Politics

Michael Bloomberg and his choice for commerce secretary, Oprah Winfrey.  (AP) Oprah Winfrey was in the running to be Mike Bloomberg’s secretary of commerce during his last flirtation with the White House in 2016, alongside other big names for the onetime New York City mayor's would-be Cabinet. An initial list also tapped fellow billionaires Bill Gates of Microsoft fame for secretary of state, Tesla CEO Elon Musk for energy, and Berkshire Hathaway’s Warren Buffett for treasury, according to an account from Bloomberg adviser Bradley Tusk in his memoir “The Fixer” (Portfolio/Penguin Random House), which hit bookstores last week. As the billionaire businessman, politician and philanthropist once again reportedly mulls running for president — this time as a Democrat — his team’s early strategy in 2016 offers a glimpse into how a national Bloomberg campaign might look in 2020. “He has a really unique opportunity to run a campaign … [Read more...] about Under President Bloomberg, we might have had Secretary Oprah

Visit The Boston Globe Share on Twitter Share on Facebook Comment on this Scroll to top of page By Lisa Mascaro and Mary Clare Jalonick Associated Press  September 22, 2018 WASHINGTON (AP) — The woman accusing Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh of a decades-old sexual assault has accepted a Senate committee’s request to tell her side next week but Christine Blasey Ford wants to resume negotiations over the exact terms of her appearance, her lawyers said Saturday.It was not immediately clear whether the Republican-run Senate Judiciary Committee would agree to more talks with Ford’s team. Also unclear was when she might come to Capitol Hill and whether she was offering to speak in a public session or a private one. The committee wanted her to appear Wednesday, but she prefers her earlier request for Thursday, according to a person familiar with the negotiations who was not authorized to discuss the matter publicly.Her lawyers’ letter to … [Read more...] about Kavanaugh accuser will testify before Senate panel

Christine Blasey Ford agreed Saturday to discuss with the Senate Judiciary Committee next week her allegation that Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh sexually assaulted her decades ago. In an email from Ford’s lawyers to Senate Judiciary Committee staff, Ford accepted the “request to provide her first-hand knowledge of Brett Kavanaugh’s sexual misconduct” but did not specify how she would do that. Judiciary Chairman Charles E. Grassley offered to have Ford testify Wednesday in public or private, but also offered her a public or private interview. Attorneys Debra Katz and Lisa Banks said in an email they hope to keep negotiating. Although many aspects of the committee’s proposal “are fundamentally inconsistent with the Committee’s promise of a fair, impartial investigation into her allegations, and we are disappointed with the leaks and the bullying that have tainted the process,” the lawyers wrote, “we are hopeful that … [Read more...] about Kavanaugh Accuser Agrees to Talk to Senate Judiciary Committee

WASHINGTON (AP) - The Latest on Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh and a woman accusing him of sexually assaulting her decades ago (all times local):2:50 p.m.Lawyers for the woman who's accusing Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh of a sexual assault decades ago when they were teenagers say they've accepted the Senate Judiciary Committee's request for her to tell her story.But attorneys for Christine Blasey Ford say in a letter to the committee's Republican majority that they want to set up a time later Saturday to keep discussing terms of Ford's appearance.The letter says Ford "accepts" the committee's request that in the coming week she would "provide her first-hand knowledge of Brett Kavanaugh's sexual misconduct."The lawyers say they are "hopeful that we can reach agreement on details" of Ford's appearance.Connecticut Senator Richard Blumenthal has released the following statement regarding Ford's agreement to testify: ___12:10 p.m.Vice President Mike Pence calls … [Read more...] about The Latest: Kavanaugh accuser to tell her side to Senate

Tom Williams/AP Looking for news you can trust?Subscribe to our free newsletters. Republican Senate candidate Rep. Kevin Cramer of North Dakota said the sexual assault allegations against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh were “absurd,” dismissing the claim because it involved teenagers who had been drinking and only attempted—not completed—rape. On Friday, as Senate Republicans were negotiating with Kavanaugh’s accuser, Dr. Christine Blasey Ford, about the terms of her planned testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee, Cramer appeared on a North Dakota talk-radio show and criticized Ford for asking to testify after Kavanaugh, saying she was disregarding “due process.” When asked about the relationship between Ford’s claim and Anita Hill’s 1991 sexual harassment accusation against Justice Clarence Thomas, Cramer said the allegation against Kavanaugh was “even more absurd.” “These are … [Read more...] about GOP Senate Candidate Calls Kavanaugh Allegation “Absurd” Because the Assault “Never Went Anywhere”