facebook-pixel

Political Cornflakes: Trump says women have brought ‘false charges’ of sexual misconduct against him over the years, which ‘absolutely’ changes his view of the allegations against Kavanaugh

(Alex Brandon | AP Photo) In this Sept. 6, 2018, file photo, President Donald Trump's Supreme Court nominee, Brett Kavanaugh testifies before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington, for the third day of his confirmation hearing to replace retired Justice Anthony Kennedy. Senate Republicans are bringing in Arizona prosecutor Rachel Mitchell to handle questioning about Christine Blasey Ford's allegations of sexual assault against Kavanaugh at the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing Thursday, Sept. 27, 2018.

Dr. Christine Blasey Ford, who has accused Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh of sexually assaulting her during a party in their high school years, is scheduled to testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee today. On Wednesday, President Donald Trump said his own history of being accused of sexual misconduct by more than a dozen women over the decades “absolutely” changes how he views the allegations against Kavanaugh. “I’ve had a lot of false charges made against me,” Trump said. “I’m a very famous person, unfortunately.” [WaPost]

Happy Thursday.

Topping the news: Utah Sen. Mike Lee has kept quiet about the sexual assault allegations against Kavanaugh. But his communications director hasn’t, using social media to go off on the nominee’s accusers. [Trib]

-> Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch says he’s “naturally suspicious" of a third woman’s claims against Kavanaugh and continued to raise concern about how late their allegations have come in the Senate Judiciary Committee’s process. [Trib]

-> Anita Hill, who accused then-Supreme Court nominee Clarence Thomas of sexual harassment almost three decades ago, told Utahns at her speech at the University of Utah that the results of Kavanaugh’s hearings shouldn’t be thought of as a “barometer of success” for the #MeToo movement. But she did draw parallels between her treatment and that of his accusers. [Trib] [DNews] [FOX13]

Tweets of the day: From @realDonaldTrump: “The Democrats are playing a high level CON GAME in their vicious effort to destroy a fine person. It is called the politics of destruction. Behind the scene the Dems are laughing. Pray for Brett Kavanaugh and his family!”

-> From @byrdinator: “trump says xi jinping has respect for donald trump and his "very very large brain".”

-> From @SpencerJCox: “Yes. For the first time ever, all Utahns will be able to register at a polling place on Election Day. (Something I’ve been working on for years )”

Happy Birthday: To State Sen. Allen Christensen and Wade Garrett, director of public policy at the Utah Farm Bureau.

Trib Talk: Utah Lieutenant Governor Spencer Cox and House Majority Leader Brad Wilson, R-Kaysville, join reporter Benjamin Wood to discuss the arguments for and against Constitutional Amendment C, which could alter the checks and balances between the state’s legislative and executive branches. [Trib]

In other news: In a recent poll, 57 percent of Utahns said they would not vote to give Trump a second term, and 67 percent of women said they’d like to see someone new take charge. [Trib] [DNews]

-> Rep. Mia Love’s new election attorney says that funds raised and intended for a primary election that didn’t happen total no more than around $10,000, which is being refunded. A progressive nonprofit organization has filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission over the money, seeking a possible criminal investigation. [DNews]

-> Nathan Evershed, the Republican candidate for Salt Lake County district attorney, has also been accused of violating campaign donation limits. He has allegedly raised $18,000 — around three times the accepted $6,000 allowed for D.A. candidates. [Trib]

-> At its monthly meeting on Wednesday, the Inland Port Authority Board concluded without much action, as it worked to dispel criticism over a perceived lack of transparency and set the groundwork for future decision making. [Trib] [DNews]

-> Polls indicate that a majority of Salt Lake City residents don’t feel the homelessness issue in Salt Lake City has improved since Operation Rio Grande began last year. [DNews]

-> A federal judge awarded $478,000 in legal fees to the movie theatre/bar Brewvies — which faced revocation of its liquor license last year for showing the movie “Deadpool” — and criticized the Utah State Legislature for passing an unconstitutional law. [FOX13]

-> Geneva Rock will return to Draper soon with a new proposal for a gravel pit rezone after its 73-acre proposal generated public outcry. [Trib]

-> Pat Bagley illustrates Hatch and other members of the Senate Judiciary Committee grilling Ford, one of Kavanaugh’s accusers. [Trib]

Nationally: Trump said Wednesday that he’d rather not fire Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein and mentioned delaying or canceling the meeting with Rosenstein originally scheduled for Thursday — an act that might suggest he has listened to public outcry. [CNN] [Politico] [NYTimes] [WSJ]

-> A third woman, Julie Swetnick, has come forward to accuse Kavanaugh of sexual misconduct at parties during his time at Georgetown Preparatory School. [NYTimes] [WSJ]

-> Trump has accused China of “meddling” in the upcoming U.S. midterm elections as retaliation for his trade policies with the country. He did not offer evidence to substantiate the claim. [BBC] [WSJ]

-> In a rare bipartisan move, the House and Senate passed legislation that seeks to address the opioid epidemic through a mixture of law enforcement and public health measures. [NYTimes]

Got a tip? A birthday, wedding or anniversary to announce? Send us a note to cornflakes@sltrib.com. And if you want Cornflakes to arrive in your email inbox each morning, subscribe here.

-- Taylor Stevens and Cara MacDonald

https://twitter.com/tstevensmedia and Twitter.com/carammacdonald