Ricochet is the best place on the internet to discuss the issues of the day, either through commenting on posts or writing your own for our active and dynamic community in a fully moderated environment. In addition, the Ricochet Audio Network offers over 50 original podcasts with new episodes released every day.
The Only Option Is to Confirm Kavanaugh
I stand by the belief that Judge Brett Kavanaugh should be confirmed to the Supreme Court. While Dr. Christine Blasey Ford has made an allegation that when both she and Kavanaugh were teenagers, Kavanaugh allegedly held her down and, while drunk, tried to remove her clothes while holding his hand over her mouth, there is not enough evidence on any level to support the charge.
There are the holes in the story, and there are denials from Kavanaugh, and from others named by Ford who say they were never there and never saw Kavanaugh act like that. Women who went to school with Ford believe Ford, with a former classmate, Cristina King Miranda, saying that what happened to Ford was discussed in school “for days” after the alleged incident happened. This goes against Ford’s own words, when she said that she told no one of the alleged incident until speaking with a couples therapist in 2012. A complete contradiction, if this woman’s claim is to be believed.
Less than 24 hours later, she told NPR about the alleged incident, “That it happened or not, I have no idea.”
Believe or don’t believe the allegation against Kavanaugh, but one has to ask about the confirmation process. Rational people should ask why the Progressives are so enamored with the idea of delaying the confirmation, or more to their desires, not confirming Kavanaugh at all? We must admit that resistance from Sens. Kamala Harris, Mazie Hirono, Amy Klobuchar, Richard Blumenthal, Cory Booker, Dick Durbin, and Dianne Feinstein is nothing new; they were opposed to Kavanaugh from the onset. Opposed from the very moment the hearings began, and Harris started interrupting Senate Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley.
And there is the political nature of how this information dropped: Sen. Feinstein holding onto a letter that she decided wasn’t worth discussing with the nominee in private, and all of a sudden becomes a story the day before Kavanaugh is supposed to be voted out of committee? America sees it as political. And America is pretty disgusted by the maneuver.
But let’s go back to confirmation: Is there real harm in confirming Brett Kavanaugh? If Kavanaugh were confirmed to SCOTUS, and you were able to do whatever “investigation” you think can be done on a 37-year-old incident, and it was found that, yes, Brett Kavanaugh — as a teenager — did something untoward (or did exactly what Ford is describing!) there would still be a whole conversation about them being children.
Lee Boyd Malvo murdered and assisted in the murder of 10 people in Washington DC. But he was a teenager when it happened, and Virginia now has to change his sentence to reflect the fact that he was 17 at the time the murders occurred.
In this case, we’re not just talking about the law. We’re talking about the court of public opinion, which may look upon things that teenagers do differently than adults. We have an age of consent for a reason, and there is a difference between childhood and adulthood, no matter how much people on the political Left want to blur that line.
If Kavanaugh is confirmed, and the “investigation” of whatever kind shows that he engaged in this sexual impropriety, there are methods to remove him from the Supreme Court. Impeachment is that process. How would Republicans really be able to push back on the idea (depending on the findings of said “investigation”) of impeachment? If you’re the political Left, you’d have a much easier time pressuring Republicans on the idea of impeachment of a Justice Kavanaugh. The Left would have the moral high ground, if you will.
But what if they don’t confirm Kavanaugh, based on this one, unproven allegation, and he’s innocent? Then, they will have destroyed the life of an innocent man.
Why is there no consideration given to this? Democrats will have destroyed his life, and dragged his reputation through the mud. Congress will have labeled him a rapist when he isn’t. And, in my view, Sen. Hirono called him a rapist. And not just him, by the way; she labeled all men guilty of the same when she said all men are “perpetuating” these kinds of actions, and that men should “just shut up … and do the right thing for a change.”
That’s a terrible statement, and a terrible thing to say to the young boys and young men of Hawaii, and the whole of the United States.
So these are the options: Confirm him because he is qualified to be a Supreme Court justice (and he has been through six different FBI investigations over the years.) And, if something comes up from the Ford “investigation” that is provable they could move forward on impeachment. Or, they can scuttle his nomination now, destroying his name and his reputation over one allegation that exists only on the thinnest of ice.
And what happens when we learn he did nothing wrong? Some small retraction on page 27 of the New York Times below the fold? Where will the apology be from Booker, Klobuchar, Harris, Hirono, Blumenthal, Feinstein, and Durbin?
It won’t be forthcoming; they won’t care. Because, as we know now, they don’t care about Brett Kavanaugh and they don’t care if they destroy him. Like Democrats did not care if they destroyed Justice Neil Gorsuch or Justice Samuel Alito (read more from Andrew McCarthy on this reality.)
Judge Brett Kavanaugh should be confirmed. The allegation against him proffers too many questions right now. No, it should not wait until an “investigation” is done (an investigation that the FBI says they will not do,) because the purpose of that tactic is to delay, delay, delay. Or, better said, #resist, #resist, #resist, and deny President Trump his nominee. Denying President Trump is the name of the game for the Progressive Left.
He should be confirmed because that’s where the options are. If they ruin the man’s life, there are no other options; his professional life and life’s work will be destroyed. And he won’t even get an apology from the Democrats of the Senate Judiciary Committee.
Confirm Brett Kavanaugh. It’s the only option that gives you options.
Cross-posted at WIBC.com.
Published in Law, Politics
Have to credit the Democrats and their media chorus for framing this frame up. Political genius.
Had Dr. Ford’s Kafkaesque allegations been submitted two months ago they would have struggled to make the footnotes of Kavanaugh’s background check.
Yet today Kavanaugh is struggling to win cross examination rules which provide him with basic legal courtesies extended to Eichmann.
Framing this into a highly prejudicial reality show where one will be voted off the island is a big win for the Democrats. It’s like the Mets somehow turning this season into a WS Game Seven played tomorrow with deGrom on the mound.
Hey GOP, anyone know how to play this game?
Don’t let Democrat Theater become a Democrat Veto.
Confirm him this week – otherwise the next Republican President will face the same choice.
I find the idea of “Hurry up and confirm him … and if he does turn out to be a rapist, maybe he can be impeached” to be … unsatisfying.
Look, I get the game that’s being played by the Democrats here. At the same time, the Senate is deliberate and deliberative by design.
It might be worth waiting a week to see what additional details emerge.
Democrats prey on Republicans’ notions of fairness to take advantage of Republicans
If you’ll notice every demand by the Ford team has been an answer to an optic concern.
To be far more cynical, I think her demands should have been “I only want the old white men questioning me and I want Kavanaugh to go first so that I can add things I misrembered and when I cry I can get maximum sympathy”
I’m just upset that there will be no repurcussions for what seems to me an obvious dirty trick. The coordination of the media on the term “credibly accused” (vs. Credible accusation) didn’t pass the smell test
Why wait for things to emerge. Actively investigate. That is what the committee is designed to do. They have subpoena powers for a reason.
The defense against false allegations is the truth. The accusation has already been made public that damage is done. No putting the horse back in the barn now, and moving in a manner that seems to be trying to ignore the allegations I think rightly feeds peoples suspicions. Look, the veracity of her claims and his denials have to be tested and only after testing can one try to pass any judgement on them. Is this inconvenient? Is it politically fraught? Is it even in some sense cosmically unfair? Yes, to all but so what? Life aint’t fair and some times you just have to play it hard.
Subpoena everyone make them show up and give testimony, and then render judgment by holding the vote, to move his nomination out of committee. Where the rest of the Senate presented with the evidence of the witness testimony can then render their own final judgement on Kavanugh on this by voting to confirm him or not to the supreme court.
What a farce.
Imagine the reverse if the Democrats had enjoyed a narrow 51-seat majority when Garland was nominated.
Three days before expected confirmation by the Judiciary Committee an anonymous still redacted letter is somehow released from Senator Ted Cruz’s office.
Then the identity of the accuser is made known: a woman who attended a high school in the same town as Garland. She asserts that Garland was a drunken brute towards her at a teenage beer party held at a time and place she cannot exactly recollect. She cannot recollect how she arrived at or departed from the not-quite-recollected place.
All of the persons she names as present at this vaguely recollected party deny any knowledge of such party and vouch for Garland’s character.
Garland has led an upright blameless life. His personal character is attested to by everyone he’s worked with.
Oh, we also learn that Garland’s accuser is an active conservative who has participated in pro-life demonstrations.
Does anyone imagine these claims would be taken seriously outside of Breitbart?
If Grassley is going to fold (or has already folded) on his deadline then an intensive week-long FBI review seems a better option than this Star Chamber they are setting for Kavanaugh.
Tony,
We don’t need yet another Democrat unlimited fishing expedition based on the “guilty until proven innocent” principle that Democrats hold only for Republicans. (If the subject is an identity politics “victim” then the Democrats switch over to “innocent even if guilty”) The Dems are going to try some procedural finesse BS (a favorite of inside the beltway swamp creatures). The committee should give Ford an ultimatum. Either she shows up on Monday or the vote will take place on Monday.
Regards,
Jim
Tony,
One more thing. Under no circumstances should any special rules be afforded to Ford. Either she arrives when she is scheduled and will be questioned like any other witness or she can just not show up at all. As it is, this is all completely irregular and would not be happening at all in a court of law. The timing of this entire affair is completely artificial staged by the Democrats to damage reputations.
There is no rush but justice for Justice Kavanaugh demands that a ridiculous “high tech lynching” not be allowed.
Regards,
Jim
Is there any precedent for impeachment for something that happened before someone took office? And in this case, something that happened so long ago that it couldn’t be legally prosecuted?
I’m not sure. But it is what was suggested in the OP. Thus my comment.
Except it’s not “hurry up”…this process has gone on for a few months. They had the letter the whole time.
This one has said now she doesn’t want to fly either. Oh sure, give them another week, maybe all the strategists working on this can construct a weekend in 1982 at a party, get another pro-choice activist to say she was there, ask Kavanaugh to prove where he was every weekend of July 36 years ago. Did he drink at a party? Is it possible he could have acted that way? How do we know you didn’t?
That will go over real well. All they want is “I don’t remember that far back” and its a de facto conviction.
Our media has already convicted him with the evidence of being in a fraternity, going to private school, suggesting he hates women because two fraternity brothers made a flag with underwear, being Republican and already suggested he lied under oath etc.
So no, I don’t want to give more time. You had your time to fact find. Grassley should hold the vote and move to censure DiFi.
End this farce.
Jeff,
Agreed.
Regards,
Jim
I agree. Finish the confirmation. If he is GUILTY of a crime, impeach him.
Play the game you’ve got, not the one you wish you had.
It needs to be clarified. The letter to Feinstein is dated 7/30. Feinstein is the one who sat on it and sprang it at a late date. So, no, “they” didn’t have the letter the whole time. In fact, Feinstein is taking crap from other Democrats for sitting on it for so long.
Yes, I’m sure she’s really being browbeat over there. I’m sure between the snickers and guffaws they’re tut-tutting the senior ranking member of the Judiciary. Can we cut this dumb routine that staffers took it upon themselves to leak her name to the media. It’s a strategy. The “Diane’s just old” is just part of it. It gives her cover for slow-rolling. How do you think they had the “credibly accused” talking point, and the other talking points.
You really want to punish her, tell her there was a time limit. Hold the vote. You don’t say “well, maybe this Senator of California since 92 and politician for decades before that just dropped an unsubstantiated rape charge because she was really concerned about this nominee” and then clutch pearls and hem and haw about the optics of victim blaming.
But given “they” still have the letter and haven’t given it to Grassley, I’m not looking for excuses to find the humanity in my political opposition.
This proves Hayek’s explanation of why the worse get to the top. They have no scruples other than aquiring power. the broken egg theory of governance. It carries through on just about everything. They want public school forced on the masses, and send their kids to private schools.