A critical vote in the Senate took place on Oct. 6 confirming Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh in a 50-48 majority, leaving many Americans confused with the increasingly partisan government. Following the vacancy of Justice Anthony Kennedy, President Donald Trump nominated Kavanaugh to fill the empty spot in the Supreme Court on July 9. However, Kavanaugh’s nomination came under fire after several sexual assault allegations broke, the first coming from Christine Blasey Ford.
Ford claimed she and Kavanaugh had attended a high school party at which Kavanaugh attempted to rape her, with her only barely escaping due to his inebriated state.
Following Ford’s accusations, two other women came forward—Julie Swetnick and Deborah Ramirez—pushing Democrats to further call for both a confirmation hearing and an FBI investigation.
The FBI investigation was deemed ineffective by Republicans and Democrats alike, with both leaders of the Senate Judiciary Committee Republican Chuck Grassley and Democrat Dianne Feinstein claiming that the report presented no new evidence to be analyzed. Only one of Kavanaugh’s accusers, Ramirez, was interviewed, while Ford, Swetnick and Kavanaugh himself remained unquestioned, as did many other individuals that could have contributed vital information to the investigation.
The investigation was only allowed to run for a week, with the vote directly after it. Two key Republican senators voted to confirm Kavanaugh on Nov. 6, creating a conservative majority within the Supreme Court.
Shortly after the Kavanaugh hearing, Trump mocked Blasey Ford’s testimony with the objective of invalidating the points she made during the hearing. He later attempted to justify his remarks by claiming on Oct. 6 that he “needed to even the playing field.”