Washington D.C., Sep 4, 2018 / 15:29 pm
Senate confirmation hearings for Judge Brett Kavanaugh began Tuesday. Before Kavanaugh could utter a word, Senate Democrats repeatedly interrupted the proceedings and attempted to delay the hearing, and multiple protestors were escorted from the room.
While the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing began at 9:30 a.m. Sept. 4, opening statements did not begin for more than an hour. Senate Democrats said that they had not been given enough time to review the thousands of documents released on Monday by the White House, and that the hearing should therefore be moved to another date. Senate Democrats also argued that they did not have access to documents from Kavanaugh's time working for President George W. Bush.
Those files were not released as the White House claimed executive privilege.
Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) told Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) that refusing to move the hearing violated the Iowa senator's "sense of fairness, decency, and the commitment [he] made to transparency."