> woodruff: amy walter, this is what you were referring to a moment ago, lindsey graham very upset on behalf of brett kavanaugh and pointing accuse toreh fingers at democrats. >> this is now gone, as we said, itc transitioned from a fus on what happened this night i 1982 to where we are in 2018, which is an incredibly polarized, emotionally raw country,nd ultimately, i think what you saw during the kavanaugh piece of today was an appeal fom republicans t other republicans to say we have one person saying they're 100% sure this happened, one rson saying

they're 100% sure it didn't happen, one thing we know, what republicans are saying, one thing we do know is that democrats sat on this, this is political, if you're a good republican, if you support the party, if you support conservative principles, a person who's going to be a conservative justice, then you have to vote for brett kavanaugh because, let's face it, this really all comes down t whether republicans can get 50 votes out of the unitates senate. they have 51 republicans. >> woodruff: chael, at this point, i know you haven't had a chance to talk to all 51 republican senators, but you somebody who's watched thiys cit for a long time, you watch how congress works. what's your -- >> thoseew mmbers like collins or murkowski or senatorn flake wanhe next stage here, are they going to ask for something like, you know, a continued vestigation of the other charges, or are they going

to ask for abf.b.i. investigation or day? that, i think,, is you know, they have disproportionate influence over this process right now, the marginal members that might be influenced. so, you know, i don't know. i don'te know what threaction is going to be. i mean, this was a clarence thomas reaction to the accusations. he went after -- he did not go affivit the victim. he went after the committee,an you know, what are you doing to them in a way talking about the politics, making point about due prspect from this perspective and i think that could rally a lot of rublicans and maybe alienate othoer peple. >> woodruff: clarence thomas called ate high-tech lynching. and today we heard stron f languarom brett kavanaugh. >> the only way you can call this a hignh-tech lching and blame the democrats is demean the victim because her

integrity, her aunticity the meaningless. what they're saying is, implicitly -- i agree with you they didn't say it explicitly -- but implicitly the central thrust of their argument is she's a pawn in a larger political process, and we don't have tto pay atention to her. not saying it explicitly, but that's the thrust ofheir argument. >> woodruff: but, amy, does that work? does it work to say w respect her, we respect her story, but this is all part of a conspiracy, a hit job? >> right, that's what theul ca says and i think if you are senator mitch mcconnell, you are with all of yor republican senators right now, and you're taking their pulse and you're getting a sense fr where -- how vulnerable they sedl to making this vote ba on what they saw today. we know at least two to four of them said i'm not going to make any decision until i see what happens today, so as lisa potited out, there'sll a hearing scheduled at 9:30 in the

emmorning. it s pretty clear from the republicans on that committee they want to take that vote, but mcconnell knows that the committee -- that what the committee believes is not the all, be-all. they've got to find the rest of the votes. >> woodruff: the rest of the senate. well, it has been quite a day. i think this is one we're going to remember for a very long time. amy walter, michael gerson, elizabeth holtzman, thank you very much. >> thank >> woodruff: today senators deciding the next supreme court justice heard from judge kavanaugh and christine blasey ford now we hear from two people whos ally know the accused and his accuser. amna nawaz has that. >> nawaz: let's listen to another exchange from the hearing today. this time it's democeldon whitehouse of rhode island questioning judge kavanaugh about some of the behavior that happened during his hi school year >> you mentioned i think the

renate, or renate, renata, i don't kn how you pronounce that, that's the proper name of an individual you know?" >> renate. >> renate, it's spelled with an e athe end, renate. >> correct. >> okay, then after that is the word a word aluminous mean in that context? >> i explained that in my opening statement, she was a great friend of ours, a bunch of us went to dances with her, she ng out with us as a grou the media circus that has been generated by this thought that r in reported erred to sex. it did not. >> devils triangle? >> drinking game >> how's it played? >> three glasses in a triangle. you ever played quarters? >> no. >> okay. it's a quarters game >> ann doherty's? >>s you can tell from my

calendar, she had a party on the fourth of july at the beach in delaware. >> and there are like, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 f's in front of fourth of july. what is that signify if anything. >> one of our friends, squee,ar ng at a young age had kind of a windup to the f word. kind of a ffff. and then the word would come out. when we were 15, we thought that was funny. >> nawaz: joining me now is samantha guerry who was a classmate at the holton arms school friend's with ford at the time of the alledged assualt, and continues to be today. ms. guerry, thanks for being here. >> thank you. a et has been made over t last few weeks and even today digging into the details of that high school experience, understanding what it was all you were there with then you called her chraissy bsey.

>> right. are these really true, the stories of the party and culture of drinking and so on? what do you think when you hear heis? >> well, are different elements to the stories that are coming out.he obviously, drinking rings very true. the yearbook ferences and sort of the way the guys handled situations like at rang true. you know, this idea that there is sort of a larger culture of gang rape does not ring true at all. i think we would have known that if it was going on ona reular basis. >> you're talking about some of the more recent allegatns by another woman who accused judge kavanaugh -- >> -- playing into this gnar give of aat the culture like. >> right. my personal experience is probably less relevant because what i have heard, since this has , l come outve just had so many women of all ages and classes, but particuaround my years, come out and tell me that they had some more

experiences while they were in high school. so, clearly, this was going on. >> when you say similar, similar sexual assaults -- >> yep, absolutely. so you have known her now for three decades-plus. what was it like for you just to watch her the, re todaring her story, taking those questions in front to have the entire country?t >> yeah,s really intense. we -- i was there with eight or ten of our other close friends, and we just felt her so deeply while she was giving her testimony, that weust felt pain, we felt phically pained having to hear her go through that because we were recognizidi hoicult that was for her. >> so much was made about credibility and charaer. w do you think she represented onts?lf today on these fr >> well, we were just so proud of her. i said before her testimony that you were going to se that she

was intelligent, authentic, fierce and frightened, and she was all of those things, but most of al i think everyone could see that she's a very rgenuine, thoughtful son. >> i don't know if you got to watch the testimony or questioning of judge kavanaugh that followed, but as part of that, he was asked about whether or not he knew christine blasey ford back then, and he said he didn't. he said they traveled in the same social circles but he didn't really know her. does that ring true for you? >> no, that seems really like a play on words. he did know her, just lik knew him. doesn't mean that we were close or friendsinbut we certa knew each other and, you know, to me that seems like an i vasive answer. >> there were a whole host of characters in ow this seate committee has been familiar th, mark judge, p.j. smyth, and a woman, frid dr.

o . ford's leland ingham whom dr. ford testifiede fact she reached out to her, although she says she does not remember this night and ds not remember being there or that it happened at all. understand about this friend and the role she had that night? >> if you listen to theirai testimony what you will hear in crissy's wers is pretty important because what she said is leld had submitted her testimony to the sene, but then she called christie to apologize for it, and, you know, leland -- crissy is very close tod leland, anas crissy said, leland had some health issues that she's struggling with and just kind of left it at that. but i think leland has had to struggle with this a bit herself.

>> you have said from the beginning that she noted we've spoken before and i quoted you saying you don't believe your friend is vested in the outcome of thirocess at all, that she just wanted to be heard and have her story hearand have the facts looked into but, at the end of all this, as we see now, the committee is moving ahead with the vote, that judge kavanaugh be confirmed as preme court justice kaanaugh. how dining that will resonate with the woman that you know? >> i thinkhe will be gratified that she had -- she saw thi thing through and she said her peace. i can't speak to whether she's going to feel she was properly listen. i think there were some being in the room, i definitely felt a mtrong resistance among some members of the cmittee to really taking in her story, but

i think she should be disappointed. i think it will be kind of a blow to this larger idea that character matters and that testimony of the survivor matters and that hr credibility is assailed by people who already had ane agnda and were eager to see that through, regardless of what she had to say. and she certainly sfred a lot, so she's paid a high price. she said that, too. she said, i donally want to step in front of a train that's going to go where it's going. so, as she said, that's a lculated risk for her. >> and a risk she took. samantha guerry, thank you so much for being here with usto y. >> thank you. >> nawaz: we turn now to helgi walker. she worked with brett kavanaugh in the white house counsel's office during the george w. bush administration. ms. walker also clerked for justice clarence thomas and is noin private practice in washington, d.c. thank you for joining us. i see we're having some audio issues. you're hearing me on your phoneh buk you for being with us.

i want to ask you about what you heard from judge kavanaugh and his testimony today, as you watched him, defnt at times, emotional at others, what did you make of his testimony? >> i thought he did a wonderful job today of showing that he is innocent of these charges. i heard some of the earlier folks on your show saying that he was aggressive. you know, i'm a lawyer, i've worked in investigations, and when you confront people whon have notsomething with an allegation that they have committed a crime, they react strongly. this was the behavior of somebodyho is innocent and, yes, people react strongly and i think emotionally. and i cried, my husband cried because we know judge kavanaugh and we know what hes been through, and we also know that he's innocent of thearges. if i could just talk about some of the facts that came outth, , i think, is really important for your viewers and people whore fair minded. judge kavanaugh said he doesn't

discredit mrs. ford's story that she was sexually assaulted somewhere, sometime by somebody, but she is the only person who has come forward with a story. four of the people that she chose to name have not corroborated her stnd, indeed, they have refuted it. her friend leland kaiser said is not true, she has not even met or been in a room with judge kavanaugh. so we have one person's statement on the other side -- >> i'm sorry to interrupt. i want to make sure were're ectful of the time you have with us and the points are made in the testimony we covered in full earlier today. so i want to get your experience and reactiono what you heard today. you did mention you cried watching some of the testimony. judge kavaugh himself was holding back tears at several points. i'm wondering, in the ars you've known him, have you ever seen him that emotional and that

sort of defiant in any way, professional or otherwise? >> i have not. he's a sensitive person. he has a vey gentle soul and, as a friend of his, as a former colleague, he's always bensen ive to my life issues, and stand thatd to und his -- everything he has worked fo an exemplary life, is on the line here because of unsubstantiated allegations that were dropped on him at the last minute, and it's not partisan to say that. it is a fact that none of this was brought forward until days before his vote was scheduled d, yes, i think he has been -- i think he has been rocked to the core by this and he is behaving like an innocent person who is shocked that any of this is, frankly, even happening. u> ms. walker, i want to make clear we reachedto a number of people who knew brett kavanaugh in high school and many of them, particularly in

the last several days, have been increasingly reluctant to come on television. they want to speak on background, give quotes, and one woman exlained why she didn't tant to give an interview said i don't want to ge dragged into a circumstances and feed the media frenzy around the train wreck that is this process. i think a lot of people feel as if tings he gotten a little bit out of control. i'm curious as to why you feel comfortable stwaping for, especially when the partisan politics become so heated, why e you speaking out inport of judge kavanaugh? >> i'm a lawyer, i'm a professial, i get paid to talk, and i have -- i think i'm a little older than mae some of the people that you're talking to, ad i'm, like judge kavanaugh, a pretty loyal friend. he has always been there for men needed him, and i'm going to be there for him now to tell people that i believe he's done nothing of the sort and this

behavior, his testimony, today, i think, is wonderfulen so i have hrough the fire, i've lived in washington for a while, i'm a litigator, i can handle th, but it's not fun for any of us. >> helgi walker, we appreciate your time inoining us today. thank you very much. >> thank you. >> woodruff: in the day's other news, president trump d meeting with deputy attorney general rod rosenstein, until next witk. the house said it's to avoid conflicting with triay's senate h on supreme court nominee brett kavanaugh. resenstein has denied he talked of recording thedent or having him removed from office. mr. trump says he would prefer to keep rosenstein on b, and not fire him. china today dismissed president trump's accusations that it's interfering in the upcoming u.s. midterm elections. at the united nations yesterday, the president suggested china was meddling because of his tough trade policies.

in beijing today, the foreign ministry denied the charge, and warned mr. trump is harming u.s.-chinese relations.ha chinalways maintained a principle of not interfering in the internal affairs of other countries. in fact, the international community is very clear over who interfer the most other countries' internal affairs. we advised the united states to stop this unseeing criticism and slander of china. >> woodruff: as evidor his claim, president trump has cited a political ad placed by china in an american newspaper. but china said such postings do not violate any u.s. laws. t the united nations, palestinian presidhmoud abbas declared the united states cannot be the sole mediator of middle east peace talks. bas made his case in a speech to the u.n. general assembly. he urged morcocountries to ize palestinian statehood. separately, israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu accused iran of hang a secret

nuclear weapons storage site. the death toll from hurricane r florene to 48 today, nearly two weeks after the storm struck north carolina. officials said an elderly man ne wilmington died of an infection. in raleigh today, governor roy coop urged caution, even as major flooding has ceased. >> i still want to urge north carolinians in the hard-hit areas to be carel. almost all of our rivers are forecast to return to thr banks by early next week, but flooded waterways continue to cover roadways and swamp communities in the southeastern part of our state. >> woodruff: some 1,500 people are still in shelters across north carolina. the securities and exchange commission is suing elon musk, the c.e.o. of tesla, for securities fraud. the suit, filed today, charges that musk made false statements about taking the electric car company private.

and, on wall street, the dow jones industrial average gained 86 points to close at 26,743. the nasdaq fell 41 points, and the s&p 500 slipped one point. and finally, presid nt trump reaco judge kavanaugh's testimony tonight on twitter. the president called his testimony "powerful, honest and riveting" and blasted the democrats' strategy as disgraceful and called for the and that's the newshour for tonight. i'm judy woodruff. join us online and again here tomorrow evening when mark shields and ramesh punnuru breakdown the fallout today's kavanaugh hearing. for all of us the pbs newshour, thank you and see you soon. >> major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided b

>> kevin. >> kevin! >> kevin. >> advice for life. life well-planned. learn more at raymondjames.com. >> and with the ongoing support of these institutions >> this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting. and by contributions to your pbs rs like you. vie thank you. captioning sponsored by newshour productions, llc captdined by meaccess group at wgbh access.wgbh.org

hello, everyone, and welcome to "amanpour & co." here's what's coming up. from bill cosby to allegations against a supreme urt nominee,he me too movement faces its biggest test yet.o with me t discuss this watershed moment is gretchen carlson, the former fox news anchor who started the ball rolling on sexual harassment and won. also ahd, my exclusive interview with the saudi foreign minister on trump's oc oil attack, women'n rights i the kingdom, and saudi's war in yemen that has turnednto a humanitarian catastrophe. he> and the president of t international rescue committee david miliband shared hisss eyewit report with our hari