Kavanaugh says he was privately proud of being a high school virgin. For him, he says, it was "a matter of faith, and respect, and caution."
Corrected quote: Kavanaugh says that the boys' repeated yearbook jokes about a girl named Renate was "intended to show affection, and that she was one of us," but "the media" has taken it to refer to sex. (The woman in question was herself offended by all the references to her.)
Kavanaugh, both tearful and angry, notes all the women who have come to his public defence. He touts his record of hiring female law clerks.
Kavanaugh touts his positive teaching reviews from law students male and female, then returns to criticizing Democrats: "But thanks to what some of you on this side of the committee have unleashed, I may never be able to teach again."
Kavanaugh says he also loves coaching girls' basketball, and then repeats his attack on Democrats: "But thanks to what some of you on this side of the committee have unleashed, I may never be able to coach again."
Kavanaugh does not sound like a man who is confident he'll be confirmed to the U.S. Supreme Court.
Kavanaugh: If a "refuted" allegation from 36 years ago can destroy my life and career, "we will have abandoned the basic principles of fairness and due process."
Mitchell now questioning Kavanaugh. She asks if he knows Mark Judge and how. Kavanaugh says he was a friend. "Someone in our, you know, group of friends. We're a very friendly group...funny guy, great writer, popular, developed a serious addiction problem that lasted decades."
Asked if he knows Leland Keyser, Kavanaugh says, "I know of her," may have crossed paths with her. (Keyser said in a statement that she doesn't know him.)
Feinstein asks Kavanaugh why he's not also asking the FBI to investigate. He says, "I'll do whatever the committee wants." Notes that he wanted an immediate hearing, but instead they waited 10 days, and now there's "all this nonsense" coming out, "run breathlessly by cable news."
Kavanaugh's voice rises to a near-shout as he says it's an "outrage" how the committee has handled this. Returning to his defence, he says, "I'm not even on DC on the weekends in the summer of 1982!"
Kavanaugh on his third accuser: "The Swetnick thing is a joke! That is a farce!"
Kavanaugh on his high school days: "We drank beer. We liked beer." He says he may have had too many on occasion. Asked how many was too many, he says, "I don't know...whatever the chart says, uh, the blood-alcohol chart."
Mitchell asks Kavanaugh about whether he's ever passed out from drinking. "I've gone to sleep, but I've never blacked out," he says. She asks if he's ever woken up in a different location than he remembered being at. He says no.
In response to specific yes-or-no Mitchell questions, Kavanaugh says he's never been alone in a room with Ford and Judge, never grinded against Ford, never tried to remove her clothes, never covered her mouth with his hand.
Asked why he kept his calendars from high school, Kavanaugh again cites his father: "Well, he's kept them too...He's a good role model." They're now taking a break.
On Fox, Napolitano says things are no longer disastrous for the White House after that Kavanaugh performance: “If Republicans were gloomy two hours ago, I don’t think they are now.”
Hearing resumes. Democrat Leahy asks Kavanaugh if he wants Mark Judge called as a committee witness. Kavanaugh: "He's already provided sworn testimony."
Leahy notes that Judge mentioned a "Bart O'Kavanaugh" in his memoir about being a "drunk," asks Kavanaugh if that is him. Kavanaugh says Judge "picked names of friends" to put into the book. Then says Leahy is making fun of a man with an addiction, which he is not.
Kavanaugh says "you'd have to ask him," Judge, whether "Bart O'Kavanaugh" in his memoir is Brett Kavanaugh.
Asked whether his yearbook entry discusses drinking and sexual exploits, Kavanaugh responds that he was number one in his class, played basketball, football, did service projects, and helped disabled kids. Leahy tells him, "You don't have to filibuster."
Mitchell asks if he routinely documented house parties in his calendars. Kavanaugh: "It certainly appears that way." Asked whether he'd have documented a gathering like the one Blasey Ford described, he says, "Yes, because I documented everything, those kinds of events."
Under questioning from Mitchell, Kavanaugh says he's never been accused, even to his own face, of unwanted sexual behaviour. Asked if he's aware he could still be charged today of the 1982 crime he's accused of, he says yes.
Durbin: Blasey Ford answered questions directly, and didn't flinch at the prospect of an FBI investigation. You should turn to Don McGahn and tell him to suspend your nomination process until an FBI investigation is completed.
Kavanaugh to Durbin on whether he'll request an FBI investigation: "I welcome whatever the committee wants to do, because I'm tellin' the truth."
Lindsey Graham shouting: "What you want to do is destroy this guy's life, hold this seat open, and hope you win in 2020!"
Lindsey Graham: "This is the most unethical sham since I've been in politics."
Graham: "Are you a gang rapist?"
Kavanaugh: "No."
Kavanaugh: "No."
Lindsey Graham, attacking Democrats again, tells Kavanaugh that Blasey Ford is "as much a victim as you are."
Graham: "Would you say you've been through hell?"
Kavanaugh: "I've been through hell and then some."
Graham: "This is not a job interview. This is hell."
Kavanaugh: "I've been through hell and then some."
Graham: "This is not a job interview. This is hell."
Lindsey Graham is raging. He mocks the suggestion that Kavanaugh is "supposed to be Bill Cosby." He says that high school rapists usually don't stop.
Asked if these are his words on his yearbook page, Kavanaugh says they submitted things to the editors, and "I don't know if they changed things or not," but he won't contest it.
Asked what he meant in his yearbook when he said he a leader of the "Beach Week Ralph Club," he says it was probably a reference to vomiting - but says he has a "weak stomach," especially with spicy food.
Asked by Whitehouse if "Ralph Club" was a reference to vomiting from alcohol, Kavanaugh doesn't answer directly but says he's known for his weak stomach with both alcohol and food. He adds: "I like beer...what do you like to drink? Senator, what do you like to drink?"
Asked what he meant by "devil's triangle" in his yearbook, Kavanaugh says, "drinking game."
Asked what he meant by "FFFFFFFourth of July" in his yearbook, Kavanaugh says, "One of our friends, Squee, when he said the F word...had kind of a wind-up to the F-word. Ffff. And then the word would come out."
Republican Sen. John Cornyn says that "if you're going to make an allegation, there needs to be corroboration." He adds, "We're not a police state."
Republican senator Cornyn says that Kavanaugh is right to be angry that it took a while to hold a hearing, because "in the interim, it just keeps getting worse." (He means that in the interim, additional women, Swetnick and Ramirez, have made false accusations against Kavanaugh.)
Asked a bit earlier what he meant by "boofed" in his yearbook, where he said "Judge — Have You Boofed Yet?", Kavanaugh said, "Flatulence."
Asked by Klobuchar, Kavanaugh somewhat indirectly denies that there's ever been a time he didn't remember even part of what happened during a night of drinking. He says: "You're asking about blackout. I don't know, have you?" Klobuchar says, "I don't have a drinking problem."
15-minute break.
On Fox, John Roberts says Trump was very happy with Kavanaugh's "strong" opening statement. Roberts also says that Kavanaugh's "flatulence" response to the "boofing" question might have been a positive turning point for him.
Kavanaugh apologizes for asking Klobuchar if she has blacked out from drinking. "I'm sorry about that," he says, saying the hearing has been "tough."
Republican Sen. Orrin Hatch says these are uncorroborated claims "from HIS TEENAGE YEARS," his voice almost squeaking with outrage. He adds later, "Immaturity does not equal criminality," that Kavanaugh drank in high school doesn't make him guilty.
Dem Sen. Coons asks Kavanaugh about a classmate, Liz Swisher, who told the Post that he was a "sloppy drunk" and she knows because she drank with him. He says, "I do not think that's a fair characterization."
Kavanaugh says Sen. Richard Blumenthal is doing great harm to Renate, who was offended by his yearbook remark about her, by bringing her up. "Look what you're bringing up about her!...She's a great person!...Just dragging her through the mud."
I'm going to focus on my article, so that's the end of the live-tweeting. Might jump in here and there if anything major happens.
Asked by Booker if his weekday calendar reference to "skis" was a reference to brewskis, alcohol, Kavanaugh says he can't answer yes or no, has to explain. Booker moves on.
Sorry, didn't hear the "yeah":
Sen. John Kennedy asks Kavanaugh if he believes in God, then to look him in the eye and answer if Blasey Ford's allegations are true. "They're not accurate as to me," Kavanaugh says, repeating that she might've been assaulted by another man.
The hearing is adjourned.
