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Oregon Senator Merkley Files Emergency Motion Against Kavanaugh Confirmation

Ninian Reed
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Flickr.com

Oregon Democratic Senator Jeff Merkley has filed an emergency motion in his lawsuit over Brett Kavanaugh’s confirmation vote.

Last week, Merkley filed a motion for an injunction in U.S. District Court, citing a violation of separation of powers.  More than 100,000 documents related to the Supreme Court nominee’s tenure with the George W. Bush administration have been withheld, through President Trump’s use of “presidential privilege”.

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Flickr.com

Merkley says the Senate deserves to see those records before it votes.  He says should his action result in the release of those documents, there will be no attempt to delay Kavanaugh’s confirmation.

“It depends all on how the vote is structured, but very limited time to review them," Merkley tells KLCC. 

"We’ll have to have teams of people going through those documents, to see what’s in them.  And this is the challenge…we’ve had a hostile takeover of the American vision documented in our Constitution.”

Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell says he wants to hold a confirmation vote this week.

Copyright 2018, KLCC.

Brian Bull is an assistant professor of journalism at the University of Oregon, and remains a contributor to the KLCC news department. He began working with KLCC in June 2016.   In his 27+ years as a public media journalist, he's worked at NPR, Twin Cities Public Television, South Dakota Public Broadcasting, Wisconsin Public Radio, and ideastream in Cleveland. His reporting has netted dozens of accolades, including four national Edward R. Murrow Awards (22 regional),  the Ohio Associated Press' Best Reporter Award, Best Radio Reporter from  the Native American Journalists Association, and the PRNDI/NEFE Award for Excellence in Consumer Finance Reporting.
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