Videos of the Day: Kavanaugh Tears up Prepared Speech, Offers Fiery Defense of His Character

Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh abandoned his prepared remarks on Sept. 27 and offered an emotional defense of his dignity and innocence before the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Often choking back tears, he detailed how the last-minute allegations against him have wreaked havoc on his family, destroyed his reputation, and undermined the constitutional process for confirming judicial nominees for decades to come.

“You have replaced advice and consent with search and destroy,” Kavanaugh said, referring to the Senate’s constitutional mandate to advise the president on judicial nominees.

Kavanaugh placed the blame squarely on the committee Democrats, at least one of whom had withheld the allegations against him for 45 days until after his confirmation hearings were completed. The judge called the resulting process a “grotesque” smear campaign, which has destroyed a reputation he spent decades building.

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Conway: Trump ‘Stands By’ Brett Kavanaugh

White House counselor Kellyanne Conway insisted on Sept. 27 that US President Trump “stands by” his Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh, despite multiple allegations of sexual misconduct.

Conway made the remarks on the White House driveway shortly before a high-stakes hearing got underway during which Kavanaugh’s first accuser, Christine Blasey Ford, appeared before the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Conway said President Trump is keeping “an open mind” while watching the testimony, but said he also believes “a good man’s reputation has been ruined,” and she urged the press to “think thrice before you assassinate someone’s character.”

Body Believed to Be Missing Autistic Boy Maddox Ritch Found, FBI Says

A body that is believed to be of missing 6-year-old Maddox Ritch, who went missing days ago and sparked a widespread search and rescue effort, was found on Sept. 27.

The FBI said that the boy’s body was discovered in Gastonia, North Carolina.

“With heavy hearts we announce a body believed to be 6-year-old Maddox Ritch was found at approximately 1 p.m. off of Marietta Street/Old Dallas Highway in Gastonia. Maddox’s parents have been notified of the discovery. The investigation is ongoing,” the FBI Charlotte office said on Twitter.

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Fancy Vivid Pink diamond estimated to fetch up to $50 million at auction

A Fancy Vivid Pink diamond is estimated to sell for almost $50 million dollars, auction house Christie’s said on Sept. 25.

The diamond, weighing 18.96 carats, is the largest of its kind to be sold in the company’s history, International Jewellery Director David Warren told Reuters in London a day earlier on Sept. 24.

“In 40 years of working at Christie’s I’ve never seen anything like this in my life. It was a huge surprise when there it was, we saw it and couldn’t quite believe that such a stone existed. It has wonderful purity and incredible brightness. It is beautifully cut, but it is the size and the color that just take your breath away,” Warren said.

“The estimate is $30-50 million dollars which is the highest estimate we have placed on any piece of jewelry at any time,” he added.

The diamond is on display in London this week ahead of going on auction at the Four Seasons Hotel des Bergues in Geneva, Switzerland on Nov. 13.

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