GOP/NOMINATIONS/SUPREME COURT/TRUMP PEOPLE/WOMEN: “The scramble to save the Brett Kavanaugh’s Supreme Court nomination is the first real test of whether President Donald Trump can work in lockstep with Republican members of Congress and conservative activists under crisis conditions. Trump’s commitment to stacking the judiciary with conservative jurists may be his top selling point among traditional Republicans who find him distasteful in other ways, and who now share his determination to rescue Kavanaugh from a charge of teenaged sexual assault. That task may have become easier Tuesday [9-18-18] night, with the revelation that Kavanaugh’s accuser is likely to back out of a planned Senate appearance next week, arguing that the FBI must first investigate her claim before she testifies. But a cloud still hangs over Trump’s nominee, whose fate could remain a pitched partisan and social battle for days if not weeks or more. Sustaining a save-Kavanaugh campaign won’t be easy for the president and his allies, who have feuded on a range of issues — including trade, immigration, health care and Russia policy. A half-dozen sources in the White House and on Capitol Hill acknowledged that developing a coherent strategy will test a Trump team not known for Swiss precision, or for close coordination with Congress — especially when the president can always upend careful plans with a tweet. Some are consoled, however, by what they call Trump’s relatively hands off approach towards Supreme Court nomination politics.”
–Eliana Johnson, Burgess Everett and John Bresnahan, “Kavanaugh crisis bonds Trump with wary GOP,” Politico, September 19, 2018 5:27 am