Politics

Courthouse News reports: U.S. Rep. Duncan Hunter, the San Diego-area congressman facing charges of misusing campaign money, won his bid Monday to postpone his trial until after the midterm elections in November. Federal authorities indicted Hunter on 60 charges in August, involving the suspected use of $250,000 in campaign funds for personal expenses. Margaret Hunter, his wife and campaign manager, …

Jonathan Swan writes at Axios: I regret the way I wrote this morning’s version of the story. By saying Rosenstein had “verbally resigned” to Kelly rather than “offered his resignation,” I conveyed a certainty that this fluid situation didn’t deserve. It’s an important nuance, and I regret the wording. In the same post, Swan notes that the DOJ had prepared …

The Associated Press reports: Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell says Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh will receive an up-or-down vote in the Senate “in the near future.” McConnell on Monday angrily denounced Democrats, accusing them of waging a “smear campaign” against Kavanaugh, President Donald Trump’s nominee for the Supreme Court. McConnell called the latest allegation “another orchestrated, last-minute hit on …

“I will not be intimidated into withdrawing from this process. The coordinated effort to destroy my good name will not drive me out. The vile threats of violence against my family will not drive me out. The last-minute character assassination will not succeed. I have devoted my career to serving the public and the cause of justice, and particularly to …

The Washington Post reports: Rod Rosenstein will stay in his job for now and will meet with Trump on Thursday, the White House says. Rosenstein’s future was a matter of considerable confusion Monday morning following reports that he had offered to resign. Rosenstein has been overseeing the investigation of special counsel Robert S. Mueller III, who is looking into Russian …

The Montgomery Sentinel reports: Investigators in Montgomery County confirmed Monday they’re aware of a potential second sexual assault complaint in the county against former Georgetown Prep student and Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh. While investigators weren’t specific and spoke on background, they said they are looking at allegations against Kavanaugh during his senior year in high school after an anonymous …

Axios reports: Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein has verbally resigned to Chief of Staff John Kelly in anticipation of being fired by President Trump, according to a source with direct knowledge. Per a second source with direct knowledge: “He’s expecting to be fired,” so he plans to step down. Rosenstein talked last year about invoking the 25th Amendment and wearing …

CNBC reports: The Senate Judiciary Committee contacted Michael Avenatti after the lawyer claimed to represent a client who has damaging information about Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh. On Sunday, the attorney — who represents porn star Stormy Daniels in her lawsuit against President Donald Trump — claimed he represents a woman “with credible information” regarding Kavanaugh and friend Mark Judge. …

Randy Rainbow is back today with a take on the still-unfolding Brett Kavanaugh controversy, setting the scandal to the tune of the King Arthur’s title song from Lerner and Loewe’s 1960 musical Camelot. Richard Burton won the Tony that year for his performance and Richard Harris won the Golden Globe for his King Arthur in the 1967 movie version. As …

Talking Points Memo reports: President Donald Trump on Monday affirmed his continuing support for Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh despite the second allegation of sexual misconduct against him that surfaced Sunday, saying that it’s “unfair,” “unjust” and “totally political.” “He is a fine man with an unblemished past and these are highly unsubstantiated statements from people represented by lawyers,” Trump …

ABC News reports: The second woman to accuse Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh of sexual misconduct came forward only after Senate Democrats independently learned of the alleged incident involving her and Kavanaugh in college, according to one of The New Yorker reporters who investigated her allegation. Reporter Ronan Farrow, who investigated Ramirez’s claims with New Yorker colleague Jane Mayer, told …

The Associated Press reports: Kellyanne Conway says the country shouldn’t make Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh pay for “pent-up” demand by women incensed about sexual misconduct. She said on CBS “This Morning” that the allegations against Kavanaugh, now by a second woman, sound like a “vast left-wing conspiracy.” Conway said: “Are we going to put decades of pent-up demand for …

Ronan Farrow and Jane Meyer report at The New Yorker: As Senate Republicans press for a swift vote to confirm Brett Kavanaugh, President Trump’s nominee to the Supreme Court, Senate Democrats are investigating a new allegation of sexual misconduct against Kavanaugh. The claim dates to the 1983-84 academic school year, when Kavanaugh was a freshman at Yale University. The offices …

The Hill reports: Former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg (I) said Sunday that he will wait until after the midterms to determine whether he will run for president in 2020. “We’d see whether or not it’s possible and how I feel, but that’s down the road. You’ve got to take these things one at a time, everybody’s focused now on …

“I want to listen to her, but I’m being honest with you and everybody else. What do you expect me to do? You can’t bring it in a criminal court, you would never sue civilly, you couldn’t even get a warrant. What am I supposed to do? Go ahead and ruin this guy’s life based on an accusation? I don’t …

Reuters reports: President Donald Trump’s personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani on Saturday said that U.S. sanctions on Iran are leading to economic pain that could lead to a “successful revolution,” contrasting with administration comments that government change in Tehran is not U.S. policy. “I don’t know when we’re going to overthrow them,” said Giuliani, who spoke in his own capacity though …

The Washington Post reports: An array of White House aides, playing the role of various senators on the Judiciary Committee, quizzed Kavanaugh last week about his sex life and other personal matters in an attempt to prepare him for a hearing that would inevitably be uncomfortable. In his answers during the practice runs, aides said, Kavanaugh condemned sexual assault and …

NBC News reports: Six weeks before the 2018 midterm elections, Democrats hold a 12-point lead in congressional preference among registered voters, with nearly six-in-ten saying they’d like to see significant change in the direction President Donald Trump has been leading the country, according to a new national NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll.  The results suggest a political environment where Democrats …

The New York Times reports: The woman who has accused Judge Brett M. Kavanaugh of sexually assaulting her when they were teenagers said on Saturday that she was willing to testify next week before the Senate Judiciary Committee, but asked for more time to continue negotiating the details of her appearance. It is now up to Senator Charles E. Grassley, …

NBC News reports: A press adviser helping lead the Senate Judiciary Committee’s response to a sexual assault allegation against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh has stepped down amid evidence he was fired from a previous political job in part because of a sexual harassment allegation against him. Garrett Ventry, 29, who served as a communications aide to the committee chaired …