Jeff Flake's pause is refreshing

[Bloomberg]( Today’s Agenda - Jeff Flake [wisely hits the pause button]( on the Kavanaugh drama. - The Supreme Court is the [latest institution Trump]( threatens to subsume. - Facebook just delivered another [serious blow to its credibility](. - Elon Musk is [causing trouble for Tesla]( again. - Italy’s populist budget is a [problem for the EU]( and for [European banks](. Kavanaugh Remains on Ice If yesterday was a day of rage and emotional scarring, today was something like taking a deep breath. Arizona Senator Jeff Flake voted to advance Brett Kavanaugh’s Supreme Court nomination out of the Senate Judiciary Committee, but suggested he and other key senators would vote “no” without a one-week FBI probe into Christine Blasey Ford’s sexual-assault claim. Soon others joined him, and the [Senate GOP agreed]( to go along with his plan.  It’s up to President Donald Trump to order such a probe, but his unusually placid reaction was to say he’d be OK with whatever the Senate wants to do. And a probe is a good idea: Bloomberg’s editors last night [called for a complete investigation of Ford’s claim]( following her raw and credible testimony about the assault yesterday. One week may not be enough time for such a probe, but there are loose ends lying around – including one possible eyewitness, Kavanaugh friend Mark Judge, whose omission from yesterday’s hearing was glaring. It also remains to be seen what Kavanaugh will do. He seemed reluctant to have these loose ends poked – which is reason enough to worry about his fitness for the Supreme Court, the editors write. Read the [whole thing](. Though Ford’s testimony may have moved Flake to take his stand, Ramesh Ponnuru writes it [mostly seemed to entrench already strong feelings]( on both sides. One more week may not move many more needles or affect the ultimate outcome, writes Jonathan Bernstein – though time has certainly not been on Kavanaugh’s side so far. Bonus FBI probe reading: A thorough investigation of Ford’s assault would turn on a lot of facts lost to fading memories 36 years later –who was with whom, and where and when. Virginia Postrel notes such questions are much easier to answer for crimes that happen these days, with [all the digital traces we leave](. It’s another wrinkle in the argument about how much digital surveillance is too much. Trump’s Unwelcome Influence A short FBI investigation might make Kavanaugh’s ascension to the Supreme Court a little less politically fraught – but not by much. The nominee is already hopelessly stained by partisanship, [thanks largely to Trump](, writes Tim O’Brien. By picking the former political operative Kavanaugh and then cheering on his attacks on Democrats and dark warnings of revenge, Trump has ensured any politically charged court decision involving Kavanaugh will be suspect. Trump seems to want to reshape the court into his mold, just as he wants to do with the Justice Department and the Federal Reserve, Tim writes. It’s [doubtful he’ll stop there](. Meanwhile, the U.S. dollar should be riding high, given rising interest rates and a robust economy. And yet [foreign investors are backing slowly away from it]( as a reserve currency, notes Robert Burgess. This too is partly a response to Trump’s anti-Midas touch: namely, his belligerence in trade and foreign policy. Here Comes Facebok’s 19th Nervous Breakdown Oh, hey, Facebook Inc. is in trouble again. It reported a security flaw that may have exposed about 50 million users to hackers. This is the latest in a very long string of mistakes by the social-media network and a crushing blow to user confidence, writes Shira Ovide – who notes [such damage takes a long time to repair, if ever](. Bonus tech reading: Apple Inc.’s transformation into a services company may hang to an uncomfortable degree on icky advertising revenue from Google. – Shira Ovide Tesla's Unpleasant Musk Oh, hey, Tesla Inc. is in trouble again. The Securities and Exchange Commission has sued CEO Elon Musk over his bananas tweet storm last month claiming he had funding to take the electric-car maker private. Liam Denning notes the suit is filled with juicy details that show [just how little control the company has]( over its CEO. It’s also the latest sign investors keep “paying for disruption, even if they increasingly just get chaos.”  This is as [clear-cut a case of securities fraud as you can find](, writes Matt Levine – even if it is not one with tremendous damages. Musk should have taken the SEC’s offer of a settlement, but might just keep pointlessly fighting the SEC, because it’s the sort of pointless time-wasting thing he does to amuse himself, Matt writes. The Italian Botch Job Italy’s populist government, true to form, has released a populist budget. No shocker there, but the trouble is that it violates European Commission rules and could [put the EU in a dangerous bind](, write Bloomberg’s editors. It’s already causing political turmoil and [raising the risk of a “doom loop”]( of rising Italian borrowing costs crushing the sovereign-bond investments of European banks, writes Mark Gilbert: “As things stand, Italy's yields are headed one way and one way only – higher.” Chart Attack Versace’s buyout may be setting a trend of retailers paying [luxury prices for luxury brands](, write Andrea Felsted and Sarah Halzack. Home-goods retailers Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. and Pier 1 Imports Inc. are [excellent examples of how not to run]( a brick-and-mortar business these days, writes Sarah Halzack. Quick Hits HBO is [smart to ditch boxing]( as it tries to keep up with Netflix Inc. – Tara Lachapelle China’s Belt and Road initiative [isn’t some genius plan]( to trap the world in China’s web. In fact, there is no real plan. – Yuen Yuen Ang China’s leaders seem stuck in a “Beltway bubble” of their own; [ignoring outside voices]( could lead to trouble. – Michael Schuman Tiny Macedonia is voting on whether to change its name, in what is improbably the [latest battleground between Russia]( and NATO. – Leonid Bershidsky A federal [probe of ad agency practices]( is a dream come true for Silicon Valley. – Alex Webb Subsidizing homeownership as Elizabeth Warren wants to do [doesn’t have to cause a new housing bubble](. – Conor Sen We’re always hearing how great the economy is, but [if it doesn’t live up to our expectations](, it doesn’t feel so great. – Noah Smith Why do voters support politicians who obviously lie to them? The [answer is loyalty](. – Faye Flam ICYMI It’s time to [honor the anger of women](. Stan Druckenmiller sees [debt fueling another crisis](. A hacker called off his planned effort to [hack into Mark Zuckerberg’s Facebook account](. Kickers Scientists make the world’s strongest indoor magnetic field. [Destruction ensues](. (h/t Scott Duke Kominers) Proving our universe is one among many would be a [fourth Copernican revolution](. You’re surrounded by a [little atmosphere called an exposome](. A [Flannery O’Connor reading list](. Bad romance at least [leads to great art, sometimes](. September 29, 1998, may have been the [best rap album release day]( ever. Here's a way to make [watching SNL less awful](. Note: Please send rap albums, suggestions and kicker ideas to Mark Gongloff at mgongloff1@bloomberg.net. *** New subscribers can [sign up here](. [FOLLOW US [Facebook Share]]( [Twitter Share]( SEND TO A FRIEND [Share with a friend] You received this message because you are subscribed to Bloomberg's Bloomberg Opinion Today newsletter. [Bloomberg.com]( | [Contact Us]( Bloomberg L.P. 731 Lexington, New York, NY, 10022 If you believe this has been sent to you in error, please safely [unsubscribe](.