Donald Trump's second Supreme Court nominee, Brett Kavanaugh, a Republican party stalwart, appeared to be sailing easily towards being confirmed. But in an astounding confluence of political and social factors, the process has melted down. And the outcome could eventually help alter the structure of the Supreme Court itself.
At his uneventful hearings, Mr Kavanaugh dodged most key questions, such as those posed by senator Kamala Harris regarding the Mueller investigation, and said almost nothing of substance.
But last week professor Christine Blasey Ford accused Mr Kavanaugh of sexually assaulting her 36 years ago in a drunken frenzy when she was 15 and he was 17.
He "categorically and unequivocally" denies the allegations and has asked to testify. He suggests it is a case of mistaken identity and his allies have even publicly identified a potential doppelganger, only to quickly retract and apologise.
Nonetheless, the allegations are deeply troubling.
According to Prof Ford's account, she told her husband, therapist and others about the alleged incident long before Mr Kavanaugh was nominated. She says she passed a lie detector test, carried out by a former FBI agent, and gave the results to the Washington Post. Prof Ford has demanded an FBI investigation.
Initially she tried to remain anonymous but since her identity has been revealed, she says her family have been driven from their home by a barrage of harassment and death threats.
Naturally, the whole issue is shaped by raw politics.
Democrats are clearly trying to deny Mr Trump another Supreme Court Justice or, at least, delay the process until after the midterm elections, when they might regain control of the Senate. Their motivations include obviously instrumental calculations.
However, the Republicans are blazing new trails in dishonesty and amorality.
At first, they tried to merely deal with the accusations through private phone calls. They are now negotiating with Prof Ford to allow her to publicly testify but rejected her appeal for an FBI investigation and decline to question any witnesses beyond the two principals.
They flatly refuse to wait and gather additional information. The Senate Judiciary Committee has given her repeated deadlines to agree to their terms for another hearing, which has now been extended past the weekend.
The Republicans have made it clear finding out if the assault ever took place and if Mr Kavanaugh has been lying about it is hardly a priority.
Before even hearing from Dr Ford and evaluating her testimony, let alone investigating the matter, they have announced that they want their man on the court, no matter what.
Presidential adviser Kellyanne Conway called him “a good man”, adding he had “less than 24 hours from the time he learned her name [to] saying it’s just not true”.
The US president himself took to Twitter to call Mr Kavanaugh a "fine man, with an impeccable reputation" and to ask why it took his accuser and her "loving parents" 36 years to raise the matter – a statement that was immediately condemned by organisations representing sexual abuse victims as potentially confirming the fears of any women thinking about going to the authorities.
The Republican leader in the Senate, Mitch McConnell, insisted on Friday that Mr Kavanaugh would soon be on the court because "we’re going to plough right through it".
Numerous other Senate Republicans have dismissed her accusations, proclaimed his innocence or described the entire situation as “very unfair” to him.
In effect, they have corroborated Prof Ford’s insistence that her chances of a fair hearing depend on a formal investigation to establish the facts.
To a large extent, Mr Kavanaugh now serves as both a political and personal proxy for Mr Trump, who has also been accused of misbehaviour by many women and who boasted about groping them in an infamous Access Hollywood videotape.
Mr Trump is banking on getting his nominee confirmed because, as he openly recognises, many Republicans support him, despite grave doubts about his character and views, precisely because he is on a mission to appoint right-wing judges to the highest courts.
Were he to fail in this instance, he plainly fears, the raison d'etre of his presidency would be severely undermined in the eyes of many conservatives.
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Read more from Hussein Ibish:
Palestinians should counter US assault by strengthening civic society
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After a series of devastating blows, the legal walls are closing in on Trump
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The controversy also tests the scope and the limits of the MeToo movement, which has been touted as an uprising against the impunity of powerful men who have abused or harassed women.
Mr Trump is the most prominent such man to have avoided being held to account and it is extremely dangerous for him personally as well as politically if Mr Kavanaugh cannot shrug off these allegations.
But unless he is decisively vindicated, Mr Kavanaugh’s confirmation might prove a pyrrhic victory for conservatives.
US politics are bipolar and Democrats will again surely wield massive power. Should they control the House of Representatives after the midterm elections, even if Mr Kavanaugh is confirmed now, he could then be impeached.
Even if Democrats don't have the votes to convict and remove him from office, a Senate trial could prove devastating for both the judge and the Republican Party.
Moreover, if Democrats again control Congress and the White House, they could move to undo what they increasingly regard as an illegitimate conservative majority on American high courts.
Congress could expand the number of Supreme Court justices from the traditional nine to a much larger number.
Franklin Roosevelt tried that and failed in the 1930s. But Mr Trump lost the popular vote to Hillary Clinton by three million. Republicans denied Barack Obama's nominee, Merrick Garland, a hearing and a vote for almost a year until Mr Trump was elected.
The looming cloud of suspicion over Mr Kavanaugh could prove the final straw.
If they are restored to power, Democrats could cite all this and more in a dramatic "court-balancing" project to undo the domination of right-wing judges in the highest courts, blocking policies favoured by an emergent and enraged centre-left American majority.
Hussein Ibish is a senior resident scholar at the Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
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Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
The Details
Article 15
Produced by: Carnival Cinemas, Zee Studios
Directed by: Anubhav Sinha
Starring: Ayushmann Khurrana, Kumud Mishra, Manoj Pahwa, Sayani Gupta, Zeeshan Ayyub
Our rating: 4/5
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Bharatanatyam
A ancient classical dance from the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Intricate footwork and expressions are used to denote spiritual stories and ideas.
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Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
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TECH%20SPECS%3A%20APPLE%20WATCH%20SE%20(second%20generation)
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The five pillars of Islam
2025 Fifa Club World Cup groups
Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.
Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.
Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.
Group D: Flamengo, ES Tunis, Chelsea, (Leon banned).
Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.
Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.
Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.
Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.
Pakistan T20 series squad
Sarfraz Ahmed (captain), Fakhar Zaman, Ahmed Shahzad, Babar Azam, Shoaib Malik, Mohammed Hafeez, Imad Wasim, Shadab Khan, Mohammed Nawaz, Faheem Ashraf, Hasan Ali, Amir Yamin, Mohammed Amir (subject to fitness clearance), Rumman Raees, Usman Shinwari, Umar Amin
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Greatest of All Time
Starring: Vijay, Sneha, Prashanth, Prabhu Deva, Mohan
BOSH!'s pantry essentials
Nutritional yeast
This is Firth's pick and an ingredient he says, "gives you an instant cheesy flavour". He advises making your own cream cheese with it or simply using it to whip up a mac and cheese or wholesome lasagne. It's available in organic and specialist grocery stores across the UAE.
Seeds
"We've got a big jar of mixed seeds in our kitchen," Theasby explains. "That's what you use to make a bolognese or pie or salad: just grab a handful of seeds and sprinkle them over the top. It's a really good way to make sure you're getting your omegas."
Umami flavours
"I could say soya sauce, but I'll say all umami-makers and have them in the same batch," says Firth. He suggests having items such as Marmite, balsamic vinegar and other general, dark, umami-tasting products in your cupboard "to make your bolognese a little bit more 'umptious'".
Onions and garlic
"If you've got them, you can cook basically anything from that base," says Theasby. "These ingredients are so prevalent in every world cuisine and if you've got them in your cupboard, then you know you've got the foundation of a really nice meal."
Your grain of choice
Whether rice, quinoa, pasta or buckwheat, Firth advises always having a stock of your favourite grains in the cupboard. "That you, you have an instant meal and all you have to do is just chuck a bit of veg in."
The Bio
Favourite vegetable: “I really like the taste of the beetroot, the potatoes and the eggplant we are producing.”
Holiday destination: “I like Paris very much, it’s a city very close to my heart.”
Book: “Das Kapital, by Karl Marx. I am not a communist, but there are a lot of lessons for the capitalist system, if you let it get out of control, and humanity.”
Musician: “I like very much Fairuz, the Lebanese singer, and the other is Umm Kulthum. Fairuz is for listening to in the morning, Umm Kulthum for the night.”
Election pledges on migration
CDU: "Now is the time to control the German borders and enforce strict border rejections"
SPD: "Border closures and blanket rejections at internal borders contradict the spirit of a common area of freedom"
Emergency
Director: Kangana Ranaut
Stars: Kangana Ranaut, Anupam Kher, Shreyas Talpade, Milind Soman, Mahima Chaudhry
Rating: 2/5