Kavanaugh hearing off to disorderly start

The confirmation hearing for Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh opened Tuesday on Capitol Hill with noisy protests from the gallery and complaints from Democrats about White House transparency. Democratic members of the Senate Judiciary Committee asked Tuesday for a delay in the hearing so they could have time to review 42,000 pages of documents they received Monday night about Kavanaugh’s years with the Bush administration. Committee Chairman Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, said the confirmation process has been thorough and lawmakers have received just under half a million pages of emails and other documents from Kavanaugh’s time working in the White House.

Capitol Hill police said they arrested almost two dozen protesters during the hearing’s morning session. Committee members and Kavanaugh are making opening statements Tuesday, and questioning will begin Wednesday. Votes in committee and on the Senate floor could occur later in September.