Brett Kavanaugh and Lindsey Graham are now the face of the Republican Party, two angry white men railing against Democrats and left-wing groups for making false accusations against the GOP Supreme Court nominee. Their faces contorted in viscous rage, they spewed venom and vindictiveness while the Republican base cheered. They made great TV and they made Donald Trump proud.
The contrast couldn’t have been more stark. Just a few hours earlier, Christine Blasey Ford testified in a dignified and credible manner to allegations that Brett Kavanaugh sexually assaulted her while they were in high school and living in the affluent Maryland suburbs of Washington, DC. Only the most bitter partisans could have doubted her sincerity. Even Republican Senator Orin Hatch admitted that she was an “attractive, good witness.”
Kavanaugh exposed himself as a bitter partisan who lacks judicial temperament. He also showed that he’s more than willing to bend the truth. When asked about his yearbook reference to a girl from another school as “Renate Almunius,” Kavanaugh claimed that it was intended as a compliment to a friend. The photo attached to it was a group of football players from his prep school. He also denied under oath that he watch Ford’s testimony when in fact he did.
Republicans on the committee clearly wanted to get the show over and had little interest in getting to the truth. They’ve denied that anyone will corroborate Ford’s story but they’ve refused to interview the people she named. Their goal is to make Brett Kavanaugh the newest member of the Supreme Court, facts and circumstances be damned.
I suspect the hearing is a turning point for the Republican Party. They may keep their base engaged by pushing Kavanaugh through, but they will lose women for the foreseeable future. They dismissed a credible accuser in favor of a preferred nominee without a thorough investigation.
I did child neglect and abuse investigations for a few years. In those cases, we first interviewed the alleged victim, then we interviewed the alleged perpetrator and then we interviewed everybody else who might have any information about the offense. The Senate Committee did not do that. They’ve left us with a he said/she said situation and the GOP took the word of the he.
Women, especially young ones, won’t forget. To them the angry faces of Brett Kavanaugh and Lindsey Graham will symbolize the GOP. It’s a party remade in the image of Trump, angry white guys defending their privilege against people who have been silenced for centuries demanding an equal voice.
Thomas Mills is the founder and publisher of PoliticsNC.com. Before beginning PoliticsNC, Thomas spent twenty years as a political and public affairs consultant. Learn more >
We (the U.S.) are so scr##wed! I listened to a woman here in NC say sexual assault was OK.. It is a totally darwinian world here in NC. Christ wept.
What has happened to Lindsey Graham is a tragedy. He had a chance to be the one statesman in the GOP and has turned into fool for Trump. Perhaps it is the worm of ambition eating at his soul to become Trump’s next attorney general. Well, I would not give up a seat in the U.S. Senate to to the bidding of a treasonous president of the United States.
If Lindsey Graham wants to give up a 172 grand a year plus benefits job to be Trump’s attorney general, he may need serious counseling.
Folks could compare such an ambition with a desire to be the Captain of the Titanic. But in all fairness, if Graham foresees his current political future sinking into the sunset, then why not go out in a blaze of glory!