Protesters drown out Sen. Joe Manchin as he's trying to explain why he'll vote to confirm Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court
- Protesters shouted "shame" at Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin on Friday after he said he'll vote yes to confirm Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court.
- Manchin's announcement came after Republican Sen. Susan Collins said she'd vote yes on Kavanaugh, shifting the vote count in their favor.
- Manchin is the only Democrat who's likely to vote in favor of Kavanaugh.
- Kavanaugh faces multiple allegations of sexual misconduct.
Protesters surrounded Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin on Friday after he announced he'll vote yes to confirm Judge Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court, drowning him out as he tried to explain his decision.
The demonstrators shouted "shame" and "look at us" as Manchin spoke with reporters about his decision, which came shortly after Republican Sen. Susan Collins announced she's voting yes for the Supreme Court nominee. As he walked away from reporters and the enraged crowd, one protester shouted at Manchin, asking him whether he was "going to let our democracy die?"
With Collins and Manchin signaling they're behind Kavanaugh, it seems he will have enough votes to be confirmed as the next Supreme Court justice.
Kavanaugh faces multiple allegations of sexual misconduct, which have sparked a fierce, highly partisan battle over his nomination in recent weeks. Kavanaugh and one of his accusers, Christine Blasey Ford, delivered emotional testimony last week on allegations he sexually assaulted her when they were teenagers.
Their testimony led to a brief FBI investigation into the matter, which Senate Republicans have said prove the allegations against Kavanaugh cannot be corroborated. Senate Democrats and other critics, however, contend the investigation was not extensive enough and that many key witnesses were excluded.
But the Senate ultimately voted to move Kavanaugh's nomination forward on Friday morning, and Collins several hours later announced she'd support his confirmation during the final vote on Saturday. Manchin followed her lead.
In a statement on his decision to vote for Kavanaugh, Manchin expressed "reservations" against supporting him given the serious nature of the allegations against him, but said that based on the "information" available, he feels the Supreme Court nominee is a "qualified jurist."
"Based on all of the information I have available to me, including the recently completed FBI report, I have found Judge Kavanaugh to be a qualified jurist who will follow the Constitution and determine cases based on the legal findings before him," the West Virginia senator stated.
"I do hope that Judge Kavanaugh will not allow the partisan nature this process took to follow him onto the court," Manchin added in the statement.
All of Manchin's Democratic colleagues in the Senate are likely to vote no on Kavanaugh.