In this image from Senate Television, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Ky., speaks about Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh on the floor of the Senate Monday, Sept. 24, 2018, on Capitol Hill... (Associated Press) 
 
 In this image from Senate Television, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Ky., speaks about Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh on the floor of the Senate Monday, Sept. 24, 2018, on Capitol Hill in Washington. McConnell is condemning allegations of sexual misconduct against Kavanaugh as a "shameful,... (Associated Press) 
 
 WASHINGTON (AP) — The Latest on the Supreme Court nomination of Brett Kavanaugh (all times local): 
 
 12:10 p.m. 
 
 President Donald Trump says Democrats are playing a "con game" against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh. 
 
 Trump is seeking to cast doubt on sexual misconduct allegations lodged against Kavanaugh by a Yale classmate, Deborah Ramirez, who made her claims in an article published in The New Yorker magazine. 
 
 Trump says Ramirez says it might not have been Kavanaugh and there were gaps in her memory. He says she says "she was totally inebriated and all messed up." 
 
 Trump says: "This is a con game being played by the Democrats." 
 
 Kavanaugh is set to testify Thursday at a public hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee. Christine Blasey Ford, who has accused Kavanaugh of sexually assaulting her when they were teenagers, is also expected to testify. 
 
 ___ 
 
 11:18 a.m. 
 
 A key Republican senator is indicating she believes there should be a new FBI investigation of Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh after allegations of sexual misconduct. 
 
 Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski is one of a handful of Senate Republicans undecided on Kavanaugh's confirmation. When asked Tuesday if there should be a full FBI investigation about the claims, she said: "Well, it would sure clear up all the questions, wouldn't it?" 
 
 President Donald Trump and most Senate Republicans have said an FBI investigation isn't needed. Kavanaugh and his initial accuser, Christine Blasey Ford, will testify Thursday before the Senate Judiciary Committee. Ford says he sexually assaulted her when both were teenagers. 
 
 A second woman told the New Yorker magazine that Kavanaugh exposed himself to her in college. Kavanaugh denies both claims. 
 
 ____ 
 
 11 a.m. 
 
 The Senate Democratic leader, Chuck Schumer, says Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell owes Christine Blasey Ford an apology for calling her allegations against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh a smear job. 
 
 Schumer says "he should apologize to her immediately." 
 
 Two women have accused Kavanaugh of sexual misconduct decades ago. He has denied sexually assaulting anyone. 
 
 Schumer, the minority leader, also says it is galling that McConnell is making charges of partisanship by Democrats. He says McConnell has done more than maybe anyone else to politicize the Supreme Court nomination process. 
 
 Schumer says that if McConnell truly believed the allegations were a partisan attack, he would join Democrats in calling for a background investigation. 
 
 Schumer says "I think they're afraid of the facts." 
 
 __ 
 
 10:35 a.m. 
 
 The Senate's top Republican says unconfirmed, decades-old allegations of sexual misconduct by Brett Kavanaugh are no reason to block his Supreme Court nomination. 
 
 Majority Leader Mitch McConnell says such charges are "nowhere near" a reason to "nullify someone's career." He says in the United States, accused people are supposed to be treated with fairness and a presumption of innocence. 
 
 McConnell's emphasis on fairness comes as Republican leaders have ramped up efforts to solidify support for Kavanaugh among GOP senators. 
 
 Christine Blasey Ford has accused Kavanaugh of molesting her during an early 1980s high school party. Deborah Ramirez has said Kavanaugh forced her to touch his penis during a Yale dormitory party when both were freshmen. Kavanaugh has denied both allegations. 
 
 McConnell says the Senate will vote on Kavanaugh's confirmation soon. 
 
 __ 
 
 7:25 a.m. 
 
 White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders says "we would be open" to Deborah Ramirez, a second woman accusing Brett Kavanaugh of sexual misconduct, testify before the Senate Judiciary panel this week. 
 
 Sanders says that "process could take place on Thursday," when Kavanaugh and Christine Blasey Ford, who has separately accused him of assaulting her in high school, are scheduled to testify. 
 
 She says President Donald Trump "has said a number of times these individuals should be heard." At the same time, she noted that Kavanaugh has been "unequivocal in his denial" of sexual assault allegations. She adds, "This is a country where you're innocent until proven guilty except when you're a conservative Republican." 
 
 Republicans have accused Democrats of a smear campaign by using the women's accusations of misconduct by Kavanaugh in high school and college to try to defeat his nomination. 
 
 __ 
 
 12:40 a.m. 
 
 Brett Kavanaugh says he won't let "false accusations" drive him from his quest to win Senate confirmation to the Supreme Court. That's part of an aggressive drive by President Donald Trump and top Republicans to rally the public and GOP senators behind Kavanaugh's teetering nomination. 
 
 Trump and Republican leaders are accusing Democrats of a smear campaign by using accusations by two women of sexual misconduct by Kavanaugh in the 1980s to try scuttling his Senate confirmation. 
 
 There were no immediate indications that the emergence of a second accuser had fatally wounded Kavanaugh's prospects. But Republicans tried projecting unflinching support for Kavanaugh that included the nominee taking the unusual step of defending himself in a television interview. 
 
 Kavanaugh said Monday on Fox News Channel, "I've never sexually assaulted anyone." ||||| President Donald Trump answers a reporters question about Supreme Court Justice nominee Brett Kavanaugh during a meeting with Colombian President Ivan Duque at the United Nations General Assembly, Tuesday,... (Associated Press) 
 
 President Donald Trump answers a reporters question about Supreme Court Justice nominee Brett Kavanaugh during a meeting with Colombian President Ivan Duque at the United Nations General Assembly, Tuesday, Sept. 25, 2018, at U.N. Headquarters. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci) (Associated Press) 
 
 WASHINGTON (AP) — The Latest on the Supreme Court nomination of Brett Kavanaugh (all times local): 
 
 7 p.m. 
 
 The attorney for Brett Kavanaugh's second accuser says his client wants to give a sworn statement to the FBI. 
 
 John Clune tweets that he's been trying to talk to Senate Judiciary Committee staffers about how Deborah Ramirez can swear to her account of sexual misconduct by President Donald Trump's Supreme Court nominee. Ramirez told The New Yorker that Kavanaugh exposed his genitals to her during a party at Yale 35 years ago. 
 
 "Ms. Ramirez is ready to swear to the FBI under penalty of perjury," Clune tweeted. "Why won't the Senate Judiciary Committee welcome that?" 
 
 __ 
 
 6:30 p.m. 
 
 The Senate Judiciary Committee has scheduled a vote Friday on Brett Kavanaugh's nomination to the Supreme Court. 
 
 The committee vote is being set for the day after Kavanaugh and Christine Blasey Ford are to testify about her allegation he sexually assaulted her when they were teens. That public hearing is set for Thursday. 
 
 The committee scheduled the vote as Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell announced Tuesday he was moving forward with Kavanaugh's nomination. 
 
 Kavanaugh has denied Ford's claim and that of another woman who has come forward with an allegation from his time at Yale. 
 
 The committee will be voting on whether to recommend Kavanaugh's nomination to the full Senate. 
 
 Senators were told to be prepared for a rare weekend session and McConnell said he was confident Kavanugh would be confirmed. 
 
 __ 
 
 3:55 p.m. 
 
 Democratic Sen. Patty Murray says President Donald Trump is sending the wrong message by diminishing the account of a woman who's accused Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh of sexual misconduct while both were students at Yale. 
 
 Trump says Deborah Ramirez acknowledges being drunk and having gaps in her memory, casting doubt on her account. 
 
 Murray asked, "How many women have heard that before? How many women have kept their experiences quiet because they knew they would hear that?" 
 
 Kavanaugh has denied Ramirez's accusation. 
 
 The Washington state senator was elected in 1992, a year after explosive hearings involving then-Supreme Court nominee Clarence Thomas. Murray says Thomas's accuser, Anita Hill, was not treated fairly. 
 
 She says, "I have been very, very focused on making sure that this time around, 27 years later, this Senate acts appropriately." 
 
 ___ 
 
 2:45 p.m. 
 
 Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell says he's confident Brett Kavanaugh will be confirmed to the Supreme Court. 
 
 McConnell told reporters Tuesday the Senate is "moving forward" on the nomination. 
 
 The GOP leader says he's "confident we're going win." 
 
 Pressed if he had the 50 votes needed for Kavanaugh amid sexual assault allegations from the judge's time as a teenager, the Kentucky Republican indicated he did. 
 
 McConnell says he's confident Kavanaugh "will be confirmed in the very near future." 
 
 The Senate Judiciary Committee is set to hear Thursday from Kavanaugh and Christine Blasey Ford, who has accused him of sexual assault from high school. The committee could vote Friday. 
 
 Senators may stay in session over the weekend to begin voting on the nominee, with a final vote possible early next week. 
 
 ____ 
 
 2:15 p.m. 
 
 Senate Republicans are considering a weekend session to begin the process of voting on Brett Kavanaugh's nomination to the Supreme Court. 
 
 A final vote on Kavanaugh could come early next week, according to a GOP aide not authorized to discuss the plans on the record and who insisted on anonymity. 
 
 Kavanaugh is set to appear Thursday for a Judiciary Committee hearing with Christine Blasey Ford, who accuses him of sexual assault when they were teens. Kavanaugh denies the allegation. 
 
 After the hearing, the Judiciary panel could vote as soon as Friday on whether to recommend Kavanaugh's confirmation to the full Senate. Then the Senate could take up the nomination over the weekend. Senators are being told to keep their schedules open. 
 
 Republicans worry that prolonging the process for Kavanaugh would open him to more rumors and accusations about his past, which they say are being orchestrated by Democrats. 
 
 —Lisa Mascaro 
 
 __ 
 
 12:20 p.m. 
 
 Republicans have hired a female attorney to handle questioning during this week's hearing with Christine Blasey Ford and Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh. 
 
 The attorney's name has not been released. The hire was confirmed by a GOP aide to the Senate Judiciary Committee who was not authorized to speak publicly. 
 
 Ford's lawyers have objected to Republicans hiring someone they call an "experienced sex crimes prosecutor." They say the move is inconsistent with the GOP pledge to avoid a "circus." 
 
 Attorney Michael R. Bromwich asked Republicans for the name of the attorney and the opportunity to meet with her before Thursday's hearing. 
 
 Republicans want a woman to conduct their questioning of Ford, who accuses Kavanaugh of sexually assaulting her when they were teens. Kavanaugh denies the allegation. 
 
 All 11 Republicans on the Senate panel are men. 
 
 —Lisa Mascaro 
 
 ___ 
 
 12: 15 p.m. 
 
 The attorney for the second woman accusing Brett Kavanaugh of sexual misconduct says she wants an FBI investigation. 
 
 Attorney John Clune tweeted that he is in contact with the Senate Judiciary Committee. He said: "We remain adamant that an FBI investigation, where all witnesses are questioned under threat of perjury, is the only way to get the truth." 
 
 Clune said his client, Deborah Ramirez, stands by her account of drunken wrongdoing by Kavanaugh that she told to The New Yorker. The account was published Sunday. 
 
 Ramirez alleges that while in his first year at Yale University, Kavanaugh put his genitals in her face after a drinking game. Kavanaugh denies the accusation. 
 
 ___ 
 
 12:10 p.m. 
 
 President Donald Trump says Democrats are playing a "con game" against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh. 
 
 Trump is seeking to cast doubt on sexual misconduct allegations lodged against Kavanaugh by a Yale classmate, Deborah Ramirez, who made her claims in an article published in The New Yorker magazine. 
 
 Trump says Ramirez says it might not have been Kavanaugh and there were gaps in her memory. He says she says "she was totally inebriated and all messed up." 
 
 Trump says: "This is a con game being played by the Democrats." 
 
 Kavanaugh is set to testify Thursday at a public hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee. Christine Blasey Ford, who has accused Kavanaugh of sexually assaulting her when they were teenagers, is also expected to testify. 
 
 ___ 
 
 11:18 a.m. 
 
 A key Republican senator is indicating she believes there should be a new FBI investigation of Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh after allegations of sexual misconduct. 
 
 Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski is one of a handful of Senate Republicans undecided on Kavanaugh's confirmation. When asked Tuesday if there should be a full FBI investigation about the claims, she said: "Well, it would sure clear up all the questions, wouldn't it?" 
 
 President Donald Trump and most Senate Republicans have said an FBI investigation isn't needed. Kavanaugh and his initial accuser, Christine Blasey Ford, will testify Thursday before the Senate Judiciary Committee. Ford says he sexually assaulted her when both were teenagers. 
 
 A second woman told the New Yorker magazine that Kavanaugh exposed himself to her in college. Kavanaugh denies both claims. 
 
 ____ 
 
 11 a.m. 
 
 The Senate Democratic leader, Chuck Schumer, says Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell owes Christine Blasey Ford an apology for calling her allegations against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh a smear job. 
 
 Schumer says "he should apologize to her immediately." 
 
 Two women have accused Kavanaugh of sexual misconduct decades ago. He has denied sexually assaulting anyone. 
 
 Schumer, the minority leader, also says it is galling that McConnell is making charges of partisanship by Democrats. He says McConnell has done more than maybe anyone else to politicize the Supreme Court nomination process. 
 
 Schumer says that if McConnell truly believed the allegations were a partisan attack, he would join Democrats in calling for a background investigation. 
 
 Schumer says "I think they're afraid of the facts." 
 
 __ 
 
 10:35 a.m. 
 
 The Senate's top Republican says unconfirmed, decades-old allegations of sexual misconduct by Brett Kavanaugh are no reason to block his Supreme Court nomination. 
 
 Majority Leader Mitch McConnell says such charges are "nowhere near" a reason to "nullify someone's career." He says in the United States, accused people are supposed to be treated with fairness and a presumption of innocence. 
 
 McConnell's emphasis on fairness comes as Republican leaders have ramped up efforts to solidify support for Kavanaugh among GOP senators. 
 
 Christine Blasey Ford has accused Kavanaugh of molesting her during an early 1980s high school party. Deborah Ramirez has said Kavanaugh forced her to touch his penis during a Yale dormitory party when both were freshmen. Kavanaugh has denied both allegations. 
 
 McConnell says the Senate will vote on Kavanaugh's confirmation soon. 
 
 __ 
 
 7:25 a.m. 
 
 White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders says "we would be open" to Deborah Ramirez, a second woman accusing Brett Kavanaugh of sexual misconduct, testify before the Senate Judiciary panel this week. 
 
 Sanders says that "process could take place on Thursday," when Kavanaugh and Christine Blasey Ford, who has separately accused him of assaulting her in high school, are scheduled to testify. 
 
 She says President Donald Trump "has said a number of times these individuals should be heard." At the same time, she noted that Kavanaugh has been "unequivocal in his denial" of sexual assault allegations. She adds, "This is a country where you're innocent until proven guilty except when you're a conservative Republican." 
 
 Republicans have accused Democrats of a smear campaign by using the women's accusations of misconduct by Kavanaugh in high school and college to try to defeat his nomination. 
 
 __ 
 
 12:40 a.m. 
 
 Brett Kavanaugh says he won't let "false accusations" drive him from his quest to win Senate confirmation to the Supreme Court. That's part of an aggressive drive by President Donald Trump and top Republicans to rally the public and GOP senators behind Kavanaugh's teetering nomination. 
 
 Trump and Republican leaders are accusing Democrats of a smear campaign by using accusations by two women of sexual misconduct by Kavanaugh in the 1980s to try scuttling his Senate confirmation. 
 
 There were no immediate indications that the emergence of a second accuser had fatally wounded Kavanaugh's prospects. But Republicans tried projecting unflinching support for Kavanaugh that included the nominee taking the unusual step of defending himself in a television interview. 
 
 Kavanaugh said Monday on Fox News Channel, "I've never sexually assaulted anyone." ||||| CLOSE President Donald Trump says Democrats are playing a "con game" against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh. (Sept. 25) AP 
 
 President Donald Trump arrives with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, right, and National Security Advisor John Bolton, left, at the United Nations on Sept. 24, 2018. (Photo: JUSTIN LANE, EPA-EFE) 
 
 NEW YORK – President Donald Trump unloaded on congressional Democrats Tuesday for playing a "con game" over his Supreme Court nominee, Brett Kavanaugh, and he used his strongest language yet to criticize those accusing him of sexual assault. 
 
 “The second accuser has nothing,” Trump said of Deborah Ramirez, who has accused Kavanaugh of exposing himself to her at a party when they were freshmen at Yale University. “She admits that she was drunk. She admits time lapses." 
 
 Trump made the remarks to reporters during a bilateral meeting with the president of Colombia, Iván Duque Márquez, at the United Nations General Assembly. He focused most of his ire on Democrats, who have urged a delay in the face of accusations from Ramirez and Christine Blasey Ford. 
 
 “They’re really con artists,” Trump said of Democrats. “They don’t believe it themselves. They’re playing a con game, and they play it very well.” 
 
 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! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 26, 2018 
 
 In a late-night tweet, Trump again blasted Democrats for what he called a "vicious effort to destroy a fine person" and asked for prayers for Kavanaugh and his family. 
 
 "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!" Trump wrote. 
 
 But Trump, who initially took a more cautious approach to Kavanaugh's accusers, has increasingly ramped up his criticism of them. Last week he questioned why Ford had not reported the allegations to authorities at the time. 
 
 On Tuesday, he took a more direct approach in questioning Ramirez's story. 
 
 "Now a new charge comes up and she says it may not be him and there are gaps. And she was totally inebriated and all messed up, and she doesn’t know," Trump said. "It might have been him, or it might have been him. 
 
 "Gee, let’s not make him a Supreme Court judge," Trump continued. "This is a con game being played by the Democrats." 
 
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– President Trump amped up the rhetoric Tuesday by calling Democrats "con artists" and saying Brett Kavanaugh's second accuser "has nothing" on the Supreme Court nominee, USA Today reports. "She admits that she was drunk," says Trump of Deborah Ramirez, who accuses Kavanaugh of exposing himself to her at a drunken dormitory party years ago. "She admits time lapses." Talking Points Memo notes that Trump was at UN headquarters in New York with the president of Colombia, Ivan Marquez, when he said, "As the president of a great country, Colombia, you must say, 'How is this possible?' Thirty-six years ago and nobody ever knew about it, nobody ever heard about it?” "And now a new charge comes up and she said, well, it might not be him, and there were gaps, and she said she was totally inebriated and she was all messed up and she doesn’t know it was him, but it might have been him?" adds Trump. "Oh gee, let’s not make him a Supreme Court judge because of that?" Of the Democrats, he says: "They’re really con artists. They don’t believe it themselves. They're playing a con game, and they play it very well." Meanwhile, the Washington Post reports that Sarah Huckabee Sanders says Ramirez could testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday—the same day Christine Ford plans to speak—and Sen. Lisa Murkowski, a Republican who remains undecided on Kavanaugh, suggests she supports a full FBI investigation, per the AP.