memeorandum: Trump mocks Kavanaugh accuser Christine Blasey Ford (Washington Post)

7:20 AM ET, October 3, 2018

Top Items:

Ariane de Vogue / CNN:

FBI expands inquiry into Ford allegations — (CNN)The FBI is expanding its inquiry into sexual assault allegations against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh beyond the initial four interviews that the White House directed to be conducted. — The efforts come as anticipation builds …

Discussion: KRTV-TV

Sean Davis / The Federalist:

CHRISTINE BLASEY FORD'S EX-BOYFRIEND TOLD SENATE JUDICIARY HE WITNESSED HER COACH A FRIEND ON POLYGRAPHS — An ex-boyfriend of Brett Kavanaugh accuser Christine Blasey Ford told Senate investigators he witnessed her coach a friend on how to take a polygraph, contradicting her sworn testimony …

Discussion: twitchy.com, National Review, Chicks On The Right, TheBlaze, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, Mediaite, The Daily Caller and Patterico's Pontifications

Brian Ries / CNN:

Trump mocks Christine Blasey Ford's sexual assault testimony at Mississippi rally — President Donald Trump for the first time directly mocked Christine Blasey Ford's testimony before the Senate Judicary Committee at a rally in Mississippi, casting doubt on her testimony about her alleged sexual assault.

Discussion: Mediaite, New Republic and Breitbart

Fox News:

Christine Blasey Ford ex-boyfriend says she helped friend prep for potential polygraph; Grassley sounds alarm — In a letter released Tuesday and obtained by Fox News, an ex-boyfriend of Christine Blasey Ford, the California professor accusing Brett Kavanaugh of sexual assault …

Discussion: Townhall, Washington Post, Breitbart, Louder With Crowder, Front Page Magazine, Joe.My.God. and TheBlaze

Wall Street Journal:

FBI Probe of Kavanaugh Is Expected to Wrap Up Very Soon — People familiar with the process said Tuesday that the FBI investigation into the allegations of sexual misconduct against Judge Kavanaugh could wrap up very soon, well ahead of the end-of week deadline.

Elise Viebeck / Washington Post:

Republicans on Senate panel release explicit statement about Kavanaugh accuser's sex life — In an unprecedented move, Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday released an explicit statement that purports to describe the sexual preferences of a woman who has accused Supreme …

Discussion: Breitbart, The Week and Politico

RealClearInvestigations:

Renovation Records Undercut Ford's Exit-Door Account — Real estate and other records undercut a key part of Christine Blasey Ford's account of why she finally came forward with charges of attempted rape against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh after some 30 years.

Discussion: The Resurgent, Patterico's Pontifications, LifeNews.com, twitchy.com and RedState

Jennifer Bendery / HuffPost:
2 Of Brett Kavanaugh's Former Classmates Withdraw Support For Him

Discussion: The Week

Jordain Carney / The Hill:
McConnell says only senators will see FBI's Kavanaugh report

Discussion: Politico, The Week, Washington Post, Breitbart, Joe.My.God., The Intellectualist, ABC News, Axios and Townhall

Aryssa Damron / Washington Free Beacon: Booker: Whether Kavanaugh Is ‘Innocent or Guilty,’ Let's ‘Move Onto Another Candidate’

New York Times:
Trump Taunts Christine Blasey Ford at Rally

Discussion: Althouse, Talking Points Memo, DCReport.org and Lawyers, Guns & Money

United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary:
Judiciary Committee Receives Statement Regarding Swetnick Allegations

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, National Review and The Gateway Pundit

NBC News:
FBI could wrap up Kavanaugh probe as early as Tuesday night

NBC News:
FBI has no current plans to interview Dr. Christine Blasey Ford, source says

Discussion: HuffPost, Splinter, The Intellectualist, Talking Points Memo, Mediaite, Washington Free Beacon, The Root, Daily Kos and CNBC

Fox News:
State of play on Kavanaugh confirmation: McConnell preparing to hold votes

Discussion: Townhall, Chicks On The Right, Breitbart and The Daily Signal

Peter Hasson / The Daily Caller:
Three Different NBC News Stories On Kavanaugh Face Accuracy Issues

Discussion: TheBlaze, Splinter and Law & Crime

Thomas Lipscomb / Real Clear Politics:
Records Raise Questions About Ford's Double-Door Story

Discussion: Daily Wire

New York Times:

Trump Engaged in Suspect Tax Schemes as He Reaped Riches From His Father — The president has long sold himself as a self-made billionaire, but a Times investigation found that he received at least $413 million in today's dollars from his father's real estate empire, much of it through tax dodges in the 1990s.

Washington Post:

Trump mocks Kavanaugh accuser Christine Blasey Ford — SOUTHAVEN, Miss. — President Trump mocked the account of a woman who accused Supreme Court nominee Brett M. Kavanaugh of assault and told a Mississippi crowd that the #MeToo movement was unfairly hurting men.

Discussion: news.avclub.com, ABC News, CNBC, Wall Street Journal and Political Wire

New York Times:

11 Takeaways From The Times's Investigation Into Trump's Wealth — Donald J. Trump built a business empire and won the presidency proclaiming himself a self-made billionaire, and he has long insisted that his father, the legendary New York City builder Fred C. Trump, provided almost no financial help.

Discussion: The Atlantic, Raw Story, POLITICUSUSA, Joe.My.God., Mediaite, The Week, KRTV-TV, CNBC and The Reality-Based Community

New York Times:

4 Ways Fred Trump Made Donald Trump and his Siblings Rich — In Donald J. Trump's version of how he got rich, he was the master dealmaker who parlayed an initial $1 million loan from his father into a $10 billion empire. It was his guts and gumption that overcame setbacks, and his father, Fred C. Trump, was simply a cheerleader.

Discussion: VICE, Raw Story, Washington Post, The Week, KRTV-TV, Unfogged and Mediaite

Politico:
White House slams NYT report on Trump tax schemes

Discussion: Axios and The Daily Caller

Daily Mail:
YOU'RE HIRED! Trump earned $200,000 a year at age three, and was a millionaire by eight

Discussion: Chicks On The Right

New York Times:

Kavanaugh's 1983 Letter Offers Inside Look at High School Clique — The beachfront property was rented, the guests were invited and an ever-organized Brett M. Kavanaugh had some advice for the seven Georgetown Preparatory School classmates who would be joining him for the weeklong escapade.

Discussion: Betsy's Page, Booman Tribune, CNBC, Talking Points Memo, Jezebel, Splinter, KRTV-TV, HuffPost, Raw Story, The Week, The Daily Caller, Reason, Mediaite, ThinkProgress and The Right Scoop

Mollie Hemingway / The Federalist:
THE NEW YORK TIMES PREPARING HIT PIECE ON BRETT KAVANAUGH FOR PARTY PLANNING

Discussion: CNNMoney, Politico, Washington Examiner, Daily Wire, Townhall, Washington Times, Mediaite, Breitbart and The Daily Caller, more at Mediagazer »

Jason Kander:

I Suffer From Depression and Have PTSD Symptoms — After 11 years, I'm finally ready to do something about it — About four months ago, I contacted the VA to get help. It had been about 11 years since I left Afghanistan as an Army Intelligence Officer, and my tour over there still impacted me every day.

Discussion: Military Times, HuffPost, ThinkProgress, Daily Kos, Politico, Jewish Telegraphic Agency, IJR, Washington Post, Mediaite, KRTV-TV, Talking Points Memo and Axios

Adam Liptak / New York Times:

Bar Association Questioned Kavanaugh's Temperament and Honesty in 2006 — WASHINGTON — When Brett M. Kavanaugh was preparing for his second confirmation hearing for a seat on a federal appeals court in 2006, he got some unwelcome news. The American Bar Association, which had earlier given him its highest rating, had reconsidered.

Discussion: Daily Kos

Benjamin Wittes / The Atlantic:

I Know Brett Kavanaugh, but I Wouldn't Confirm Him — If I were a senator, I would not vote to confirm Brett Kavanaugh. — These are words I write with no pleasure, but with deep sadness. Unlike many people who will read them with glee—as validating preexisting political, philosophical …

Discussion: The Guardian, The Intercept, Above the Law, Politico, Raw Story and Instapundit

Devlin Barrett / Washington Post:

FBI navigates political minefield and deadline in Kavanaugh inquiry — FBI leaders are warily trying to navigate their way through the politically charged background-check investigation into Supreme Court nominee Brett M. Kavanaugh, as the bureau seeks to protect itself now …

Discussion: The Atlantic, The Week, Washington Times, The Daily Caller, Washington Free Beacon and New York Times

Scott Thistle / Press Herald:

Collins walks a political tightrope with Kavanaugh decision — How she votes on the controversial Supreme Court nominee could loom large in a 2020 re-election campaign. — Sen. Susan Collins may be in the biggest “no-win” situation of her career. — Facing increasing pressure …

Associated Press:

Mueller shedding more attorneys in Russia investigation — WASHINGTON (AP) — Special counsel Robert Mueller is shedding more attorneys, another sign that his team of prosecutors has begun winding down parts of their investigation. — Two prosecutors detailed to the Russia investigation …

Jonah Goldberg / National Review:

You Idiot Reporters Are Making It Worse — Every 15 seconds, you're demonstrating why millions of people love it when Trump calls you the fake news. — Before I get started, let me clarify something. Groupthink, mob behavior, panic, etc. have a powerful capacity to make smart people dumb.

Robert Costa / Washington Post:

Michael Bloomberg jolts Senate battle with $20 million for Democrats — Michael R. Bloomberg, the billionaire former mayor of New York City who is considering a 2020 presidential campaign, will give $20 million to the main Democratic Senate super PAC this week — jolting the national battle …

Discussion: Joe.My.God., Politico, Political Wire and Talking Points Memo

The Harvard Crimson:

Students Filed Title IX Complaints Against Kavanaugh to Prevent Him From Teaching at Harvard Law — In the days before Harvard Law School announced embattled Supreme Court nominee Brett M. Kavanaugh will not teach in Cambridge this January, undergraduates eager to block his return to campus struck …

Discussion: Daily Wire, Chicks On The Right and twitchy.com

Robby Soave / Hit & Run:
Harvard Students Filed Multiple Title IX Complaints Against Brett Kavanaugh To Get Him Fired

Discussion: ABC News, LifeZette, ThinkProgress and Instapundit

Maggie Haberman / New York Times:

White House Has a Message for Republican Candidates: Stay Close to Trump — SOUTHAVEN, Miss. — President Trump's advisers are planning an aggressive schedule in the month before the midterm elections for Mr. Trump to campaign with House candidates who have supported his agenda …

Scott Snowden / NBC News:

A colossal elevator to space could be going up sooner than you ever imagined — Researchers are racing to make this science-fiction idea a reality. — For more than half a century, rockets have been the only way to go to space. But in the not-too-distant future, we may have another option …

Issie Lapowsky / Wired:

The Facebook Hack Exposes an Internet-Wide Failure — FACEBOOK HAS RECEIVED ample blame for the historic data breach that allowed hackers to not only take over the accounts of at least 50 million users but also access third-party websites those users logged into with Facebook.

Discussion: The Verge and New York Times, more at Techmeme »

Jacey Fortin / New York Times:

For Just the Third Time in 117 Years, a Woman Wins the Nobel Prize in Physics — Since 1901, when the annual Nobel Prize in Physics was first awarded, it has been given almost exclusively to men, year after year. Women had won the award exactly twice. — That changed this week, when the number rose to three.

Discussion: The Atlantic, NPR and Vox