there's no mistaking, this investigation was rigged by the white house and senate republicans. instead of calling on the fbi to take these basic investigatatory steps inexpolicably the republican judiciary committee has slowly tried to discredit these women. the committee released this statement from a former acquaintance of mrs. swetnick. this individual had no knowledge of the alleged incident, but described the alleged sexual interest of mrs. swetnick. according to the national task force to end sexual and domestic violence, one of the most non-partisan and respected voices on capital hill, the shameless attempt to smear a victim, violates the intent of the rape shield law. and to add to it, ms. swetnick was never interviewed by the fbi. she was ignored. she was silenced then and she was shamed. it's outrageous the way she was treated. republicans have also claimed other individuals dr. ford identified to do gathered where she was assaulted had refeutd her testimony. well that's just false. these individuals stated publicly they did not recall the event. dr. ford told the jud

after reviewing the fbi's report this morning, within minutes republican senators claimed there was a lack of corroborating evidence for any of these allegations. and despite, despite the numerous restrictions they placed on this investigation, their claim is simply not true. by the fact for developing full corroborating evidence is a thorough investigation. that's basic. and this investigation falls far short. it's a disservice to dr. ford or miss ramirez, or miss swetnick. and further, it's a disservice to the survivors anywhere in this country. dr. ford's testimony captivated the nation and inspired across the country. in a moment i'll never forget, when i asked her hadder strongest memory something from the incident she couldn't re-- forget. in the hippo campus the up ro roarious laughter, and kavanaugh pinned her to the bed -- i believe her and the reason it's critical is not the additional before that judge kavanaugh was not telling the truth about his high school drinking or the obvious misogyny in his yearbook, or kavanaugh who passed out from drunkenness, all of us here know

senator susan collins is getting an earful. the senior republicancided, could be the key vote that decide it is brett kavanaugh is confirmed to the supreme court. >> good afternoon, senator collins' office. >> reporter: that's why the phones in her home state office and stopping by, a final attempt at making their voices heard. most of the people we encountered today seem to an pose kavanaugh's appointment. >> my main american concern is honesty and temperament. i know she's in a position of influence right now. >> reporter: voting yes on kavanaugh may be welcomed by collins' fellow republicans, but could cost her bipartisan support at home. seems like there's some serious political consequences voting yes. >> seriously. if she votes yes, she'll never have my vote again. >> reporter: she's not alone. voter after voter told us they may reconsider in 2020. >> susan collins ran on being a pro choice republican. and if she votes for kavanaugh, i think she's going to have a major problem in maine. major, mar joy problem. >> reporter: it's not just voters

and the senate republicans.y're working hand in glove together, but it's the president's nominee, the president's team that wants desperately to get brett kavanaugh through, as fast as possible. because look, in the last week, during the time when the fbi was doing this investigation, there were all manner of secondary sources divulging really concerning information about the nominee. and none of that is included in this investigation. >> chris, to you, to jack's point, jim and i have been told by our fbi guests all week, it doesn't matter what the white house says. it doesn't matter what, you know, limits on scope the senate republicans put on this. fbi agents will do their job. they will follow all the leads until they get answers. so which is it? >> you know, jack's right. the primary client in these fbi special inquiries are the white house. these are white house nominations. and the fbi has done thousands of them and have done follow-ups to some of them. so they are going to go to the core allegations. ther

senator lisa murkowski of alaska was the only senate republican to oppose kavanaugh. murkowski did not officially vote today as a courtesy to fellow republican steve daines, who is in montana at his daughter's wedding. susan collins of maine was the last senate republican on friday to announce her vote in support of kavanaugh. she spoke to john dickerson today in an interview for "face the nation." >> hardest decision you've ever made? >> it certainly ranks right up there. there's no doubt about it. there have been other very difficult decisions, but this was a tough one. >> i heard george w. bush made a number of calls to you. >> he did. he actually called me three times. he knows brett kavanaugh very well. and wanted me to know of his personal experience with him and endorsement of him. >> give me a sense you gave the speech what the reaction has been like. >> it has been overwhelming on both sides. i've heard from people that i haven't heard from in many, many decades. and i've heard from a lot of protesters as well as people who support my decision. >> ninan: and

republican senators. that includes more than for chief justice roberts. but i have never seen such a partisan performance by a nominee of either party to the supreme court or any other court. i have never seen a nominee so casually willing to evade and deny the truth in service of his own raw ambition. if truth under oath means anything at all, judge kavanaugh has disqualified himself over and over and over again. he has neither the veracity nor the temperament for a lifetime appointment to the highest court in our nation. you know, the truth has an odd way of coming out one way or another. to avoid permanent damage to the integrity and legitimacy of our nation's highest court, i urge senators to join me in voting no on judge kavanaugh's nomination. mr. president, i do not see somebody else seeking the floor, so i will suggest the absence of a mr. coons: mr.

how could any senator accept this sham? republicans want to confirm judge kavanaugh to the supreme court coming and, and they will ignore, suppress or shout down any inconvenient facts that might give the american people pause about this nomination. republicans are playing politics with the supreme court and they are willing to step on anyone including the victim of a, vicious sexual assault in order to advance their agenda. judge kavanaugh's's nomination to the court court as the result of a decade-long assault on the judiciary launched by billionaires and giant corporations who want to control every branch of government. for years those wealthy people have invested massive sums of money into shaping the ports to fit their likings. working in partnership with the republican buddies in congress they executed a two-part campaign to capture the court. part number one stop the fair-mindedn mainstream judges from getting confirmed to serve the federal court and part number two flood the federal court with narrowminded corporate individuals

he suspended the senate vote only when it became clear that republicans would not have the votes they needed if they tried to ram the nomination through the senate right at that moment. then the president offered the smallest fig leaf of an f.b.i. investigation. now, i have just come from the secure room where the summaries of f.b.i. interviews and other f.b.i. generated documents were made available. senators have been muzzled so i will now say three things that committee staff have explained are permissible to say without violating committee rules, statements that i have also independently verified as accurate. one, this was not a full and fair investigation. it was sharply limited in scope and did not explore the relevant confirming facts. two, the available documents do not exonerate mr. kavanaugh. and three, the available documents contradict statements mr. kavanaugh made under oath. i would like to back up these three points with explicit statements from the f.b.i. documents. explicit statements that should be available for the american people to see. but the republicans have lo

investigation, and it was very clear to anyone who reviewed the material that senate republican leaders and president trump cut the f.b.i. off and refused to allow them to conduct the comprehensive and thorough investigation that was promised to democrats and republicans. instead, this was rigged from the start to protect judge kavanaugh because here is what we know and this has been reported in the press. dr. ford was not interviewed despite her repeated requests. we know judge kavanaugh was not questioned. we have heard from so many other witnesses who were desperate to talk to the f.b.i., desperate, because they had relevant information they wanted to share in confidence. as far as we know, they were never even contacted. and now senators had to line up to read a single copy of a limited f.b.i. report over the course of today. we're not allowed to share what we saw or take notes out of the room, and we're not permitted to ask the f.b.i. agents who actually conducted the investigation any questions. although i'm not permitted to share what i heard and read in the briefing, i can say t

senator from alaska, votes no. there are 51 republicans, 49 democrats, with manchin now voting yes to move this legislation forward, allowing a full scale vote tomorrow in the senate floor. it looks like they do have the votes to move the kavanaugh nomination forward. lots of people are going to be analyzing this. let's listen in for a moment. i think the official announcement is coming. >> are there any senators in the chamber who wish to change their vote? as a reminder to our guests in the galleries, expressions of approval or disapproval are not permitted in the senate galleries. on this vote, the ayes are 51, the noes are 49. the motion is agreed to. >> the judge kavanaugh nomination now moves to the next and final stage, a full vote in the senate. that's expected tomorrow. but this was a critically, critically important move. 51/49. the only democrat voting in favor, once again, joe manchin, the democratic senator from west virginia, who is in a tough re-election battle right now in his home state. let's get analysis. it's dramatic,

senators. what are you hearing from republican senators who are calling the white house? what do they want and what do you think they're going to get in terms of how wide and broad this probe goes? >> i heard something this morning that you don't normally hear from this group of republicans who are holding the key here, because susan collins, lisa murkowski, and jeff flake, jeff flake in particular, have been among the most vocal in their opposition to things that the president does. in their party. and yet, what i'm hearing this morning is that they liked what they heard from the president yesterday. that he more than anyone else who has kind of been leading the charge on this question about c kavanaugh and how far the fbi investigation should go, said the right things about allowing the investigation, the background check, to go where it goes. to follow the leads. and that is the concern that i, again, am hearing this morning, that i reported yesterday that the initial hope among republican senators who very much support kavanaugh, was that this background check could b

am very concerned about the message republican leaders are sending today to women and girls and survivors right now. the message they are delivering here on the senate floor and at rallies, through the press and directly to people. to dr. ford and miss ramirez and so many women, girls, and survivors, these republicans are saying your voices don't matter. your experiences, your trauma, your pain, your heartache, your anger, none of that matters. their message is we don't have to listen. we don't have to care. sit down. be quiet. they're sending the message if you are a woman who was attacked, you are a survivor, your experience is one more, quote, hiccup to, quote, plow right through on the path of them getting what they want. that if you come forward with your experience, you will be told you are, quote, just mixed up, wrong, lying, or worse. they are sending the message you will be asked why you didn't come forward sooner, what you wore, how much you had to drink, what medication you were taking, if you had any history of mental health issues, why you could remember some things like the attacker's name and face, not remember others, how you got to

. >> main republican susan collins tells us >> she voted for kavanaugh despite intense pressure to owe -- oppose him and we'll ask senate majority leader mitch mcconnell why he think republicans will benefit from the kavanaugh fight and have plenty of political analysis just ahead on "face the nation." >> good morning and welcome to "face the nation." the battle that's divided the country and in particular washington, d.c. is over in one of the closest supreme court votes in history, judge brett kavanaugh has been confirmed and is now justice brett kavanaugh. he was privately sworn in yesterday and is now the 114th supreme court justice giving the conservatives a 5-4 majority. we begin with susan collins who made a dramatic 45 minute speech outlining her decision to vote for judge kavanaugh. welcome, senator. >> thank you, john. you were one of the senators who backed the fbi inquiry and said it was thorough, but dr. ford's lawyers said none of the people they put forward were interviewed. they said there is corroborating evidence and nobody wanted to see it. >> it was a thorough investigation. keep in mind there's alre

current main state senator, republican eric brakey who is challenging king for his seat. good to see you, sir. appreciate it. obviously, susan collins of maine made some massive headlines over her vote on the kavanaugh confirmation. are you going to be a litter right those coattails? >> i think that mean people are outraged by the bullying we've seen against senator susan collins. we are outraged at the death threats that have been sent to her office and outraged people are sending coat hangers are sending coathanger sewer opposite implications on certain issues. people are amazed. we are not going to be bullied. we are going to stand up. we are going to kick angus king now. leland: where does the late surge come for you? there is not a lot of polling. not a lot of national money heading up to your race. how do you try in the next 30 days to change that?

. >> republicans are still riding a post kavanaugh surge of enthusiasm on the senate side. >> whatever deficit in enthusiasm republican voters may have had going into the fall election, it's been eliminated. >> while democratic anger at the president continues to fuel a likely takeover on the house side. >> i am outraged because this is outrageous! >> democrats debate whether to fight mr. trump on his own terms. >> they go low, we kick them. >> with us this morning, two challengers, republican nat nominee in missouri josh hawley and democratic nominee for governor of georgia, stacey abrams. plus washington post columnist jamal khashoggi is feared killed by saudi forces. president trump promises severe punishment but not if it hurts u.s. arm sales. >> i don't want to hurt jobs. >> senate republicans meanwhile are speaking out. >> if it did happen, there would be hell to pay. >> my guests this morning, republican senator marco rubio of florida, and former cia chief john brennan. joining me for insight and analysis, nbc news chief foreign affairs correspondent andrea mitchell, peter baker

arguing that democrats are holding up this process, are delaying, are obstructing, we have a republican senator who basically agrees with the democrats on this, that this is being pushed through too quickly. and i think that creates real messaging problems for republicans, even if they can push this through. >> you know what? let's pause for just a quick moment here, guys, if we can. we are going to continue to keep a very close eye on the senate floor for those speeches that are set to begin any moment now. we are going to keep you posted on this story that is changing minute by minute. this is msnbc. ♪ a moment of joy. a source of inspiration. an act of kindness. an old friend. a new beginning. some welcome relief... or a cause for celebration. ♪ what's inside? ♪ [laughter] possibilities. what we deliver by delivering. it was always our singular focus, a distinct determination. to do whatever it takes, use every possible resource. to fight cancer. and never lose sight of the patients we're fighting for. our cancer treatment specialists share the same vision. experts from all over the world, w

with the white house and the republican side of the senate regardless of the facts. it is wrong and those that we all want and it hurts with the reputation of the fbi and above all it hurts the supreme court and the american people. and make no mistake about it, the process is open and fair many any long - - maybe any outcome would be different but at least there would be some respect in the process. so with this body to the supreme court and the united states of america. i yield the floor. >> madam president it seems light years ago but it was

senator dick durbin said this tweet is not accurate, committee republicans must correct it. en democrats have sent a letter saying you've got to fix this. in the senate judiciary tweets back nothing in the tweet is inaccurate or misleading, the committee stands by its statement, more baseless innuendo and more false smears by senate democrats. >> it's very tempting for republicans and it's useful to focus on the democrats but they really need to get this whole thing across the finishing line with senators flake, murkowski, and collins who are republicans. they would love to get the votes of senators joe manchin and heidi heitkamp but those three senators are republican -- as much as they want to focus on the hocus-pocus of the democrats and all of this stuff, it's about the republicans who are on the fence. whether or not they can go home, flake is retiring but particularly collins and murkowski to a national campaign against and for his confirmation to their voters and defend the process. defend the fbi investigation. if it was just a routine background check and they didn't

. >> senator cornyn, number 2 republican in the senate, explaining today that he treated dr. christine blasey ford exactly the way he would have wanted his daughters to be treated. or his wife or his mother in these circumstances. so quit your high jinx, quit your antics. these outrage us accusations that you've made, the shameful orchestrated smear campaign that you've been part of, mom, the first preliminary vote on the kavanaugh nomination is now scheduled for 10:30 tomorrow morning eastern time. and even though as predicted, a chorus of kavanaugh's supporters drowning out her voice, that is what dr. christine blasey ford predict and had she saw coming. despite her expectation, her accurate expectation, that is how she would be treated. she did decide to come forward anyway. because she did, when that vote happens 10:30 tomorrow morning eastern time, indellably this is what that vote is going to be about. >> i attended the school in bethesda, maryland from 1978 to 1984. holt on arms is an all girls school that opened in 1901. during my time at the school, girls at holton a

after reviewing the fbi's latest report, the white house and senate republicans are full steam ahead with his pending confirmation. >> we are fully confident after reviewing this information, senators can be comfortable voting yes. >> none of the allegations have been corroborated by the seventh fbi investigation. not in the new fbi investigation, not anywhere. >> there was no corroboration, no corroboration, again, no corroboration whatsoever. for me, again, no corroboration. not any corroboration. >> democrats, however, are livid, they say that the white house constrained the fbi, rendering its work meaningless at best and a conspiracy at worst. >> our fears have been realized. this is not a thorough investigation. >> the fbi did not interview brett kavanaugh nor did the fbi interview dr. blasey ford. >> they didn't interview all the potential eyewitnesses. they didn't interview all the corroborating witnesses. i'm actually shocked. >> i'm not allowed to discuss it, the public can't see it, it's a complete sham. >> it smacks of a whitewash, even a coverup. >> if that's an investigat

i couldn't be prouder of the senate republican conference. we also want to thank senator manchin for helping us. with that i will be happy to take a few questions. >> [indiscernible] i'm interested based on what we have seen, both parties have -- >> we have seen both sides of the senate during the same period. we passed an opioid bill that have been going on on a bipartisan basis. we just completed the best job on appropriations in 20 years. we were able to have something both sides felt deeper about. >> -- these things always rollover. i think even though there may have been some anger expressed, as i said at the very same time they won by big margins, we were doing important things together that haven't been done for the longtime -- done in a long time. >> how do you view what texas is going to have? >> i called on the woman behind you. do have any concerns democrats later control the partisanse from a more future? >> a little history, i've given this to you before. the encounter was always done on a simple majority basis. always. even thou

starting with not releasing documents followed by constraints from senate republican colleagues on what should be limitations on the fbi's ability to do the new background check, rolled away this morning with one document in that room. the white house and the republican side in the senate attempted to rush this through regardless of the facts. relationships between the sides of this body which we want to be better, it hurts agencies involved, reputation of the fbi and above all it hurts the supreme court and the american people. make no mistake about it once again. if this process had been open and fair, maybe you could tell. at least there would be some respect to the process. that hasn't happened and that is very bad to this body, to the supreme court and the united states of america. i yield the floor. >> madam president, seems like light years ago, it was july 9th when donald trump nominated brett kavanaugh to be the next justice of the supreme court. i want to recap like everybody's memory what has happened since july 9th and explain briefly why i will be voting for brett kavanaugh

early tomorrow, right now senator republicans have it locked in? here's chad program. >> shannon, it all goes into motion in less than ten hours. tonight the leader mitch mcconnell keyed up a procedure will vote to end the debate on brett kavanaugh. the senate leaves at 9:30 eastern on friday and by ruled the procedural vote called invoking culture ripens one hour later. that means the senate will vote at 10:30 in the morning. majority of senators is needed to draw the day to the close and if he senate votes to end the

most republican senators refused to even meet with him. a good man who was treated badly, and so was our constitution. the unprecedented obstruction our republican colleagues mounted dependents judge garland was -- mounted against judge garland was a shameful chapter to the united states senate. i'm still deeply troubled by those 293 days. i know some of our colleagues are as well. it's -- i mean it's likely we all continue to be troubled by them for the rest of my life. we may never agree or pull the pin out of the grenade but we must all recognize this institution will never be the same if stealing supreme court seats and creating one set of rules for democrat presidents and another set of rules for republican presidents is the new norm. so, mr. president, despite the injustice done to merrick garland, justice gorsuch was ultimately confirmed last year on a bipartisan basis, i might add. and when justice kennedy retired earlier this year, president trump nominated, as we know, judge brett kavanaugh to fill that seat. more than 12 years ag

>> we go now to senate republican leader mitch mcconnell from louisville, kentucky. you said i want to thank the mob because they did the one thing we were having trouble, that is our base. who is the mob? >> the people attacking the people -- members in the halls. it was quite a display of aggressiveness far from what i consider peaceful protest. they were trying to intimidate members of the senate not only in our home state but actually in the capitol and at our homes here in washington and i'm proud of members for not going to the mob-like tactics. >> is it possible for a senator have voted against judge kavanaugh in good conscience? >> i'm not going to question the motivation of the senators' votes. it was a close vote, an important vote. i think we were able to establish the presumption of innocence is still important in this country and the senate will not be intimidated by these kinds of tactic. >> president trump said senator lisa mckowski is never going recover. should she be punished for voting against judge kavanaugh. >> i'd rather talk about the success w

he misled the senate following questions by both republicans and democrats. he misled the senate about his role in a hacking scandal and thefts from the united states senate. he misled the senate about his role in confirming several controversial judicial nominees. and in shaping the legal justifications for some of the bush administration's most extreme and eventually discredited policies. i've never seen a nominee so casually willing to evade and deny the truth in service of his own raw ambition. for decades that ambition has led him step after step to evade the truth if it's in any way going to stop his ambitions. and the truth is we're just beginning to learn about judge kavanaugh's dishonesty under oath. his testimony during his 2004 and 2006 hearing only came to light as the judiciary committee obtained some of his white house e-mails. some. because senate republicans blocked access to 90% -- 90% of his white house record. compare that to when justice kagan was here. we made sure the republicans and democrats had 99% of her record and briefed on the rema

senator mcconnell: of course. reporter: will you try to encourage more female republican women on the judiciary committee after all of this? senator mcconnell: that's a good question. we have encouraged several women senators to go on the committee. i intend to do that. their particular priorities, there has been no effort to avoid it. i've encourage them to do it, obviously without success, and we would love to have worn of one of our wonderful senators on judiciary. hopefully that will be the case next year. thanks a lot. >> shortly after the senate confirmed him, brett kavanaugh and his family traveled to the supreme court building, where he took the constitutional oath from supreme court chief justice john roberts, and the oath which was administered by retired justice anthony kennedy. this photo of the private ceremony is from the collection of the supreme court of the united states. president trump will host the ceremonial swearing-in for supreme court justice brett kavanaugh monday in the east room of the white house. we will have live coverage beginning at 7:00 p.m. eastern on c-span. now, president trump

. >> senator susan collins, republican of maine, delivering the deciding vote, sparking both celebration and outrage. >> i have never been angrier or sadder as a member of the united states senate, because it is the result of a cover-up. >> we are now just hours away from the final vote to confirm brett kavanaugh. it is all but certain to go his way, but there are lingering and key questions about his place on the supreme court. >>> and breaking news. at this hour, new reaction from senate democrats as they continue to use up every single hour of debate before the full senate makes its final vote on judge kavanaugh. >> i don't know how you can come to the floor as many republicans have and say, we believe dr. christine ford but end of the day we really, it just can't -- we can't bring ourselves to the point of believing it could have been brett kavanaugh. >> ours was an investigation to figure out enough about what happened to determine if brett kavanaugh is fit to serve on the highest court in our land. is he fit to be a jurist? that is our role. when it comes to dr. ford's allegations,

interviews, instruction sent to the fbi from the white house and any communications to the fbi from senate republicans regarding the scope of the investigation. with midterm elections for congressional seats less than a month away, leaders in both parties hope the kavanaugh showdown plays big at the polls. republicans hope democratic senator heidi heitkamp's north dakota seat will be up for grabs. she voted against kavanaugh. >> i am not going to be the person who makes a decision based on whether i get six more years in washington, d.c. >> reporter: associate justice kavanaugh will take his seat on the supreme court starting tomorrow. mola lenghi, cbs news, the white house. >>> new at noon, the candidates for governor faced off today and likely -- in likely their one and only debate. gavin newsom and john cox discussed issues such as the homeless problem. the debate was broadcast throughout the state through san francisco public radio station kqed. >> i think at the end of the day we are all better off and we are all better off and so any vision has to be an inclusive vision. >> i have a vision of th

another update on the countdown to the brett kavanaugh vote which happens early tomorrow but do senate republicanses locked in? >> reporter: it all goes into motion in ten hours. senate majority leader mitch mcconnell teed up a procedural vote to end debate on the nomination of brett cavanagh, the senate meet at 9:30 eastern friday and by rules the procedural vote called invoking cloture ripens one hour later meaning the senate will vote at 10:30 in the morning. is the majority of senators is needed to draw debate to a close and of the senate votes to end debate the senate on the clock heading toward a confirmation vote on brett cavanagh saturday afternoon. most votes in the senate take 20 to 30 minutes. the senate has voted to end debate by 11 am friday. senate rules grant opponents on an issue 30 hours of time before the senate must take the final vote which means a confirmation vote could start at 5:00 pm friday with the result by 5:30. susan collins and lisa murkowski are on the fence at this hour. shannon: we will watch it closely tomorrow morning, coverage is wall-to-wall, see you then. an o

that includes senator susan collins, jeff flake of arizona, and also we expect lisa murkowski. all republican briefing. democrats had their own briefing on a staff level earlier this morning. the staff members just briefed members of the senate judiciary committee in chuck schumer's os. they talked about this. and those members of the committee just left that office, and they said they told me they're going to go read the report themselves. in a matter of moments. now, at the same time, we're expecting chuck schumer, the democratic leader, as well as the top democrat on the committee, dianne feinstein, to brief the press about their assessment of this report. now, the question is, do they see anything that corroborates the allegations? we'll see what they have to say about that. we don't know that answer yet. and we undoubtedly will hear they have concerned this investigation did not go far enough. not enough witnesses were interviewed in their view, and they believe that much more needs to be done to look into what are these very serious allegations against brett kavanaugh. so these two comp

the fact is that someone at the white house or in senate republican circles -- and i don't know who it that they were actually at risk of losing a potential vote or two in the senate because of the tone that judge kavanagh took during the hearing. because as far as anyone could tell, president trump was kind of enthusiastic about the tone that judge kavanagh took during that hearing and talking about some conspiracy theory in bringing up the clintons. i don't know exactly whom that "wall street journal" op-ed was directed toward, but clearly there are only 100 people who matter right now if you're trying to get a lifetime appointment to the supreme court. clearly it was targeted at maybe one or two of them. >> i was going to say the tone of that op-ed also kind of makes the presumption he will be confirmed. >> again that it was published at all on this day. okay. >>> just a few moments ago we learned that this year's p recipients of the nobel peace prize are for their efforts to end the use of sexual violence as a weapon of war and armed conflict. he has spent large parts of his life h

i don't think the senators here know. but the republican leadership is dead set on getting a vote this week. mitch mcconnell made clear he is pushing for that vote by the end of the week and the senator majority whip told me also that this investigation should not be interfered with by senators. but nevertheless they want to move forward and no matter what happens here. now, jeff flake, one of the three key senators whose vote is at risk of flipping on the republican side said earlier this morning to cnn that he believes that the report needs to be finished before there is any investigation, before there is any key procedural vote on the senate floor by the end of this week. so he is leaving open the option it seems, of not voting to advance this nomination if that fbi report is included. we'll see what he does. starting tomorrow, they will have a vote by the end of the week. we'll see what happens. >> thanks, manu. athena jones is with us now about, look, this police record from 1985 that "the new york times" first reported on that we have

>> if they go low, we kick them. >> reporter: the republican senate nominee josh hally. plus, jamal khashaggi is feared killed. president trump promises severe punishment, but not if it hurts u.s. arms sales. >> my guests this morning, republican senator marco rubio of florida and former cia chief john brennan. joining me for insight and analysis, nbc news chief foreign affairs correspondent andrea mitchell, peter baker from "the new york times." carol lean and lanhee chen of stanford university. welcome the sunday. it's "meet the press." >>> good sunday morning. tip o'neill famously said "all politics is local." he was right then. boy, is he wrong now. in the age of trump, all politics is national. republicans, mostly in senate race, want to remind voters how much they love president trump. democrats mostly in suburb house races want to remind voters how much they dislike president trump. and mr. trump wants to remind everyone how much he wants to be at the center of it all, flooding the zone. we've never seen one party take over a chamber of congress while the opposing

it's been heard in a very thunderous way. >> reporter: in a dramatic turn on friday on the senate floor, republicanator susan collins said she listened to victims' voices. >> the me too movement is real. >> reporter: but will vote for kavanaugh because there was not evidence to deny his presumption of innocence. >> it's when passions are most inflamed that fairness is most in jeopardy. >> friday night at princeton, supreme court justices sonia sotomayor and elena kagan spoke about the need for trust in the high court. >> people thinking of the court as not applicationicly divided in the same way, as not an extension of politics, but instead somehow above the fray. >> and if bread kavanaugh becomes a justice, the next associate justice of the supreme court will have familiarity with some of those already on the court. elena kagan, for example, had hired him for a job in the past. that will be a transition that will be watched if the vote goes as planned. so far in the white house it's been a restrained response because it isn't over until it's over. there have been tweets from the president and vice

bush senate republican judiciary staff stole confidential information for democratic senators and staff indicated he knew under oath that the information was stolen but if you read the e-mail correspondence that is nearly impossible to believe that a sophisticated political operative like brett kavanaugh was wouldn't have understood that the information wouldn't have been obtained surreptitiously. there are also valid concerns that judge kavanaugh misrepresented givinganan his 24 confirmation hearing about his involvement with the george w. torture policy and with certain judicial nominations he handled as the white house counsel. his sworn testimony in 2004 and the recent hearings leave me highly skeptical judge kavanaugh has told the whole truth and nothing but the truth before congress. i cannot support a nominee to the supreme court without a high degree of certainty that has been 100% honest under oath. we demand nothing less. the rushed t judiciary hearing with judge kavanaugh is designed to appease and not to make sure the american people have all the facts. senator flake was rig

to rush this through the starting by not releasing documents followed by constraints from the senate republican colleagues on what w should be limitations wih one document in that room the white house and the republican side in the senate has attempted to rush this through regardless of the fact it's wrong and has relationships between the two that we want to be better. and above all it hurts the supreme court and the american people. make no mistake about it if it had been open and fair maybe the outcome would be different and maybe it wasn't but at least there would be respect for the process. that hasn't happened and that is very bad for this body, for the supreme court and the united states of america. i yield the

but is there a place for those people in the senate republican conference? already retiring. he'll be gone next year. ben sasse told me and he's told many others he's not sure if he's going to run for re-election in 2020. he doesn't ever really seem happy in the senate. so they have to figure that part out of how to recruit newer, younger people and how to retain them and get them elected. >> marc, is there any constituency in the republican party anymore for civility because it seems like they all want donald trump's brand of in your face politics. >> i mean, i would say the same place on the democratic side where you have -- >> i want to focus on the republicans here. these people do not -- to paul the point have a constituency in their party anymore. >> there's a lot of civility we see. we have to remember and senator mcconnell said while all of this debate was going on and all the media attention rightfully so was on this attention they in a large bipartisan fashion passed one of the largest opioid bills. 90% of what the senate and the house does is very

moment even though senate majority leader mitch mcconnell says he plans to vote this week, senate republicans the votes. the threshold what those three senators deem an adequate investigation and what they take from that investigation will determine what whether they confirm him to supreme court. >> will the entire senate be given the findings? because obviously the nomination has already been voted out of conference, out of the judiciary committee? >> this is an important point. this is background investigation. this isn't a criminal investigation. and there's a process here. as you noted the white house has to order it and then the fbi does its interview and then sends the information back to the white house. the white house then sends it back to the senate. all 100 senators will have access to that information. but they'll have to read it in a private room. that information cannot be released publicly. only a very limited of staffers will have access to that information, so that raises a key question. and i've been talking to a lot of senators and top aides about. how is the public or how

i couldn't be prouder of the senate republican conference. we want to thank senator manchin for helping us. with that i would be happy to take a few questions. reporter: this is been a dark period, and you had hoped to turn a page after what we've seen the past few weeks. if it gets to that point -- senator mcconnell sorry to interrupt, but we have seen both sides of the senate during the same time we had this huge argument over the supreme court. we passed an opioid build on on a bipartisan basis, and faa extension we just completed, doing the best job on appropriations in 20 years. so we were both able to have a big, robust fight over something both sides felt deeply about 10 still work together on other issues at the very same time. people are angry on your side in the democratic side. : these thingsell always blow over. there may have been some anger expressed during this fight, but i said, the very same time, is not really newsworthy for you guys because they won by big margins, but we were doing important things together that had not be

this investigation was rigged by the white house and senate republicans. instead of calling on the f.b.i. to take these basic investigatory steps, inexplicably the republican-controlled judiciary committee solely tried to discredit these women. the committee released a statement from a former acquaintance of miss swetnick. this individual had no knowledge of the alleged incident and salaciously described the alleged sexual interests of miss swetnick. according to the national task force to end sexual and domestic violence, one of the most nonpartisan and respected voices on capitol hill, this shameless attempt to smear a victim violates the intent of the rape shield law. and to add to it, miss swetnick was never even interviewed by the f.b.i. she was ignored. she was silenced. then she was shamed. it's outrageous the way she was treated. republicans have also claimed that other individuals that dr. ford identified at the gathering where she was assaulted have refuted her testimony. well, that's just false. these individuals stated publicly they do not recal

and that is expected to be the full senate republican conference. so that means the three key senators that we have been talking about for days, jeff flake, lisa murkowski, susan collins who could determine whether or not brett kavanaugh gets that seat on the supreme court for life, they are expected to get that briefing at 10:00. it could spread up until noon. within that time frame, expect democratic snavenators to come , brief the press. you will expect them to express significant concerns about what they view as a probe that has not been done adequately. i'm sure they will see things in there they don't like. republicans already saying there is nothing that corroborates the allegations made against him. expect today to be all for the narrative being pushed by each side. one on the democratic side, completely opposite on the republican side. but the focus on those key senators. how do they view this investigation, and they want more answers and are they going to be prepared to vote yes or no come tomorrow. >> i want to ask you your help in clearin

between incumbent democratic senator maria cantwell and republican susan hutchinson. former tv journalist. live starting at six a clock eastern. then, a debate in the race for u.s. senate seat in ohio between democratic senator sherrod brown and republican u.s. congressman james rennie's a. live at 7:00 p.m. eastern. you can watch both here on c-span. with 17 days before the election, make c-span your primary source for campaign 2018. senator dean heller faced off against him a craddock challenger congresswoman jacky rosen. in a debate in las vegas. over the next hour, the candidates are asked about health care, immigration reform, the tax plan, and other issues important to nevada voters. politico lists this race as a tossup. >> nevada has a decision to make. tonight, two candidates face off. in the las vegas studios of eight news now. democratic congresswoman, jacky rosen -- >> because nevada should come first. >> and republican senator, dean heller. with early voting started, tonight is a chance for these candidates to speak to issues that matter the most. now, from

tomorrow the critical vote when republicans cannot lose more than one republican senator if democrats vote no. that's why their position is critical as susan collins is behind closed doors getting the final details of the briefing. >> what are the republicans that you're talking to saying tonight? >> the republicans are defending the scope saying this has been a thorough job. they dispute the democrats who they say are moving the goalpost and trying to delay a final vote until after the elections. christine blasey ford, one of the two accusers along with deborah ramirez said there were 28 witnesses who should be interviewed who could potentially corroborate this account after the fbi interviewed nine witnesses. i asked republican senators why not allow for 28 witnesses that have been called for to be interviewed. why not call on the fbi to do that? >> why not green light the fbi, tell the white house to green light the fbi to interview these additional witnesses? >> the fbi has gotten all the permission they need in order to interview whoever they think is necessary. there has been no

senators believe dr. ford is quite frankly not the point. i think that the republican senators on the whole don't care.rankly think that the supreme court is the golden goose that has motivated many of the -- much of the trump base. and i think, you know, to your point what's disturbing about this, there is a role for someone who -- for a voter who is devoutly pro life to say, well, all i care about is the supreme court seat. but even in that world, how could you possibly cheer on as the president of the united states mocks a sexual assault survivor. and that's what we're talking about, and i think that's part of what you are getting at which is not just the divisiveness, but the disrespect. >> yeah, and you've written about this, this week. i know that voter. i used to work -- i'm a recovering republican and i know that voter. and that voter wants a person with a conservative judicial philosophy, but they don't care if his name is neil gorsuch or brett kavanaugh or anybody else. so that -- i know that voter. and that voter wants the court filled with conservative justices. but that voter doesn't care

ford, senate republicans have really escalated their attacks again on some of the other accusers that have come forward. there was an extraordinary release from the senate judiciary committee last night that released details about swetnick, and in the final days of the kavanaugh nomination we are expecting mitch mcconnell to take procedural steps later today that would tee up a key vote for friday. think i-you are seeing senate republicans pull out the stops to make the case that brett kavanaugh is the one telling the truth. >> more evidence continues to come out, john, about the heavy drinking culture of the prep school that brett kavanaugh was part of, and he led the charge. he left it for his fellow pros that all rented a beach house in ocean city, maryland. i had a beach house in the town over, and i hated every second of it, it was so gross. i truly know this culture from the same era, and here's what he left this for his friends. i think we -- here's a portion. i think we are unanimous that any girls we can beg to stay there are open with open, dot, dot, dot, and the danger of e

bush, senate republican judiciary staff stole confidential information from democratic senators and staff and they gave some of that stolen information to him. judge kavanaugh denied under oath that he knew the information was stolen, but if you read the e-mail correspondence, it is nearly impossible to believe that a sophisticated political operative, like brett kavanaugh was, would not have understood that the information had been obtained. there were also valid concerns that judge kavanaugh misrepresented during his 2004 confirmation hearing about his involvement with the george w. bush torture policy and with certain judicial nominations he handled as white house counsel. his sworn testimony in 2004 and the two recent hearings leave me highly skeptical that judge kavanaugh has told the whole truth and nothing but the truth before congress. i cannot support a nominee to the supreme court without a high degree of certainty that he or she has been 100% honest under oath. the integrity and reputation of the supreme court demand nothing less. the rushed judiciary hearing with dr. ford and

wisdom is democrats, this may help them more in the house and republicans are telling you, well, this actually helps us maintain the senate i get that reasoning but i have heard that now multiple times from insiders on both sides. >> yeah, i mean, i guess the republicans obviously have a better shot at keeping the senate than they do the house and they feel like in some of the key races, particularly a race like joe manchin's race, or heidi high camps race, it's a way to flip shows seats. if you look at what the democrats are trying to do in the senate, last week they basically blasted out a list that said these 11 men in the senate just voted to advance brett kavanaugh, help elect these 15 women to the senate to turn this thing over. if you look at the way they are running, it's basically they are hoping women turn out and vote for democrats and the people they would vote for to flip the senate are by and large women. you think about the arizona seat, for instance, and southeaso listen, we don't know. the midterms are a little ways away, and is this going to energize folks going forward. and looking at money, are progres