The Morning Briefing: Kavanaugh Tries to Prove His Innocence and Much, Much More

Good Tuesday morning.

Here is what’s on the president’s agenda today:

The president addresses the 73rd Session of the United Nations General Assembly
President Trump participates in a bilateral meeting with the president of the Republic of Colombia
President Trump participates in a bilateral meeting with the secretary general of the United Nations
The president participates in a working luncheon hosted by the secretary general of the United Nations
President Trump participates in a bilateral meeting with the president of the 73rd Session of the United Nations General Assembly
The president participates in the Security Council Presidency Reception

KavaNOPE update

Yesterday was a busy day with plenty of hand-wringing and grandstanding and finger-wagging and fist-shaking.

First, Brett Kavanaugh and his wife were interviewed by Martha MacCallum last night — you can watch that below.

I think the interview was pretty good and you have to cringe inside when Kavanaugh starts talking about how he was a virgin in high school and college; it’s really just sad what this man has to do to “prove” himself innocent. (Will the left be adopting this new paradigm for all criminal justice cases, where the accused has to prove he/she is innocent? Where is the ACLU on this?) MacCallum really pushed him to talk about the political nature of the harassment claims, but he was careful not to bite.

Now the lawyer for Kavanaugh accuser Ford is objecting to certain features of the testimony scheduled for Thursday. (True story, Bromwich is also McCabe’s lawyer. Small anti-Trump world, isn’t it?)

Michael R. Bromwich, a lawyer for Ford, said in a letter to Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), the chairman of the Judiciary Committee, that the plan for Thursday’s public hearing “does not appear designed to provide Dr. Blasey Ford with fair and respectful treatment.”

The letter casts some doubt on the deal Ford’s team made with Senate Judiciary leaders to appear at a hearing on Thursday.

Of particular concern was the Judiciary GOPers’ plan to use a female lawyer skilled in interviewing sex crime victims to interview the accuser. Seems like a smart idea, doesn’t it? Seems thoughtful and respectful, right?

Bromwich in the letter pointed to the hiring of “an unnamed ‘experienced sex crimes prosecutor,'” warning it could help turn the Judiciary Committee hearing into a “circus.”

“[It] is contrary to the Majority’s repeated emphasis on the need for the Senate and this Committee’s members to fulfill their constitutional obligations. It is also inconsistent with your stated wish to avoid a “circus,” as well as Dr. Blasey Ford’s repeated requests through counsel that senators conduct the questioning,” Bromwich wrote.

“This is not a criminal trial for which the involvement of an experienced sex crimes prosecutor would be appropriate. Neither Dr. Blasey Ford nor Judge Kavanaugh is on trial. The goal should be to develop the relevant facts, not try a case,” he continued.

You know what it also sounds like? Like this lady and her lawyer don’t really want to testify at all. What are the odds this actually happens on Thursday (tell me in the comments or tweet at me). As of today, I’m betting less than 50%.

Senate GOPers also say a vote for Kavanaugh could come as early as this week. Meanwhile, creepy porn lawyer Michael Avenatti continues to agitate from the fringes. “Let me just be really clear about something,” Avenatti said in an interview with CNN on Monday night. “They know that I do not traffic in rumor and nonsense. I state facts and I have evidence to back it up. I would not make these allegations lightly.”

“I’m highly confident in the accusations that are going to be made by my client,” Avenatti said. “As it relates to the woman whose name will be publicly disclosed, multiple security clearances have been issued by the federal government.”

Creepy porn lawyer promises his client will come forward in the next 48 hours. What serious person would hire Avenatti? Hard to imagine so I can’t wait to find out.

Coons: Kavanaugh ‘Bears the Burden of Disproving These Allegations’

Author Heather MacDonald: Efforts to destroy Kavanaugh stem from this feminist movement

‘He became aggressive and belligerent when he was very drunk’: Brett Kavanaugh’s former roommate sides with accuser who claims he exposed himself at college party

Rosenstein resigns. Wait, no he doesn’t

What a bummer this turned out to be. Attorney General Rod Rosenstein was rumored to have resigned yesterday or was rumored to have resigned on the phone to Chief of Staff Kelly or he was on his way to the WH to resign or some other story the media was all ecstatic about before it turned to be a dud. That’s our media, always reporting the truth. Not so fast.

Indeed Rosenstein had already offered Kelly his resignation on Friday after The New York Times reported that he had suggested secretly recording President Donald Trump and discussed an effort to oust Trump from office via the 25th Amendment. And as he pulled up to the White House on Monday morning — still the deputy attorney general, his resignation pending — he expected he would leave a private citizen, fired by President Donald Trump.

So dumbass Rosenstein didn’t know Trump was in New York at the UN so he wasn’t at the WH to fire him? This whole thing smells really fishy. Trump and Rosenstein are going to meet on Thursday, when I hope President Trump fires him and then has him arrested for his part in the FBI/DOJ coup. Remember Rosenstein signed one of the FISA warrants full of lies. Say, was Rosenstein involved in the Uranium One “investigation”?

Andy McCarthy has a great piece on Rosenstein that is worth reading in its entirety, “Rod Rosenstein’s Resistance.” Go read it and come back here.

What Rosenstein’s ouster would mean for Mueller

Mueller makes rare mention of Trump dossier author

Historical picture of the day:

Veteran actor Charlton Heston gives a striking he-man pose during a interview in Hollywood, Los Angeles on Sept. 25, 1984. Heston plays the part of an African white hunter in the CBS movie, Nairobi Affair, which was filmed entirely on location in Kenya. (AP Photo/Red McLendon)

Other morsels:

You are going to want to watch this little girl sing the national anthem

Saving pets without a permit: Good Samaritan arrested after helping animals survive Florence

U.S. Urged to Rapidly Prepare for Electromagnetic Pulse Attack

Enough already: Whole Foods sues animal rights group over years of in-store protests

DC Police Cameras Hacked Before Trump Inauguration. Defendants Plead Guilty

Man arrested for brutal attacks on homeless people

Judge Restores Grizzly Bears’ Protections As Endangered Species

Anthony Bourdain ‘cheated on me, too,’ Asia Argento reveals in tearful interview

You will be made to care Ted Cruz heckled by protesters in DC restaurant: video

American diplomat found dead in Madagascar

And that’s all I’ve got, now go beat back the angry mob!