Grassley. Thomas is black. Black men do get lynched based in false charges from a white personal. As it was Anita Hill is also black, so racism wasn’t directly involved - just sexism. Kavanaugh is an coddled white boy - no victim. He could have simply said he didn’t do it with passion, but he crossed the line into questioning the Senators asking him tough questions - but not as tough as what hd wanted to ask Clinton. Like Trump, a childish performance.
8
I was a high school student in the 1980s, and there are plenty of smart conservative legal scholars who would be a better fit for this job - one of the highest in the nation. Not everybody who grew up in that area is a self-admitted drinker. Kavanaugh should be ashamed of his conduct at an age when many kids know better.
9
Let's hope that Senators Flake, Collins and Murkowski will help to revive patriotism, moral decency and bipartisan team-works among other GOP senators--together with the Democrat leaders like Schumer, Feinstein, Leahy, Corker, Harris, Klobuchar, Hirono, etc.--to end this historic infamy at all costs.
Kavanaugh is clearly disqualified, Not only for his constitutional blindness, belligerent nature, violent sexual misconducts when intoxicated but, more importantly, lack of truthfulness and even lying under oaths--a perjury.
3
Of course he still drinks. He drinks a lot. Why isn't some enterprising reporter monitoring his trash and purchases? I am fully convinced that his wife is intimately familiar with his drunken belligerence. I hope his daughters aren't, but I wouldn't be surprised if they were.
7
Mrs. Kavanaugh and Mr. Kavanaugh in the photo look (features and expressions) almost identical to the husband-and-wife pair from the film "The Gift," a few years ago. That story, like this one, centers on an aggessive jock-fratboy type settled into respectable suburban family life with an attractive and kindly spouse who doesn't seem to want to know the sordid details of his youthful aggressions and licentiousness. She likes the relatively mellow white collar, cabernet-sipping family male he's evolved into, the rough edges smoothed over by time, education, professional advancement with its imposed decorum standards, and hormonal calming. His (or rather, his, her, and their) life begins to unravel when a victim of his rowdy past who'd nursed a justifiable grudge emerges to tear away the illusion and destroy his life.
The wife's initial disbelief that her husband could have been such a savage lout gradually gives way to disillusionment with her husband when parts of the carefully orchestrated facade of gentlemanliness and decency crumbles.
As the clues begin to accumulate, she has the same tentatively loyal but increasingly suspicious look that Mrs. Kavanaugh is flashing her husband in this photo. "For now I stand by him, but who exactly did I marry?"
8
why ? because he had the gall to stand up to the democrats over the top tactics? I would be concerned if didn't react with outrage.
1
"More than 500 law professors from nearly 100 law schools around the nation have signed a letter to the U.S. Senate to say that the volatile temperament Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh displayed on Thursday as he testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee disqualifies him from sitting on the nation’s highest court.
“We regret that we feel compelled to write to you to provide our views that at the Senate hearings on Thursday, September 27, 2018, the Honorable Brett Kavanaugh displayed a lack of judicial temperament that would be disqualifying for any court, and certainly for elevation to the highest court of this land,” the letter says. "
The letter is open for further signatures, too. This letter unprecedented -- never been anything like it before.
Kavanaugh cannot survive this ... he'll be forced to withdraw. One consequence of any lawyer signing such a letter is that it creates the automatic presumption of prejudice if that lawyer represents a case before the SCOTUS. This could work two ways -- someone bringing a case to the court might avoid one of these lawyers, but it also creates an opportunity to demand that Kavanaugh recuse himself.
13
Brett Kavanaugh is unfit to be a judge in any court of law due to
his lack of judicial deportment, which is the main reason to reject
his nomination. I think that his would be peers ; those Judges who
may have watched his outrageous rant last Thursday during the
hearing would agree....
5
This man simply couldn't control himself during the hearing last week. Angry, paranoid, on the attack against his questioners. He should have come on calm and collected, and he might have been all right. Surely we don't want him on the Supreme Court.
10
This is my fantasy version of a statement by Judge Kavanaugh:
I have never regarded myself as someone who consciously disrespected women. Also, I have no recollection of the events described by Dr. Ford. As a man of the law, a judge and a human being I must now ask myself if I have made every effort to determine the truth of these startling allegations.
It is possible that during my heavy partying days I engaged in reprehensible behavior that I am unable to recall. Perhaps the amount of alcohol I consumed obstructed recollection. It is my responsibility to face up to this awful possibility and to encourage Mark Judge to join me.
Under these fraught circumstances I have the unique opportunity to direct my energies to getting to the truth of events that took place 36 years ago. I can no longer, in good conscience, allow rationalization, obfuscation and partisan fatigue muddy the investigational waters. In the midst of almost unendurable emotional strain it is incumbent upon me to be a stand for character over privilege.
Either I act emotionally and from a sense of entitlement or I choose mature, deliberate investigation. The latter may contain information that is completely overwhelming for me to contemplate. And if I choose the former, I am a lesser man who is betraying the values of my profession and my faith.
I choose the latter.
10
I don't see a strong dividing line between what his accuser attached to him and his reaction to her in in his testimony during the hearing. In both, he was out of control, determined to get his way, arrogant, self-righteous, disrespectful and entitled.
If he is confirmed, we need not be surprised when we are given opportunities to revisit those same issues and the stakes will be exponentially higher.
That half the U.S. Senate is willing to bet the institution of the U.S. Supreme Court against their having finally achieved their forty year goal of a solid right wing court is appalling. It's party over country. Again. Now all three legs of the stool upon which our Constitution rests are in the hands of trival warfare.
12
Regarding those critical of Kavanaugh's remarks to the committee (and I would be among them), how would you react if after over 3 decades of hard work, you were accused of an act you claim not to have done, taking away your opportunity for promotion, making you out as an evil being, castigating your family, and branding you as guilty before you even have the opportunity to defend yourself.
Ask yourself, how you would feel? What you would say?
2
Someone has to tell the Clintons that for love of country they must recede into the deeper shadows of the Democratic Party. A man like Kavanaugh can use the Clintons, even undeservedly, as targets & to deflect attention away from himself. President and Mrs. Clinton, please stand down. Rightly or wrongly, some significant portion of the American electorate have a negative reaction to both of you. Step aside and have the eternal gatidude of those of us who love and admire you you.
1
My take was that it was more of a "she said, he rants" issue.
5
Judge Kavanaugh and his partisan supporters are treating the supposed vetting process to sit on the nation's highest court as something akin to a frat boy's rites of passage. The formally promulgated ethical standard that judges, themselves, hold themselves to never give the mere "appearance of impropriety." Regardless of what did or did not happen in Judge Kavanaugh's past, that standard has already been violated. He has already clearly demonstrated his lack of a judicial temperament. He "appears" to have lied under oath multiple times--not just about little things. He has ranted on about the partisan conspiracy against him. How could he possibly be an unbiased associate Justice on the Supreme Court? Every decision he participates in will be marred by questions about his biases.
The people who sit on the U.S. Supreme Court should be beyond reproach. Too much is at stake here. Senator Graham's comment that no good candidates will want to go through the nomination process in light of "what you did to this guy" rings hollow. I think just the opposite is true: if Kavanaugh is appointed, fewer qualified attorneys will seek to become federal judges. The credibility of the High Court will be likened to a "good 'ole boys club." How else could this guy get in?
The behavior of the GOP Senators, and their blatantly partisan efforts to ram through this frat boy shocks my senses.
We can do better. NEXT!!
12
Kavanaugh is not the first or the last Yale graduate who committed or accused of sexual crime. If Kavanaugh’s one of best arguments was that he graduated from Yale college and Yale law school, I feel sorry for the guy.
8
If you didn’t express public outrage over Merrick Garland, you don’t get to whine about the Dems now.
13
Of course he was angry, indignant, outraged and every other emotion he displayed! Those feelings are totally understandable...but the hearing was a highly inappropriate place to display them - from beginning to end! (I thought he'd pull himself together after his outraged opening statement that was in and of itself WAY over-the-top; but no.) An adult who can't or won't keep emotions under control in such a setting should not receive a lifetime appointment to the Supreme Court!
I cringe when I hear people excuse him by pointing out that he had a right to those emotions. Yes, he did; but to use them as a battering ram the way he did was stunning and dismaying. I was horrified watching a mature, highly accomplished adult descend into what, to me, was a toddler's temper tantrum. We already have a toddler in the White House! Let's not put one on the Supreme Court too! Trump's reign will eventually end; but Kavanaugh's would continue for decades.
19
Grassley puts forth Justice Thomas as an exemplar of temperament and decorum. Does Grassley understand that Thomas would not be a Supreme Court justice if he were nominated today?
15
I just happened to be reading an essay by José Ortega y Gasset last evening, and when I came across this passage, I immediately thought it applies to us as we evaluate Kavanaugh's performance (and Dr. Ford's) in front of the Judiciary Committee:
"Instead of analyzing words and acts, it is better to notice what seems less important: gesture and facial expression. For the very reason that they are unpremeditated, they reveal information about profound secrets and generally reflect them with exactness."
Revelatory indeed. Mr. Kavanaugh revealed a most unpleasant part of his inner self, of his lack of humility, of his inability to be self-reflective and own up to errors. He was intemperate and injudicious. And, above all, his gestures and facial expressions were frightening.
18
“Facial expressions speak louder than actions” what a perfect 2018 update to “actions speak louder than words.”
Whatever happened to the presumption of innocence? It’s a bedrock standard in how we’re supposed to treat each other. Can’t we believe BOTH Ford and Kavanagh?
Let’s apply your ludicrous standard in the real world. My garden hose goes missing and I accuse Bill of stealing it, it must mean he did it because his gestures and facial expressions look guilty when the neighborhood has gathered on his front porch, encircled him and is demanding answers?
You need evidence, not subjective expert analysis of facial expressions to prove someone did or did not do something.
2
I have read 99% of what has appeared about Kavanaugh in the Times, Washington Post, New Yorker...
Gone over the transcripts...
Pulled up his bio, studied his experiences in Florida with the Cuban boy who washed up on the shore, the lady who was brain dead, convincing the Supreme Court to stop the recount...
And read every comment on this thread, which are remarkably unanimous.
So I can understand why he gave that performance last Thursday.
He's guilty as sin. And it's worse than almost all of us know or even suspect. He knows every terrible incident, and is now watching everything he has ever thought would save his life -- a permanent position on the most esteemed tribunal in the world -- come crashing down into a million pieces. He's terrified he'll become THE MAN OF INFAMY.
I asked one of his defenders, an angry older white male from South Carolina,fan of Lindsay Graham, how he and other evangelicals would react if all the warning signs in Kavanaugh's high school annual proved to be horribly true? What if Bret and his buddy Judge intended to turn this 15 year-old innocent Christine into the center piece of their Devil's Triangle?
He answered that if that were credibly proven, 100% of them would turn against Bret Kavanaugh.
What is Kavanaugh up to, 20, 30 obvious lies in the last week?
The man is terrified we will find out who he really is. I suspect that even HE deep down, hates that person. That's why he has to drink, lie and can't control his temper.
22
Kavanaugh showed anger, as did Clarence Thomas. But in addition, Kavanaugh showed contempt for the Democratic Senators and a sense that they were beneath questioning his almighty right to a Supreme Court seat. In addition, he showed no self restraint and an utterly maudlin behavior designed to elicit self pity. The whole performance was despicable.
19
This story makes it appear that Democrats are conspiring to "derail" Brett Kavanaugh's confirmation but that isn't the case. I know many thinking Republicans and Independents who think that Kavanaugh is injudicious and not temperamentally suited for the Supreme Court.
In fact, a late poll shows that 50 per cent of all Americans are opposed to his confirmation. It is not just a partisan issue as you would have us believe.
15
Republicans may excuse Kavanaugh's self-righteous and intemperate indignation as justifiable anger, but I see it as overcooked defensiveness. He's got a lot to be defensive about, and he knows it - he's gotten caught out and he's engaged in coverup and lies about it under oath. Just as the coverup is often worse than the crime, Kavanaugh's demeanor and behavior in response to questions about his youthful behavior are independently as disqualifying as the behavior would be if the allegations are found true.
He's texted Yale classmates to do damage control and to seek refutation of Debbie Ramirez's allegations. And in response to an Orrin Hatch question, he stated under oath he'd only learned about Ramirez's allegations when they were published by the New Yorker. But his texting was done well before that. His dishonesty is disqualifying.
His intemperance and naked partisan culture-warrior advocacy are also disqualifiers. His ability to be sufficiently judicially circumspect and free from bias - and to have litigants and the public confident in that - is a dubious prospect. His temperance may be in question in another meaning of the word - I think it's a fair question whether he currently suffers from alcoholism.
In his professional life, Kavanaugh took on the mantle of an ultra-conservative culture savior, a protege in Leonard Leo's advocacy of a theocratic authoritarian return to a utopia of "traditional values." That advocacy is fine, but it doesn't belong on the bench.
19
Now that Ford's story is falling apart, we should now attack Kavanaugh on his response to being slandered.
6
@tj: How exactly is Ford's story "falling apart"? It is rock solid in the eyes of most people who actually saw her testify. The right-wing pretends that she is not credible, because those folks are desperate to ram "their" anti-abortion, pro-Trump Supreme Court nominee down the throats of the country.
Thank goodness the rest of the country is not interested in putting a partisan hack on the SC bench for life.
Until solid evidence is supplied that proves that she and Kavanaugh were not in that room with Mark Judge, most of us will continue to believe the woman who gave plausible testimony in a composed, mature, and adult manner, not the angry, red-faced drunk who ranted and raved about conspiracies and insulted a number of senators.
10
There actually is no proof yet that the Democrats leaked Dr. Ford's letter - just suspicion. Dr. Ford had contacted her local representative Anna Eschoo and the Washington Post as well as several friends simultaneously. Senator Feinstein said repeatedly that she did not bring the allegations forward earlier because Dr. Ford wanted privacy and that she had referred the allegations to the FBI. So there are six possible groups of leakers: Feinstein & her staff, WaPo reporters, Eschoo and her staff, Dr. Ford's friends, and if you want to go far into left field, Republican staffers and the FBI.
Kavanaugh's accusatory certainty that the Democrats were out to "search and destroy"him without evidence really bothered me. I felt he was basing his suspicions on his experience with whatever partisan games he played while working with President Bush. He was projecting his past behavior onto today's Democrats, and it's disturbing to see how he participated in such activities during his time in politics. It reminded me of Trump as well; let's assume Kavanaugh is innocent and the Dems are guilty - double standard.
Several Republican senators apologized to Feinstein in public during last Friday's hearing, saying they had lost their temper but they knew based on her character that she would not have deliberately leaked the content. Apparently after years of working with her, they do not assume her to be as manipulative and mercenary as Judge Kavanaugh does.
12
I don't think Kavanaugh has been falsely accused, but if he has, his untempered reaction last Thursday is understandable. Opponents shouldn't be able to have it both ways: If he's a liar, he needs to be exposed; if he was in fact falsely accused, the Democrats need to recognize that his violent reaction was justified.
1
Is it unreasonable to institute a new approach and declare that judges should be independent and not aligned with any political party? They might still come form a conservative, moderate, or liberal perspective (one would hope moderate) but at least they would not be groomed for years by partisan politics.
7
Twice I have heard Judge Kavanaugh talk about his drinking (Beer) and his churchgoing life. He seems to think these clear his reputation. Sorry, Brett but beer is equally inebriating as hard liquor and many priest have sexually assaulted children so there goes that argument.
FYI A bottle of beer is equivalent to a high ball or one shot of whiskey One gets just as drunk drinking beer as one get drinking too much whiskey. Few Americans seem to know this so I say it again. Kavanaugh tried to make beer equal to soda pop. It's not.
10
If it's okay for Kavanaugh to lie to Congress, is it okay for me too?
13
It seems to me that Trump’s repeated lying, his ardent divisiveness and temperament – not to mention his total absence of character and integrity – have set the stage for Kavanaugh’s Senate supporters to overlook these same flaws in their Supreme Court pick. It’s more than disheartening, it’s disgusting.
13
What?!
Integrity, honesty, respectfulness, humility, authenticity and forgiveness are not traits required to be a politician now days?????
Shocking....
6
McConnell just said that the Kavanaugh report will be available to senators only. No public viewing. I think he knows his man is a drunk and doesn't want the country to know it. He should NOT sit on the highest court of the land. He lied repeatedly. He blamed a Clinton conspiracy. He threw questions back at the questioners. His talking about "beers" was ludicrous. Asking if she drank beer. She was not in line for the judgeship. He should be denied this job. If the Republicans sear him they have shown the country a message that the people do not matter. Merrick Garland is a better choice but they would not give Obama the courtesy of a win.
13
Don’t worry, the Dems will leak the findings.
If it is deomonstrated that Kavanaugh has been lying, not only should he not be confirmed, he should be removed from his current position on the Court of Appeals. Then, he should be prosecuted for his felonious testimony. It's ludricous to take him seriously.
14
@OmahaProfessor -- He'd need to be impeached and removed in the senate ... and that would not be easy -- the Republicans will protect him.
I doubt it would happen, even with irrefutable evidence of lying ... over anything short of solid proof that he did sexually assault Dr. Blasey.
I wonder what would happen if Mark Judge said it happened? That might not be enough, for these Republicans.
2
Am I the only one who finds all this too ironic?
I heard both Jeff Flake and James Lankford say they would vote no if there was any proof Kavanaugh lied under oath. He definitely lied about the meanings of his yearbook entries. Something really stupid to lie about, but lies nevertheless. Bill Clinton was impeached primarily because he tried to cover up his affair with Monica Lewinsky, which was very far adrift of the original aim of the Starr investigation. But lying is lying, right?
12
@Kally Are you someone who thinks that Clinton should have been convicted based upon his lies? If you want to make that argument, it seems like you would also have to argue that Kavanaugh should not be confirmed- and maybe even that he should be impeached from his current position.
1
@JBoggess
Sorry—I wasn’t trying to introduce a false analogy, just pointing out the irony of the situation—kinda bad karma, wouldn’t you say?
I actually think these are very different situations. Clinton was elected, Kavanaugh is applying for a job. For all it turned up, the Starr investigation was a ridiculous waste of tax-payer money. As disgusting as it would have been, Roy Moore could have been duly elected had he gotten the votes. But Kavanaugh should not get this appointment. He has amply shown he is too partisan and not truthful, not to mention a very bad actor (and I mean, as in theatrics). Perhaps he should be impeached from the Federal Circuit—haven’t been giving that much thought. One step at a time.
1
"Temperament and Honesty Become Focus of Democrats Trying to Derail Nomination"
As well they should be. It is easily proven that he has neither the temperament nor the honesty that SC Justice should have.
6
Odd. It used to be that temperament and honesty and credibility would have been regarded as table stakes for a role on a Supreme Court. Now, apparently, wanting to poke into those is regarded as moving the goal posts.
9
I've been against Kavanaugh's confirmation from the first because of his stated opinions on women's rights and how he wants to protect this President no matter what comes from the Mueller investigation. But after watching Kavanaugh at the hearing I know his confirmation should be withdrawn. It shocked me to see how aggressive and abusive he became to the Democratic Senators; this must be how he acts when he has too many beers. If he is picked for the SCOTUS it will bring down the respect for our Supreme Court for ever.
9
Honesty is actually a very important characteristic for a judge. If it took this long to get here, because of certain politicians trying to ram the nomination through, that doesn't make honesty any less important. We have a liar trying to get onto the Supreme Court, and as long as we found out before it was too late, it didn't take too long.
11
@Scottilla
An honest person would admit the obvious - the democrats played a very dirty political game by hiding the sexual assault allegations from Kavanaugh then ambushing him with it just prior the the confirmation vote. You are an honest person right?
3
The Ship of Kevanaugh is rocked and it is sinking day by day. It would be much better for Brett to take a deep breathe and come forward to withdraw his nomination. By doing this, he can still save his current job and scratched name. If not within few days, the matter will reach to the extreme level; where few Republican Senators and Democrats will force Trump to drop his nomination advancing the second choice ready for the SC position. Then, it will be impossible for Kevanaugh to even save his current job, and for a life time, he has to hide himself with broken face.
7
The Democrats at Kavanaugh's hearing should have confronted him then about his dissembling, rudeness and out-of-control partisan outbursts. Maybe they were too shocked by the performance, or maybe they're politically hapless (not a first for the Democrats). There were plenty of people who immediately found his candor lacking, with or without Dr. Ford's testimony. This should not be political strategy. It should be about decency and not destroying the integrity of the judicial branch, which is an obvious goal for the corrupt Trumpy pack which holds power now.
10
I find your phrasing "Democrats Trying to Derail Nomination" or "Democrats determined to derail Judge Kavanaugh"--or even just "trying to derail"--inflammatory, inaccurate, and unhelpful under the circumstances.
We are not just Democrats, but PEOPLE. We do not merely want to "derail", but rather carefully ENSURE that all of our 12 Supreme Court Justices for life are honest, impartial, and composed so that they can fairly and impartially render verdicts affecting all Americans for decades to come no matter what party, whether conservative or liberal.
It is not JUST the partisan conflict you describe.
Of course, there are Democrats who just want to derail a Republican nominee, but for most of us, it is more about the integrity, honesty, impartiality, and temperament this position requires and this nominee does not possess.
2
If it is not the temperament and honesty of Kavanaugh,Sen.Blumenthal is creative enough to discover something else about the judge !
2
Something is definitely wrong when raising issues of character is "moving the goalposts." Just where were the goalposts to start with?
10
I've been saying something similar to people I know since last Thursday. This isn't (or shouldn't) be about Kavanaugh's high school behavior anymore. I personally don't think an accusation of sexual assault alone is enough to deny Kavanaugh a seat: due process of law and all that. A conviction certainly would be enough. However, Kavanaugh conducted himself so poorly on Thursday that I now question his objectivity. He floated conspiracy theories, aggressively questioned Senators, and at the very least downplayed his teenage behavior. None of which is acceptable in a potential justice.
11
Someone should remind Senator Grassley that no one ever complains about Justice Thomas' temperament because he almost never asks any questions in court.
It's hard to criticize the temperament of someone who barely speaks.
8
As I wrote: Far better to not consider a nominee than to destroy him or her and their family.
I’m sure Judge Kavanagh wishes he hadn’t been nominated. And that’s the point: intimidation
4
@Ora pro nobis -- if he didn't want further consideration he was free to withdraw. That would have been a much smarter move than the maudlin angry rant he made.
The only other time I've seen such a combination of maudlin self-pity and rage was from someone clearly very drunk.
1
Imagine all the Law School students and the Law School teachers across this country watching Kavanaugh’s potential appointment to the Supreme Court on video loop. What a lesson to be learned. Kavanaugh will become INFAMOUS (What goes around comes around).
6
@IT'sOK -- Kavanaugh's performance has all the lawyers I know ready and willing to chop his head off. He's done the legal profession enormous damage. He's already hurting the reputation of the Federal Appeals Courts, and throwing a lot of shade on the Supreme Court ... and he isn't even there yet.
500 law professors have signed a letter to the senate saying he's unfit, as a result of that explosion.
1
I find your phrasing "Democrats Trying to Derail Nomination" or "Democrats determined to derail Judge Kavanaugh"--or even just "trying to derail"--inflammatory, inaccurate, and unhelpful under the circumstances.
We are not just Democrats, but PEOPLE. We do not merely want to "derail", but rather carefully ensure that all of our 12 Supreme Court Justices for life are honest, impartial, and composed so that they can fairly and impartially render verdicts affecting all Americans for decades to come no matter what party, whether conservative or liberal.
It is not JUST the partisan conflict you describe.
Of course, there are Democrats who just want to derail a Republican nominee, but for most of us, it is more about the integrity, honesty, impartiality, and temperament this position requires and this nominee does not possess.
10
So now the integrity question is switched to temperament issue? Gotcha!
4
Had I presented myself as poorly as Kavanaugh did last week, I would have asked to be withdrawn from consideration. His behavior was not appropriate for a job interview, a hearing before governmental officials, an acting judge, or any public hearing. This would have been inappropriate behavior at a school board meeting. If you are too hot tempered and partisan to be on a local school board, you are not qualified to be a supreme court justice. Why do we even have to say this?
9
Running low on angles to persecute this guy. I really hope the people of this country realize how low the Democrats are stooping to try and ground this nomination. Going to be some real shocks on Election Day....
7
Tell it to Merrick Garland.
13
@Straight Shooter -- Kavanaugh just did the impossible: boofed himself with his own big mouth.
He's toast now. Law professors from all over the country, more than 500 of them, have signed a letter to the Senate saying he must not be confirmed due to "lack of judicial temperment."
This is unprecedented -- among other things those law professors now have automatic grounds to demand his recusal if they bring a case to the Supreme court
3
Is he whom we want in a Supreme Court justice, Patrick Buchanan with a twist?
9
A perjury case regarding Judge Kavanaugh's testimony before the Senate committee, as related to his response to Sen Leahy's questions on documents, is being heard in Judge Merrick Garland's court.
The GOP and Kavanaugh's adopted one of Trump lawyers slogan that 'truth isn't truth'------->
The American Bar Association voiced concerns about Kavanaugh 12 years ago. Republicans dismissed those, as well.
The ABA's judicial investigator had re-interviewed multiple lawyers, judges & others working with Kavanaugh---some raised red flags as to------->
“his professional experience and the question of his freedom from bias and open-mindedness.”
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2018/09/28/american-bar-associat...
13
CNN is reporting "Issues in Dispute" are Witnesses Refuted, False Yearbook References and Drinking History. Add another to the list. NBC reports Email Exchanges between Kavanaugh and Yale friends in 'July' requested they refute the character of the 2nd accuser and turn over a photograph of the two of them in a group ten years later.
Judge Kavanaugh, under oath, claimed he learned of her existence from the New Yorker in 'September'. What's the truth here JUDGE?
13
Were a female Supreme Court nominee to demonstrate such defensiveness, emotional lability, disrespect, and aggressive self-interest at the expense of rationality as did Kavanaugh, the very same senators who currently support his nomination would use all of those against her to keep from seating her on the SCOTUS. Ironic, isn't it?
17
And Judge Thomas was wrong to say that too. We all have the evidence of what a poor judge he’s turned out to be. The argument that indicates it’s all right for nominees to show passion is allowable but pure vitriol as in the case of these two losers, is a sure sigh they don’t belong on the highest court of the land. When are the politically motivated senators going to learn from their mistakes? It baffles me to no end that the people we elect can be so mentally challenged.
8
He should have been asked "Judge: How would you respond to a litigant in your court who addressed you the way you have addressed this hearing?"
17
@Daniel
To which he could reply "I don't run a kangaroo court like this one"
5
Flake "said he might have been similarly angry if he had stood accused of sexual assault." people who are falsely accused have no need to react angrily or defensively, because they know they are innocent.
17
If Kavanaugh really had a drinking problem or a temperament problem, one of the prior FBI background checks on Kavanaugh would have disclosed it. All we are seeing now is Democrats using character assassination to try to kill the nomination. It would be nice if The Times called it like it really is.
10
Dear Senator, Christine Ford is credible and believable and Judge Kavanaugh not so much. More America's believe her story more then his story. I ask you Senator whom do you believe? I Sr. don't believer you Sr don't believe her. Would you be willing to take a lie doctor test to prove you don't belier her story? She took to help convince you she was telling the truth. Are you telling the truth. This line of questioning should follow every senator that votes in favor of Judge Kavanaugh. If they believe then they would have no problem taking the test.
3
The Ford accusations are serious and need to be adjudicated. But with the artificially compressed investigation the issues discussed in this article, that are arguably more important, have been pushed into the background. Plus it creates a perfect spin opportunity for the GOP if the FBI does not find sufficient evidence to support Ford's accusation... the GOP will say, look, he is cleared, and confirm him.
5
If every Senator, Congressman and public servant would be accused of wrong doing based on allegations dating back 36 years with he said, she said, every career would be destroyed- without an iota of proof.
Maybe the system needs updating so that not every person off the street can't ruin careers and lives without risking severe consequences. Yes, it should be in the form of a criminal court.
You want to ruin lives, you better have your act together.
What we have here are comments as if judging a soap opera casting call. Ridiculous.
,
8
@JBT I think what the article is suggesting is that there are concerns about the nominee's honesty, character, and temperament that are based as much on his contemporary behavior as on the allegations dating to his youth. Regardless of the truth of the allegations- probably impossible to prove one way or another- people are increasingly seeing him as unfit because he appears dishonest and openly partisan.
Also: "every person off the street"? Regardless of whatever your personal litmus test may be, Dr. Ford seems to have as much credibility as just about anyone you could imagine.
4
@JBoggess
There is only one subject: who gets that seat and in the interim, obviously - anything goes.
MEMO To republicans:
Re: "Temperament and Honesty Become Focus of Democrats Trying to Derail Nomination"
Turnabout is fair play republicans. Remember that nominee of President Obama that you refused to even meet?
Now you are faced with a republican nominee who has a growing by the day list of really bad negatives against him.
You didn't have any reason other than disrespect for the nominee and the President who made the nomination. Now the Democrats have a growing list of reasons to reject this Kavanaugh nomination.
22
@RetiredGuy
Refusing to meet someone is preferable to attempting to destroy them with false allegations. Yes? No?
Did you ever hear the aphorism "Sober as a judge"? This simile was first recorded in 1694. Equating judges with being not intoxicated refers to the fact that judges need to be steady and clear-headed to make their decisions. Kavanaugh does not seem to have those qualifications. It seems he can not take the pressure, and that is something a judge needs to be able to handle.
10
Hmmm, when it comes to honesty it seems that the revered professor has a few issues of her own...
https://www.realclearinvestigations.com/articles/2018/10/02/building_doc...
4
Then there's this about Brett "Beer" Kavanaugh:
https://www.politicususa.com/2018/10/01/uncovered-text-messages-nail-kav...
He lied under oath so he should be disqualified according to Flake.
9
The tactic is mafia style intimidation.
Democrats smear every nominee. Anyone remember or care that they brought Justice Alito’s wife to tears during his confirmation when Biden accused Alito of being a racist.
Same smear tactic—only the names and dates have changed.
11
@Ora pro nobis
In other words, your claim is that Kavanaugh was justified in losing his composure because Democrats gave him a hard time.
However, the excuse you're allowing Kavanaugh is very similar to the one my assailant used to justify punching me in the face.
4
@Ora pro nobis
Why didn’t this happened with Neil Gorsuch?
5
The moving goal posts are the result of both the allegations and his behavior when questioned about them. The partisan tirade, the deflecting and avoidance of answering tough questions, the teenaged attitude of disrespect displayed toward Sen Klobuchar and more should quickly disqualify him as a judge in the highest court where fairness and rule of law are supposed to be upheld. I would not trust him to hold my six pack of beer for 5 minutes his love of beer is so strong.
13
No one seems to be talking about the core issue here—radical extremist candidates like Gorsuch and Kavanaugh would never even have been considered for SCOTUS if we hadn’t eliminated the 60 vote filibuster, which at least ensured some degree of bipartisan compromise and consensus. Like many democrats, I’d be ok with a conservative judge who wasn’t an activist ideologue, corporate shill, or religious zealot. Even someone who adheres to the charade of Constitutional originalism or literalism might be passable. Unfortunately political hacks and religious extremists in judicial garb are all that the Federalist Society seems to have in their stable.
7
Kavanaugh's testimony removed the mask. Period.
9
Perspective needed. There are hundreds if not thousands of Yale Law School and other ivy school graduates who are at least as qualified by paper and experience as this one man. The world will not come to an end if this one man is not confirmed. There are scores of others waiting in line who have the conservative judicial and political ideology that Republicans want and one of them will surely be confirmed if Kavanaugh is not. The decision now is whether this one man is the right one in terms of character and impartiality.
10
Temperament and honesty become issues in Kavanaugh appointment: finally we arrive at the core issues.
11
Say a case comes to SCOTUS which claims they were knowingly set up and convicted of something based on phony charges, who on the court as we would have it would have any idea where this person is coming from. At least Kavanaugh's appointment would give it a little greater insight, which I thought was it's whole point of making its balance reflect that of society.
Moving the goal posts == They found out more of what was hidden and responded to it.
This is the right thing to do - to evaluate all the data, not hide from it. Not act like the fact that it was kept hidden for a little while by the GOP means that they get to pretend it doesn't exist. 40K documents, 200K of gambling debt vanishing, tons of tales from college, and entitlement combined a bad temper he cannot control shows him to be a very poor candidate.
He's a lifelong partisan extremist, not a neutral judge, not suitable for any bench, let alone the highest in the land.
8
Oh and feinstein didn't hide anything?
4
Dianne Feinstein is not up for a lifetime appointment to the SC.
1
His temperament and demeanor brings to fore his e-mails and decisions.....why were so many withheld?
9
The question for Republicans, both in the Senate and in the voting public, is now, Will we excuse federal Judge Brett Kavanaugh's behavior in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee and reward such behavior with a lifetime appointment to the highest federal court in America? For ordinary citizens, we might also ask, If we behaved in such a way, would we be rewarded and, What lesson do we want to teach our children?
6
SCOTUS justices being partisan and having a temper? That's impossible. Never happens. Keep Judge Kavanaugh off the Court!
4
What Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer said is a fitting reply to those who argue that what Judge Kavanaugh did as a teenager should not be held against him decades later. “The issues of credibility and temperament are not something that happened 30 years ago; they’re about Judge Kavanaugh today and how he is as a 53-year-old,” Mr. Schumer is quoted as saying. During the Senate hearings, the judge was untruthful, partisan (read ‘pro-Republican’) and sickeningly angry.
In the second phase of the hearings, his anger came out through every pore in his body. He called the hearing “a calculated and orchestrated political hit, fueled with apparent pent-up anger about President Trump and the 2016 election … [and a] revenge on behalf of the Clintons.” No Democrat ever blamed Judge Kavanaugh for their 2016 election loss. Was he playing victimhood to win the sympathy of all Republicans? Yes, Democrats did talk about the enabling role he played in Bill Clinton’s impeachment. Is the judge feeling guilty about that role?
Republican Senator Charles Grassley's comparison of Judge Kavanaugh's performance to that of the then-Judge Clarence Thomas at the 1991 hearings, in response to Anita Hill’s accusation of sexual harassment against him, is an apt one. It was Justice Thomas’s angry outburst and characterization of the hearings as "high-tech lynching" that made some wavering senators vote for him. Is Sen. Grassley hoping that the Kavanaugh outburst will have similar outcome?
2
I'd be mighty angry too if someone from 35 years ago accused me of assaulting her.
9
Especially if the accusation was true and it served to prevent you from securing a lifetime appointment as a Supreme Court Justice, not to mention forcing you to finally face that you were a blackout drunk and are still lying about it.
8
@Rolf - Would you also lie and rant conspiracy theories?
8
If this repugnant guy was half decent he would resign, but he ain't. Need I say more?
13
@Nelson - If he doesn't get the job he probably has to pay off whoever bailed him out of debt and he doesn't have that kind of money.
4
Take the anger and almost belligerence we saw in Kananaugh’s testimony the other day and add some alcohol and what do you have??
12
the tirade was staged. it was an act. didn't you get that?
4
Unfortunately, I agree with you, Republicans don't care about character anymore.
15
@kgj
Not sure you know how this played out. Democrats received an allegation of sexual assault prior to the confirmation hearings. Rather than shake it out at the hearings by questing Kavanaugh, or when they had the chance speaking to him one on one, they instead hid the allegation from him. Deceitful behavior. They then ambushed him with it just prior to the confirmation vote. Now we find out the allegation is completely unfounded.
I don't think, if you did know how this played out, that you are credible speaking of character.
2
Imagine if any woman dared be as angry, partisan and down right nasty plus self pitying and pouting as Kavanaugh! She’d be dismissed as as lying hysteric. Ditto for senator Graham. What was he so unhinged about?
16
To blame the genie for what it does after you knowingly let it out of the bottle is the height of cowardice.
6
Where there is repression, there is deviant behavior. In the town I grew up, the catholic school was just down the road from the public school. Because the catholic school had a cement playground, those kids would come after school to play on the grass playground of the public school. I would always be amazed at the cursing and swearing and even the dirty jokes told by the catholic boys. I would think to myself "what world did they just come from?"
6
This entire scrutiny centers around Kavanaugh's out of control drinking. The sooner this issue is addressed, the sooner we'll have closure.
8
I find it impossible to believe that an alcohol abuser and sexual predator like Brett Kavanaugh suddenly stops being a drunken sexual assaulter just because he graduated from law school. Sexual predators don't just stop their predation. I'm concerned that Brett Kavanaugh continued his alcohol abuse and sexual assaults after he began his professional career and just became more furtive or was enabled and protected by his professional colleagues. We need to be sure that Brett Kavanaugh hasn't continued his alcohol abuse and sexual assaults.
9
@Lona
.... or he never was a sexual predator and "alcohol abuser"
Thus far, the evidence of the first accusation is nil, and the second looks to be typical of most people in their early 20s.
4
that's true, they don't stop being abusers. that being the case, why haven't we had 100's of women coming out over the past 35 year period?
5
If temperament and honesty were a criterion for public office, no Democrat would be sitting in the Senate. And no Republican.
3
A clear pattern has developed and that is he has drinking problem and he cannot control himself when he is with women. He dodged questions and his answers created more doubts. If confirmed, this nomination ,for a long time, will consume the Supreme Court.
5
@Kabir Faryad
please explain the facts supporting these "clear patterns"
You say he has a drinking problem. Please explain what you know about him that makes this "clear."
You say he can't control himself when he is with women. Again, please explain what you know about him that makes this "clear."
Cite proof, not uncorroborated, fantastical proof like "someone accused him of serial gang rape with zero proof"
5
@ML
Facts: Kavanaugh's own high school calendar, his own notations in his yearbook, the statements from his Yale classmates and the police report for the fight he started in the bar offer a clear pattern of alcohol abuse with negative consequences. The broken capillaries on his nose and face and his inability to control his anger in public while blaming everyone on earth except himself last week are supporting clues.
1
@FWS
The examples you provided are all in the distant past. The accusations leveled were in the present tense.
And the examples you provided say that he was a pretty normal college student, not that he has a problem.
None of them address the claim "he cannot control himself when he is with women."
I've just heard an interview of a retired FBI special agent on the BBC, and when asked what he would focus his questions on, he answered with 3 strands to investigate: 1) he was doubtful about Dr Ford's memory stating that it was strange that she could not remember the day she took the polygraph, 2) whether the person who gave her the polygraph test had received her statement before the test and 3) why Senator Feinstein had kept the letter since July without acting on it.
This is really divergent from what people seem to have understood would be asked, as if the FBI is investigating Dr Ford and the democrats rather than BK.
Very strange
6
@Fred
Haha, well yesterday I heard pretty much the opposite on All Things Considered with another former FBI agent:
https://www.npr.org/2018/10/01/653430574/former-fbi-agent-discusses-prac...
And guess what—neither of these guys is actually in the investigation, so we don’t really know what they will be looking at. It’s all conjecture.
The issues of credibility and truthfulness should not be partisan issues. A Supreme Court judge of any philosophy--conservative or liberal--should be above approach in character and honesty.
Kavanaugh clearly lied, deflected and evaded under oath during his Senate testimony.
That alone should be enough to disqualify him in a reasonable world. Too bad the USA is not very reasonable right now.
11
The oldster Democrat so-called leadership should be targeting voters in the home districts of every politician voting for Kavanaugh.
There should be hundreds of activists detailed to each of these politicians, following them around day and night, screaming into their faces. When they go to sleep, they should use megaphones outside their windows.
But this is not happening. And that's why the Democrats lost the Presidency, both houses of Congress, the Supreme Court, 70% of the State Houses, and the country and the future.
Get rid of the entitled low-energy Democrat oldsters who are secret Republicans in everything but name.
1
When you think about it Kavanaugh’s involvement in Clinton’s impeachment and his involvement in the disgraceful, screwball allegation of murder in the Foster affair made his nomination a clear and deliberate insult to the Democrats. McConnell is a good enough politician to have realized this. He knew this confirmation would be heavy going and it has been. He can’t have been the only one.
There’s nothing wrong in what the Democrats have done. They are absolutely entitled to scrutinize any Supreme Court nominee. And as for Feinstein holding off on revealing Blasey Ford’s accusation until the last minute, I think she was hoping she wouldn’t have to use it.
McConnell is also a good enough politician to realize that to some extent, he is responsible for this entire mess. To get Gorsuch approved he invoked the “nuclear option” and changed the senate’s rules for Supreme Court confirmation from a 60% majority to a simple majority. Absent this rule change an extremely partisan candidate like Kavanaugh would never, ever have been proposed in the first place. Nuclear option indeed. It’s blowing up in everybody’s face. And Kavanaugh is not the only person who is going to get burned.
4
I can understand being angry, regardless of whether the allegations are true. The problem is how he manifested his anger. He was dismissive, disrespectful and petulant. He attributed collective guilt to "the left" and Democrats. Many of the issues and people he will dealing with in future cases belong to these groups. It is the opposite of judicial temperament to categorize Americans in such a manner.
10
Someone might want to the President and the GOP Senators that, in case Kavanaugh doesn't make it, Jimmy McGill is available.
1
Trump, McConnell, Graham, other members of the Judiciary Committee and Kavanaugh are treating the people of the United States in the same way that Kavanaugh is alleged to have treated the women who have come forth with allegations of sexual assault and abuse. Americans will need a long shower after this is all over. The world is watching as they attempt to brand this to the Democrats. Bravo to the Democrats for resisting.
12
In regards to Senator Grassley's comparison to Clarence Thomas' lynching comment:
1) we don't like him either so the comparison isn't helping
2) while the comment is certainly provocative, I wouldn't say it shows a lack of ability to be non-partisan, which Kavanaugh's statements did. Kavanaugh showed himself to lack calmness under pressure, sure, but also vindictiveness and entitlement.
Then there's the comment that people who don't want Kavanaugh appointed are "moving the goalposts." We are - for you, for the people who want them appointed. A logician will tell you that in order to make a logical argument, you have to have an agreed upon, "true" antecedent. We can't argue that we don't want Kavanaugh on the court because he assaulted someone if his supporters simply don't believe that's true. We're trying to convince his supporters to stop supporting him, to see things the way we see them, so we have to change our antecedent to something they can agree with. So you don't think he assaulted her, but can you concede he was temperamental? Partisan? Dishonest in his testimony about his drinking? We will meet you anywhere you want and go from there to convince you he is unfit. That's not dirty - that's just the way debating and arguing works.
4
This is about Democrat intimidation of Republican president’s nominees. It’s been going on since Bork and it’s just lower and nastier. Now the families are fair game too. Democrats literally have no shame.
Nominees of Democrat presidents never get this treatment. Far better to not consider a nominee than to destroy him or her and their family.
I will never vote for a candidate who is a part of the modern corrupt Democrat party and I will actually work against them with my time and money every chance I get.
10
No, the Democrats’ nominees never even get a shot. Does the name Merrick Garland ring a bell?
8
@JC
Did you see the cartoon the "progressives" have been laughing at depicting Kavanaugh's daughter praying? Not sure how one can get lower or more vile than these folk.
5
Bork was a political hack in one of the arguably most corrupt administrations in modern history and was the only one unethical enough to fire Archibald Cox. He had no business on the Supreme Court.
6
Let's see. Remember Merrick Garland? He was Obama's nominee back a year before the 2016 election who Republicans refused to even confirm nor deny because they wanted to have a Republican President nominate the justice after the election, and they did. Now they are just squirming like little kids in anticipation of a new movie to watch with the prospect of nominating a fifth conservative justice who may sway decisions according to their favorite flavor for half a century. The Democrats concern over a former Republican Party hack being nominated for a spot on the high court is now the problem?
Kavanaugh was justified in having anger with the disparaging accusations and impatience with the Democratic opposition to the nomination of another conservative opposing him, but he just plain lost it and expelled all his vitriol towards Democrats and liberals when the issue was his own personal integrity placed in doubt by his dubious assertions of being a pious altar boy scholar instead of the raucous athletic team member and demonstrably attention seeking rebellious youth that he remained through law school. He lied like a privileged adolescent when he was under oath and tried to change the subjects instead of answering direct questions. He even whined at how unfairly he was being treated. It was not unseemly. That was Kavanaugh. But it was uncontrolled and deceitful, and not what anyone wants in a judge.
13
@Casual Observer
If everyone, including Mitch McConnell expected Hillary to win, how could Garland have been denied to allow a Republican the nomination? You do understand the reason for McConnell's choice was Biden's argument to do that very thing? And, his desire to motivate Republican voters to go to the poll to keep the Senate Majority? Those are the reasons why Garland didn't get a hearing. No one, except me and the other 'deplorables' believed Trump would win, especially McConnell.
2
serious allegations, yes. credible still remains to be seen.
4
There are so many sadnesses in this situation that they are uncountable at this point. Republicans are determined that they must have Kavanaugh on the Supreme Court no matter what. All pleas to the contrary from Harvard or Yale law professors, or the country at large will not change their minds.
So it's only a question of how the vote goes in the Senate now.
No matter the outcome, half the country will never see him as legitimate and if confirmed, his presence will forever damage the reputation of the
One of my saddest moments has been seeing Lindsey Graham become a Republican shill. He did not come from privilege or elitist Ivey league schools. He was for so long respected on both sides of the isle. I don't know what happened, but it still makes me sad.
7
@Gwen Vilen
Agree that something happened. Blackmail?
3
"He later apologized".
To me, this is the most important part of this piece. If Kavanaugh is confirmed and as a Supreme Court Justice, can he also apologize after a decision is rendered by the SC, whether he voted for or against that decision. What happens then if he does? I know he will never apologize again once he gets that life time appointment.
3
that's just ridiculous.
1
@Notmypesident -- he needed to be told to apologize first..
2
While I was clerking for a federal judge some years ago, I put up a yard sign in support of a friend who was running for the school board--a non-partisan position. I was questioned about this by my colleagues and reminded that as members of the judicial branch of government, we were to avoid even the mere appearance of partisanship or partiality.
My how things have apparently changed since I took Ethics in law school.
36
@Valerie
Did your ethics class discuss false accusations?
2
@jaco
So you are saying that a person falsely accused is *entitled* to a job?
Or perhaps you’re saying that if he hadn’t been accused he wouldn’t have had a hearing in which he embarrassed himself in front of the world with his screaming partisanship. (Which, by the way, should rightly disqualify him.)
4
@Breezy
If the false allegations did not occur he would be confirmed by now.
I can’t believe this charlatan is even still in the running.
23
@Jamie Pauline
Ego and Hubris.
4
Serious credible sexual assault allegations have been brought against Judge Kavanaugh. In his testimony before the Senate Judiciary he showed himself to be highly partisan, belligerent, and disrespectful to certain Democratic senators questioning him at his testimony last Thursday.
His dishonesty and evasion about his drinking excessively in college have been challenged by a number of his Yale classmates. A number of his friends have said what Judge Kavanaugh said in his testimony was clearly not truthful when he played down his drinking beer and did not directly answer the questions put to him about excessive drinking problems that he had in high school and college.
There were a number of other qualified judges on the shortlist of the president's to be nominated to the Supreme Court. It seems very important to nominate someone to the highest court who has an even, reserved, and steady temperament, are honest, treat others with respect, and are non partisan.
17
It seems to me that Kavanaugh, and other Republican Senators, are taking a page from the Trump playbook - super aggressively blaming the Democrats and even once again, the Clintons, as well as behaving in a way that smacks of adolescent pique with poor impulse control. The appropriate standards of behavior for our elected and appointed officials are now being judged against Trump's and the bar has has not only been lowered, it has disappeared
22
My first thought is what if the roles were switched. Any woman who acted like Kavanaugh did would have been ties and quartered.
Then I came to Grassley’s statement about Clarence Thomas. Clarence Thomas May have spoken out that day but he has said nothing since. He does not speak. Plus, those were different times. We are beyond that now. Kavanaugh failed his employment interview in my opinion.
8
the days of Clarence Thomas were different days. just like the days of kavanaugh's youth were different from today. yet you want to judge kav by today's standards for sething 35 years ago. tsk, tsk.
1
Many on the right are trying to portray this as an "unjust trial" or a "witch hunt".
No, it is neither. It's a job interview.
If any prospective employer ever sat across from someone with Kavanaugh's demeanor, it's highly unlikely the candidate would make it to the next round of interviews.
25
when during a job interview do 300million people watch live while you are accused of vile acts which you deny.
4
@mkm
Yes, but regardless of any of the other factors, a key requirement of this job is at least some semblance of political impartiality and he totally blew that one. And he lied. Next!
Kavanaugh's tirade was a staged tactic. was that not obvious? alt-left is really just grasping at straws now. I'm to the point as a registered independent moderate liberal, that I no longer care what the alt-left thinks. these tactics are embarrassing and I'm ashamed to say I'm an "anything" liberal at this point. the only thing that matters are the thoughts of the 4 swing senators. this smear campaign is a disgrace and I'm appalled that fellow liberals can sink so low. you have become worse than the republicans. you have become exactly what you claim to despise. and you do so claiming you have the high moral ground. unbelievable.
7
@bored critic . If Kavanaugh's tirade was a staged tactic, as you seem to think was obvious, how does that make it better? He was certainly performing his anger and indignation, that is, giving it full vent, but I'm pretty sure he also really felt those emotions. His dishonesty is also part of the performance, that is, he was hoping his lies wouldn't be questioned. But all this makes him even more obviously unfit for the job, which requires honest, self-awareness, judiciousness, and civility.
6
@bored critic
If, as you say,Kavanaugh's appearance / tirade was indeed a staged tactic, you have identified the core problem with his appointment to SCOTUS. He had a responsibility to be honest and forthcoming with the committee, a responsibility he demonstrated contempt for. He dodged, deflected, failed to answer, ranted, cried, shook; quite a show. What he was not was honest.
How that reflects on "liberals" or "alt-left," what ever that is, completely escapes me. If you were to ask my opinion, I would encourage you to stick with the right wing rant sites you sound just like.
5
Bottom line for me: Kavanaugh is too partisan, too loose with the truth, and too emotionally unstable to sit on the Supreme Court. He lacks the temperament and the ability to keep his cool under pressure. SCOTUS is no place for crybabies or wimps. Is he the only Judge in America? We can do much better. For instance, Kavanaugh's own boss, Merrick Garland is very well liked and respected. Maybe give him a shot?
20
One of these days we’ll connect the dots and understand that intellect, honesty and temperament are required to responsibly run a country and is that which Democrats have in abundance. The Republicans unfortunately have a temperament that undermines their honesty and what intellect they may have. Whether one went to Harvard, Yale, Bama...or no college at all, makes little to no difference if honesty and temperament are flawed.
20
„The rational part of a teen's brain isn't fully developed and won't be until age 25 or so. In fact, recent research has found that adult and teen brains work differently.“(University rochester)
2
Brett Kavenaugh is not fit for Supreme Court. Kavenaugh in his opening statement to senate last week attacked Democrats and the Clintons. He can not be impartial. Kavenaugh in the same statement became angry and emotional. A Supreme Court Judge needs to be cool under pressure; Kavenaugh was not. Kavenaugh is not fit to be on Supreme Court. Ray Sipe
12
“What goes around comes around.”
So true.
Even though he attributes his predicament to a revenge plot by the Clintons, Kavanaugh does not seem to see the irony of his own statement.
18
The Times reports: "Temperament and Honesty Become Focus of Democrats" in their evaluation of Kavanaugh's fitness for the Highest Court in the land.
And well it should be. The last thing we Americans need -- especially these days, as our fair nation splinters under a fascist president -- is a Supreme Court justice known for lying, for pushing women up against walls, for an inability to consume alcohol without blacking out (or "falling asleep"), and for other disqualifying abuses....
20
Simple enough.
He raises his hand, takes an oath to tell the truth. Asked pointblank about:
1. Boofing
2. Devil's Triangle
His response: Flatulence and drinking game.
Right off the bat he lied....UNDER OATH.
If any one of those senators used Google they'd see that. Disqualification. He Lied.
20
@Margo Channing
How does google prove what a group of boys, in a particular social circle, at a particular high school, 36 years ago meant when they used a term?
1
@ML
I have been wondering that exact same thing.
@ML
drinking age in Maryland in 1982 is a matter of record. Stupid lie, unqualified candidate. He may have had all the advantages in life but he squandered them all, preferring to kill brain cells rather than face life. Now He's 53 with nothing in his retirement savings and probably no way to pay back whoever paid off his $200K gambling debts. No wonder he was snivelling.
The GOP propaganda machine is working well.
Flake is not undecided--he is just being presented as the sacrificial goat since he is not running again. After all this useless fallout, Kavanaugh will very likely be confirmed. The GOP can then claim full vetting with an FBI investigation...etc.
In the meantime, the dysfunctional regime marches on with its full ideology continuing to advance.
10
I remember how conservatives were in the 80s. Personal responsibility 100%. Which meant to conservatives that if you made mistakes in high school, those were your mistakes and it is right for those mistakes to be mentioned and for you to be penalized for them in your adult professional life.
Conservatives didn't give endless mulligans and do-overs in the 80s. They stood for an ideal of personal responsibility that they've abandoned almost completely for Trump.
So now it's like, "He made 100 bad decisions in high school and another 200 in college, but who cares, it was over 30 years ago."
13
Grassley is wrong. People question Clarence Thomas demeanor all the time. He's well known for sleeping through hearings
8
Stop it with the "war" metaphors, NYT. Why is questioning the emotional fitness, honesty and impartiality of a Supreme Court nominee a partisan "attack" in a political "war"? We all saw Kavanaugh's behavior and heard his words. We may have drawn difference conclusions from his tearful rage, his evasive answers, and his "little" lies to cover up his excess drinking and low regard for women. Depending on our life experiences, our social status, our gender, and our political ideologies, we may interpret that behavior and those words somewhat differently, but it is a matter of record now. It is plain to see and hear. Should Democrats ignore it? Should Republicans ignore it? Absolutely not.
13
Alcohol is potentially a very dangerous drug. More than pot or cocaine. You can become a vicious and violent person. You may loose your cool easily. Specially if you have a bad temper.
10
The scariest and most reprehensible part of the Kavanaugh "performance" for me is how he dehumanized Dr. Christine Blasey Ford. He rendered her invisible and her painful recounting of a terrifying attack inconsequential. All he could see is an "orchestrated," vindictive, political attack, not just on him personally, but on President Trump and all Republicans, politicians and voters alike. Dr. Ford was just a non-human weapon others wielded against them. This matters because he will sit in judgment of many "other" persons who are not Republicans in ideology or voting history. What about a black or brown person, a wage worker, a union member, a public schoolteacher, a poor sick person, all whose life, liberty and equality under our Constitution he must decide about? What about those who are "left-wing," non-Christian or liberal Christians or simply mainstream Democrats? Will he view them as simply tools of a "vast left-wing conspiracy" out to take down the Republican Party, not real human beings? Once you dehumanize a woman who says she was sexually attacked, you can dehumanize anybody. And that opens the door to all manner of evil.
20
How on earth have we gotten to this place in America where we are discussing "A New Front in the Kavanaugh Wars"? This overdrawn psycho-drama shows how far we've fallen from civil discourse in a 21st century democracy among reasonable men and women into what seems like a Civil War this time between white male power and privilege and women who are asserting their right not to be sexual objects, but equals. The bare-knuckled assault by angry, out-of-control men is not civil and not justified. Just think of how it would be portrayed if the real victim, Dr. Christine Blasey Ford,had behaved like that instead of Judge Brett Kavanaugh and Sen. Lindsey Graham. There was no appropriate anger demonstrated by these two foaming-at-the-mouth, belligerent, and threatening men. They were ominous in Kavanaugh's reaction to the calm questioning by Sen. Amy Klobuchar who arrogantly and aggressively threw her concerns about his drinking back in her face just like the drink he's accused of throwing in a bar when he was at Yale. And, they were apoplectic in Sen. Graham's threats to his colleagues on how they must vote. It was a disgrace unworthy of the Senate, a nominee who is asking to dispense justice on our highest court, and to the nation. The lack of civility and rationality is beyond disgusting; it is frightening that Donald Trump and his enablers who were formerly Republicans have dragged us down into this political depravity only worthy of cavemen.
15
Kavanaugh "moved the goal posts" all by himself with his reprehensible behavior. He should not be a judge of any kind at any level.
17
As a former prosecutor, the last time that I checked, victims do not conduct criminal investigations. Rachel Mitchell’s memo essentially stands that fundamental practice on its head. Mitchell like Republicans attacks Ms. Ford a victim for not conducting a criminal investigation.
In Ford's case, Mark Judge and many other witness should have been interviewed and should have appeared before the Senate committee.
Senator Graham's hypocritical conduct in the hearing was utterly revolting. What is clear is Graham's desire to be appointed the Attorney General or Vice-President when Trump is essentially impeached.
For Graham to cite, Cosby, a man who has been fully investigated and convicted, to compare with Kavanaugh who hasn't been fully investigated reveals the falsity of Graham's sanctimonious rage. In fact, a squadron of Kavanugh defenders now readily fill the airwaves claiming Ford provided no corroboration yet ignoring the fact that there was no investigation. Now as more facts undermine Kavanaugh’s testimony, defenders are trying to downplay his perjury. How unsurprising.
Ultimately Graham and his male colleagues reveal that they don’t care about women, nor about the truth, and most importantly they think allegations of sex crimes should not be vetted. Note from Republicans to high school bullies and predators--press on.
12
A Justice should be chosen based on her/his legal scholarship, judicial experience, education, ability to work with others, The juggernaut of forces working against Kavanaugh have really unfairly put his life under a microscope because they don't like his ideology. I can see why he got angry the other day and why he shed tears. I don't think we knew the minutiae of Souter's life, or Breyer's, or Roberts', and if we did, we might find unsavory, rude, boorish, childish moments. I voted for all the Clintons, Obama and Al Gore. I'm still mad about Merrick Garland. Ideologically I'm far from Kavanaugh. But this is not how we should be examining Justices.
3
Kavanaugh's right to anger is not the issue here. Holding men accountable for their emotions and the actions they take based on their emotions is what this case is all about. It is what the #MeToo movement is all about: stating that a man's emotions (lust, entitlement, anger) do not supercede another person's right to be left alone, heard, be treated with respect, etc. Here is a man who is literally applying for a key job based on even-handedness and judicial temperament going on a diatribe against one political party, being snide/rude in a court of law, and walking all over the process. If a woman had done this it would be used to state how hysterical she was and evidence why women should not be in positions of power. Yet this man is going to be allowed to disregard certain people (women, democrats, anyone who questions his 'right' to be a SC justice) because of his emotions (anger, victimhood, entitlement, more anger) just as he is accused of running over and disregarding someone in the past. That is what is unacceptable. And for this particular job should be disqualifying.
15
So depressed to see men out here defending Kavanaugh's conduct at the hearing as a perfectly understandable reaction, irrespective of the setting and circumstances. Maybe that's an okay way to act in your living room or at the bar, but not in a Senate hearing for a position of national importance!
Since the election I've continued to be disappointed by the standards my fellow citizens seem to holding themselves and their leaders to. First the willingness to accept racism and now the entitled boorishness. I'm afraid to see what depths are coming next.
20
@Sarah
Agree. Trump's disgusting example was seized upon by a LOT of men.
1
Ralph Waldo Emerson said "If you strike at the king, you must kill him." Trying to character-assassinate Kavanaugh, if it fails, will be a disaster for Democrats on the Court. As it should be -- perhaps they will think twice about pulling these stunts again.
1
@JB: It is not a "stunt" to want to ensure that the judge who goes to the Supreme Court is honest, fair, mature, and judicious - and not judgmental, prejudiced, biased, dishonest, self-pitying, paranoid, and lacking in humility and self-awareness, as Kavanaugh clearly showed himself to be the other day. We should not trust a man who has proved himself to be so unstable and so biased with any judicial authority of any kind. He is obviously unfit, and this a serious issue. Your trivialization of it as a "stunt" is unbecomingly disrespectful.
4
@Allison
JB is another man happy to follow Trump's example. Trump calls the Democratic effort to keep Kavanaugh off the SCOTUS a "con job." Loyal JB calls it a "stunt."
Over 20 witnesses have stepped forward and volunteered to be interviewed by the FBI. What will Mr. Grassley and his colleagues do if Judge Kavanaugh's nomination goes forward and he makes the Supreme Court--and then more of his record comes to light and charges are filed? America has already witnessed Kavanaugh's lying. Surely there are many candidates well suit for this honor, but he's not one of them.
17
Often we wish we had more information before making a decision. People tell us who they are, if we listen. Kavanaugh did everything but walk out of the interview.
17
If the Democrats had a replay of what happened years ago that showed Kavanaugh wasn't there, they still wouldn't vote for him. So why don't they just be honest and cut out all the theater.
3
The Merrick Garland stunt wasn’t theater? Lindsey Graham’s rant not theater? Kavanaugh’s crocodile tears not theater? All the world’s a stage.
13
Cool headline, NY Times - Perhaps 'derail' isn't the right term, but 'ensure a fair process, one that allows someone of sound mind and magnanimous temperament to determine cases that will impact hundreds of thousands.' or something.
13
The title of this article only fuels the Republican’s and Kavanaugh’s claim that Blasey-Ford’s allegation and the ensuing hearing were part of a plot by Democrats to block Kavanaugh's confirmation. If you listen to Feinstein’s exchange with Cornyn, she strongly denies that she or anyone on her staff leaked Blasey-Ford’s letter or story. The letter was never leaked (which Republicans seem to be confused about). Feinstein believes probably one of Blasey Ford’s friends leaked the story. Feinstein’s speculation about the source seems worth investigating or at least reminding the public about. Republicans and their media outlets continue to push this conspiracy theory and it needs to be disproven.
If Democrats are now calling attention to Kavanaugh’s temperament and deception during his testimony, that is a different matter altogether and shouldn’t be presented as “yet another way” Democrats are trying to block Kavanaugh. He did this to himself, coming out guns blazing and dodging question after question.
11
Two issues:
1) His behavior while drunk, if true, adds credence to Dr Ford's story.
2) If he is different now, and by all accounts he no longer gets drunk and combative, did he receive treatment or rehab? The FBI should try to find out. Again, if he did, it would add credence to Dr Ford's story.
These issues are different from temperament or partisanship, which also bother me.
3
...and PERJURY is a top issue.
6
This has always been about Kavanaugh's suitability to sit on the Supreme Court. Although Dr. Blasey Ford's story may be true, there is no way to prove it, absent Mark Judge's confirmation of the events. And that is very unlikely. Judge Kavanaugh's "performance" has only intensified my feeling that he is unsuitable for the Court. His obvious partisanship was on full display. Do we really need more division and rancor? The Chinese and the Russians must be high-fiving right now.
18
When you can't prove the original false accusation, switch the narrative to another subject. Sort of sounds like the Mueller investigation of Trump. The Democrats never quit, even when they are dead wrong. They just come up with another lie to advance their agenda.
9
Seems like he derailed himself.
17
Are you guys sure you want to export America's version of liberal democracy to China? It doesn't look too attractive to me, with or without tariff.
2
"it doesn't look too attractive to me, with or without tariff." really, are you sure this is what you meant to say?
Everyone focuses on his treatment of Senator Klobuchar. His throwing back her question at her was important. But more important was his statement in doing so. He was asked if he had blacked out as a drinker. His answer was "I don't know, have you?" It's the "I don't know" that's important. Sometimes a witness is so angry that they just tell the truth. This was the truth. He doesn't know. We have Ford's testimony that she remembers the assault. We have Kavanaugh's testimony hat he doesn't know if he blacks out. So, basically, he cannot deny that happened.
33
For those who defend Kavanaugh's tirade last Thursday, I ask you this: if he is indeed innocent, why doesn't he want a complete FBI investigation, which would exonerate him?
Kavanaugh wasn't just angry during the hearing; he was hyperpartisan, disrespectful and obnoxious. He was also evasive in his answers and lied under oath about the meanings of his inappropriate yearbook entries.
He's not only unfit to be a justice of the Supreme Court, he should be disbarred and removed from the bench.
26
Grassley reference to Thomas is so laughable. Thomas' nomination was a finger in the eye of people who admired Thurgood Marshal for his career fighting for justice for black people and the positive evolution for justice in the US. Thomas was purely the choice of white conservatives to put a black person on the Supreme Court who was a Republican who opposed anything that rocked the boat of zero sum Republican party social policy. Thomas hasn't done anything to make people question this appraisal. He was one of the reasons Bush was a one term president.
23
If half the United States Senate accused you of gang rape (among other things), you'd be well within your rights to be hopping mad. No one sits in judgment of himself or herself, so you can't expect Kavanaugh, charged with these heinous crimes, will behave with the same objectivity he employs as a judge.
As to the drinking, it seems he drank in high school and college, but he did exceedingly well academically, so it didn't impair him. So on this rather subjective issue (did you drink too much?), I think his answers are truthful.
16
@Esteban
One person has accused him. The rest of us are trying to determine the truth.
5
@Esteban: I notice that defenders of Kavanaugh keep using the term "gang rape." Nobody has accused him of gang rape. One person has accused him of sexually assaulting her, not of "gang rape." Is "gang rape" the new right-wing talking point of choice, selected to make the accusation sound as outrageous and unbelievable as possible? Since only Kavanaugh defenders are using it, I'm assuming it's being spread by right-wing pundits in right-wing circles.
3
@Alicia Peterson I don't think Cory Booker and Chris Coons (both also Yale Law graduates) are looking for the truth -- they are looking for a delay and revenge for Merrick Garland (not for the Clintons).
It is astonishing that the NY Times is not blaring headlines "Supreme Court Nominee Commits Perjury."
We all know he committed perjury when he claimed that the Renate Alumni group was something kind done to honor and respect a good friend.
So why aren't you blasting headlines about perjury? Is it not news when a Supreme Court nominee blatantly lies under oath?
This is how democracy dies. With the NY Times being complicit.
17
“I would defy anyone not to be angry about that if they believe the allegations against them were completely false,” said Senator John Cornyn of Texas
good point Mr. Cornyn - please also bear in mind that people who drink too much, know they drink too much and yet won't accept that they drink too much get very angry and defensive when called on it, which is what i think was the case here.
in all honesty i had to wonder, from the flush of his pale skin and look to his eye, if he was under the influence when he became so belligerent towards the end of the day.
regardless of the reason i think his attitude, his demeanor and it definite partisanship disqualify him
20
Sheryl, apparently editors have seen fit to rename your article to “Temperament and Honesty Become Focus of Democrats Attempting to Derail Nomination” on the homepage to gather clicks from ultra-partisans who will click on anything supporting or attacking Democrats.
In truth, the relevance of temperament and honesty in a Supreme Court Justice isn’t strictly a tribal issue, and the Times does public dialogue a disservice by trying to make it one.
12
The phrasing of your headline, 'Democrats seeking to derail his candidacy', sugggests that Democrats are out to undermine Kavanaugh for political reasons. This is misleading: as others have pointed out, Gorsuch did not get this treatment, even though his appointment was the result of McConnell's shameful decision not to grant Garland a hearing.
Kavanaugh himself has demonstrated to anyone watching that he is more politician than judge.
23
Can you imagine if Hillary Clinton, during 11 hours of interrogation by the Senate Comittee over illegitimate charges against her regarding Benghazi, wept, got angry, asked accusatory questions of her questioners and blamed the Republicans? Only white men in America can act this way: Trump, Sanders, Kavanaugh can but Obama and Hillary cannot. Says it all about the state of things in this nation.
37
McConnel just vowed there will be a vote on Kavenaugh this week! FBI is investigating now; where is the time for senators to read and understand report if the vote is this week? GOP is rushing again to push thru their "guy" before facts come to light. GOP has become the party of "winning"; facts and honor do not matter. "winning" is the Republican goal. Ray Sipe
11
Leave Brett alone. He is entitled to this seat on the Supreme Court. After all, his grandfather went to Yale -- of course Brett got in to Yale by working "his tail off" and drinking his face off. Legacy had nothing to do with it, right? Then, with squatters rights and the proper blood line Brett stayed on for law school.
Interestingly, Justice Rehnquist did not think Brett had the right stuff to be a Supreme Court Law Clerk, but I digress. Later, with a stable of comely law clerks working their respected tails off researching and writing Brett now claims the mantel of legal scholar -- and at the same claims he is an advocate for women's equality. Wow, a regular Horatio Alger story.
21
Judge Kavanaugh might not have been my pick, but if partisanship is an issue in choosing a SCOTUS let us recall that a sitting justice - Justice Ginsburg - made public comments regarding President Trump's possible election; consideration of moving to New Zealand as per her late husband; called Trump a "faker"; skipped his 1st State of the Union. Whether or not we like President Trump is not the point. SCOTUS partisanship has been well established.
10
@Catherine
Being anti-Trump does not equal being partisan - lots of Republicans were VERY anti-Trump too - of course, now they've caved, but to back to some of their earlier statements.
3
It's no secret that we have both conservative and liberal justices on the Court. So far they've been able to handle those inevitable political differences with decorum.
But Kavanaugh has shown evidence of being a belligerant drinker and I don't see him capable of debating fine legal points with an opposition he treats with respect. He does not seem emotionally capable of being challenged without exploding.
And I would still be saying these things if this were a liberal nominated by Hillary. If the nominee is belligerant and hints at a drinking problem, I don't want that person on the Court even if they promise to fulfill every wish on my list.
4
@Catherine Justice Ginsburg's remarks were directed at the man Donald Trump, not the Republican Donald Trump. Keep in mind that one of Justice Ginsburg's closest friend was Antonin Scalia who was the most conservative justices on the bench.
3
We should pity Kavanaugh. He made a deal with the devil. His last job interview was performed for an audience of one. He had to come out as angry, aggrieved, defiant, and unrelenting or his nomination would have been pulled, and in doing so he “moved the goal posts.”
If he does reach the bench, Kavanaugh will still have to perform for the most obnoxious, soulless, and ungracious person to ever sit in the oval office, who will be looking over his shoulder constantly, twitter at ready. And even after leaving the presidency, until his death.
Don't worry. I will still pity the country and all those who will be harmed by his jurisprudence.
7
Kavanaugh has a hissy fit and blames the democrats and Hillary Clinton for bringing up Dr. Fords allegations of sexual assault. If he ever gets on the SCOTUS expect some retribution. That should disqualify him for the job.
24
To his credit Clarence Thomas comported himself with dignity during his confirmation questioning.
There was no ranting, no blubbering, no sniveling, no threatening "What goes around comes around". At least he behaved like a judge.
Kavanaugh behaved like a teenager whose parents took away the car keys. And this is who will be making decisions for us for the next generation?
I don't think so!
17
I went to a bratty Hollywood kids boarding school on the West Coast around the same time as Kavanaugh went to Georgetown Prep. I just went through our yearbook and I could not find a single page that is remotely as crass and offensive as Kavanaugh's.
Kavanaugh's yearbook page is totally disqualifying and a massive failure on the part of Georgetown Prep, on the part of Kavanaugh's parents and on the part of Kavanaugh himself.
Yet incredibly, Kavanaugh went on to Yale and is now inches away from the Supreme Court. This is a massive failure of our entire educational system and national culture, not just of our political system.
That yearbook page is utterly repugnant and definitely shows the character that had already formed in young Kavanaugh. His entitled outburst only confirms that he has not changed, that our culture has not changed.
31
@A G B. Totally agree. I went to a public high school and I know without a doubt that had anyone tried to put that kind of repugnant material in our yearbook the adult advisors would have jumped all over it. So where were the “adults in the room” when Kavanaugh’s yearbook was put together? High school instructors are not naive and they generally understand teenagers and their slang. Wonder if Georgetown Prep is now furiously reconsidering how they review the yearbook entries? If not now, when?
6
Hopefully the FBI is asking about this...
https://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2018/10/02/records_raise_ques...
A rather more plausible explanation for 'two front doors'.
4
@Jack
I read this article. My impression?
A cocktail part exegesis aimed to impress the listener/reader with the author’s ability to construct a fascinating red herring
7
@Jack
Seriously, this is supposed to shed light on anything?
The headline if it were in an unbiased newspaper would read: Democrats try to create new issue to derail Kavanaugh.
7
I think the judge created this issue himself. The proof was right before our eyes, on camera. He was despicable.
The problem is we can’t even raise legitimate issues without Republicans swatting them away with some excuse or justification for why the rules and laws and guidelines and precedent and decorum don’t apply to them.
Kavanaugh is a disgrace in too many ways to count, and your bias prevents you from seeing it. But of we’re going to talk about “creating issues” to derail nominees, let’s talk about Merrick Garland.
15
@John Schwab
Republicans never need help showing everyone that they're the lowest among us; witness Trump. Only low-lifes like low-lifes. No honor, no morality, no shame. Republicans are the underbelly of humanity.
4
@John Schwab
The true headline is:
Kavanaugh raises new doubts about his competency
1
I was going to write that if the Senate votes to confirm Kavanaugh they would be aiding and abetting Trump in his Trifecta - placing a stain on all three branches of government; but Mitch McConnell & Co. already did so with Merrick Garland.
Mission accomplished, GOP!
Let's get rid of those jerks. Vote!, Tuesday, November 6.
7
To All United States Senators,
After watching Bret Kavanaugh’s testimony before the Senate Committee on Thursday, would you hire him to work in your office?
You saw the disrespectful and demeaning way he spoke to Senator Amy Klobuchar. He did that to a U.S. Senator with over twenty million Americans watching, so how might he speak to an ordinary female citizen in private?
In all likelihood, we’ll never know if the allegations Dr. Ford made against Kavanaugh are true.
But here’s what we know: Bret Kavanaugh lied when he said that a “Devil’s Triangle” was a drinking game, that “boof” means flatulence, and that “fffffff” was one of his friends stuttering. He could have said, “Those are lewd terms for sexual acts and behaviors that I wish I had not written.” Instead he chose to lie.
Our most recognizable law against lying under oath is 18 U.S.C. § 1621. That statute makes it a crime to “willfully and contrary to [an] oath state or subscribe any material matter which he does not believe to be true.” The statute does not say, “If you are accused of a crime and (under oath) deny committing the crime, but you lie about things that have nothing to do with that crime, then it’s not perjury.”
A vote in favor of Mr. Kavanaugh makes a mockery of 18 U.S.C. § 1621. Is that, Senator, what you want to do? I only hope you now follow your principles and ethics, and refuse to elevate a man – who for the sake of power – is willing to lie before the American people he purports to serve.
23
Moving goal posts? Like Merrick. I can't take the constant hypocrisy of the Republicans. It is making me ill. They do what they gotta do but just because Kavanaugh will always bring the beer to the chambers doesn't mean he belongs there. He is a partisan operative as evidenced by his work with Kenneth Starr. Really karmic to see him squirm as he seemed to relish Clinton Squirming. Clinton lied to us to. We don't really have a lot of faith in you guys and Kavanaugh's rage is not helping.
14
Truth #1: Democrats really really want to paint Kavanaugh as angry, bratty, partisan and ill-tempered.
Truth #2: He is.
29
I think a determination of whether Kavanaugh is suited for the Court is the wrong approach. You will never know if you have the right person today - time will tell you that and Justices have always surprised us with their evolution as jurists while on the Court.
However, you could be certain, today, that you have the wrong person - and that candidate should be rejected.
But, given the nature of the role (lifetime tenure; nearly impossible to remove), nobody should support any candidate if there is a real question or doubt that the candidate could actually be the wrong person for the Court. And with Judge Kavanaugh, you have exactly that issue. Nobody on either side could reasonably state with certainty that Kavanaugh has conducted himself, past or present, in a manner that does not disqualify him from being part of the Court. Even the most ardent supporter would have to admit that much of what has been charged against Kavanaugh (past conduct, candor during testimony or temperament) could all be true and that Kavanaugh is not SCOTUS material. Surely, we could find a candidate where we only have doubts about his future conduct, and not his past.
We may not know if Kavanaugh is right for the job, but we ought to be certain that he is not wrong for the role of Supreme Court Justice.
9
"...not by answering the question, but by asking the senator if she had ever blacked out. He later apologized."
His "apology" doesn't matter. It was his *instinct* to be evasive and belligerent.
13
"Judge Kavanaugh’s allies say Democrats are raising issues of character because they know the F.B.I. will not be able to prove allegations of sexual assault."
Character doesn't matter? There are real issues of character that should be raised! His testimony wasn't filled with simple righteous anger; it was evasive, misleading, and sometimes flat-out lying.
12
Isn't it a contradiction that someone who would sit in judgment of others and ostensibly be governed by the assumptions of democratic rule behaves as though he should not be held accountable for previous behavior and freely lies in response to pointed questions about same? Not only Kavanaugh but a large swathe of Republican senators believe likewise.
Do anything. Say anything. Get ahead. Stay ahead. That's the real motto of Kavanaugh's Georgetown Prep coterie. Lindsay Graham's performance last Thursday should be viewed as a complementary, cautionary experience. Mounted on high horses these folks posture as the aggrieved champions of freedom. When dismounted by the simple truth they are quickly reduced to the status of squalid liars. Let's just hope that the FBI does a proper job in the next few days to expose this mess.
8
The title of this article really does a disservice to the gravity of the situation by trying to paint the opposition to this appointment as a partisan issue.
There were good reasons for the most democratically inclined people to oppose this nomination before and, of course, there was also a partisan issue. However, the last one is not the main reason to oppose this appointment now. Any thinking person who heard and saw Kavanaugh at that hearing was shocked by his unprofessional behavior and his poor judgement.
I have watched previous confirmation hearings and all the judges displayed an even temperament and were very careful to steer away from partisanship and from any view that may compromise his assumed neutrality about an issue that he or she might have to pass judgment later on. Kavanaugh just destroyed his reputation single handedly. No one can ever think of him as anything else but a political operative and as someone unfit for that position.
Just for the fun of it, search for the most important newspapers' websites around the world. There is universal scorn. If he is appointed, a supreme court that had already been compromised by the Gorsuch appointment will be have its reputation destroyed by Kavanaugh's.
14
Judge Kavanaugh's integrity is no longer in question. Both men and women who knew him in college have stated publicly that he was in fact a falling down drunk, abusive and angry. Of course these aren't disqualifying issues for Republicans, and in fact may be viewed as positives. A known liar with publicly stated anti-Liberal attitudes appointed to the Supreme Court would be a travesty of justice and would weaken it considerably. Kavanaugh would have to recuse himself so often he would be a part-time Justice. Women have turned against this man and the GOP proceeds at its own risk.
12
Kavanaugh spent the week before the hearing holed up in the White House. Is there any doubt as to who he fashioned his hearing demeanor after? I have not recovered from the disgust of watching him and Lindsey Graham's rage in full display. Rage that any man should be held accountable, to be specific, any powerful White man. What scary times are these when our "leaders" broaden the discourse to make bold face lies acceptable, and give a pass to harmful, hurtful and wrong behavior. WANTED: Leaders with integrity.
11
Speaking of temperament and honesty...I knew electing DJT would usher in an age of chaos; I just didn't realize how far and fast we'd fall. I have disagreed with numerous presidents in the past, but I respected the office and often the man. He's made us the laughing stock of the world.
I no longer have any respect for the presidency. None. When an immoral man is at the helm, nothing that comes out of the WH has merit or value. When someone clocked lying in excess of 5,000 times in eighteen months speaks, there is no sense in listening. It's the living definition of a waste of time. Truth or lie? Who knows? He doesn't.
To that fallen office, I add the daily thuggery and self-indulgence of a GOP-led Congress that simply refuses to do its job in protecting us from threats foreign and national. Frankly, their mishandling of Russian interference should be a fire-able offense for all of them.
But now we are faced with this...this circus where entitled men think they can get away with apologizing for and enabling grotesque sexism by themselves exhibiting grotesque sexism. If this man is nominated, the Supreme Court will no longer have any moral authority. It, too, will fall on the ash-heap that is DJT's America.
The GOP and DJT rally around Kavanaugh because they see in him the system they've chosen to prop-up...malign patriarchy. To ditch Kavanaugh is to invite us to ponder why we have ever stood for their brand of rank sexism, cronyism, and rot.
It's time we did not.
14
I an a Democrat and I am resigned to the fact that trump will not appoint someone to my liking.......but really, do we need someone so,so.....deplorable? We have a deplorable potus and a deplorable Senate leader.....enough already.
8
Kavenaugh's temperament, compartment and credibility exactly mirror that of Donald Trump, the guy who nominated him.
Trump, by most accounts, save that of his loyal base, has deservedly been labeled with all the worst adjectives the sitting president of a democracy should not have: sexist, racist, molesting, lying, ignorant of the law and Constitution, unconcerned by this lack of knowledge, pro-birth but not pro-life, disrespectful, angry, raging.
Brett Kavanaugh exactly.
Yet, fully flawed, Trump got elected, along with the equally flawed privileged white male Republicans in Congress.
Via last Thursday's confirmation hearing, America got a clear view of how entitled white males both support, and cover up, for their own.
They turned a hearing about whether a drunk Kavenaugh sexually assaulted Dr. Blasey Ford into an accusation of a Democratic conspiracy to topple Brett. They totally forgot the accuser, something privileged white males seem wont to do.
To the male Republicans voting on Kavenaugh, the same electeds who have given Trump a pass at every wrong turn in his presidency, Kavenaugh one of them and like Trump.
No way they could vote against a guy so like themselves and the President, so willing to lie, ignore the Constitution and the law, be extremely biased in judicial rulings.
Kavenaugh is unsuited to be a fair-minded, level-headed Justice, free of political bias. He does not merit this grave responsibility.
3
I don’t think it’s Democrats moving the goal posts; it’s Judge Kavanaugh and his behavior and testimony that has focused the concern about veracity and temperament.
5
What is needed for a Supreme Court justice is gravitas and greatness of mind. Some of those questions were calculated to make Kavanaugh look bad, but he needed to acknowledge that the underlying issue was a valid one, the quality of his character. And he needed to show that he was eager to inform the committee of the truth about that important matter in the context of a Supreme Court appointment. I think he fell short in his job interview, but also think that a job interview that paid microscopic attention to what he wrote in his high school yearbook was absurd.
Of course these are essential considerations. My question is, will the swing Senators vote to confirm Kavanaugh it the FBI hasn't comleted its investigation and issued a report? Anyone who votes either yes or no before the FBI has issued its report is violated his/her advise and consent responsibility and oath of office.
2
I will NEVER vote for a Senator that votes for Brett Kavanaugh for Supreme Court Justice, nor will I vote for anyone that supports his nomination.
5
@CK
How many Republicans make it to the general election for the Senate in New York? If none make it to the general, how many could you vote for?
No confidence in Senate - all parties. Term Limits Now
3
One has to wonder if Kavanaugh “lost it”, emotionally, feeling so abused — or played the political rage game that works so well for Trump, blaming the other side because it appeals so well to “the base”.
2
You will turn blue looking for an honest GOP and Trump picked nominee. The culture of corruption we have been experiencing daily for the last two years should send a red flag to all his supporters. As long as he is destroying the planet with coal and fossil fuels and abuse women his evangelical and catholic base are shamefully turning their heads. Very sad.
2
Stolberg and the headline writer have bought into the Republican effort to reduce opposition to Kavanaugh to political maneuvering by Democrats. Why is this more a matter of Democrats' efforts to derail the nomination than Republicans' efforts to cover up details that would disqualify the nominee?
3
So, having got the FBI investigation the Democrats wanted, are they dredging up teen age drinking as a disqualification they are realizing they won't have the argument aftr t FBI report is finished? Highshool and college age kids drink, smoke pot, get a DWI, etc., etc., etc. In other words, they do dumb things. They don't have to go to expensive private schools or inner city schools. Dumb is an equal opportunity action. The way this is going, a kid who gets a parking ticket should be denied a judgeship 30 plus later because that shows a disrespect for the law. It's absurd. As anothe NYT editorial pointed out, this is going to affect our children. Every person seeking confirmation of any job Congress has to confirm. will have their, school year book, teenage Facebook and a whole lot more dug up.by those opposed. No wonder congres is not trusted and held in such low opinion by our citizens.
3
Just before Kavanaugh launched into stifled tears he looked sideways with a microexpression that said bring on the Academy Award performance. I believe body language decoders would point to this moment as a contradiction of the truth of the statements that follow. He is a practiced liar and manipulator. He erred in his assumptions of what was tolerable and he has only himself to blame for that. The GOP cannot advance him.
2
If I didn't know any better of the New York Times, I'd believe a headline featuring the phrase "Democrats Trying to Derail" had likely come directly from Republicans.
Surely, you can do better.
What's getting derailed is the credibility Supreme Court.
5
McConnell warned Trump not to nominate Kavanaugh because he knew he was hyperpartisan and would have trouble being confirmed ( there may also be other things McConnell knows - thus the release of only 10% of his writings to the Senate Judiciary Committee.)
Trump wants Kavanaugh because he wrote that a sitting president can't be subpoenaed and/or indicted. Kavanaugh is clearly in Trump's pocket.
4
So Kavanaugh threatens Democrats on the panel with "What goes around, comes around" and they are supposed to vote for him as an impartial justice. I don't think so.
8
I remember when Senator Blumenthal of Connecticut had lied about his service in Vietnam, having never served, and I assumed he would never be voted in, nor should he, I thought. Now, if he had said, that he himself, had lied about serving in Vietnam, and we need to decide if lying about possible sexual assault, and his past drinking should qualify him for sitting on the Supreme Court, but he didn't. That, in a nutshell is what is wrong with both those elected to office, and partisan politics, the hypocrisy, arrogance, etc. Why would any voter want people like Blumenthal, Trump, or Kavanaugh to represent them in either an elected position, or nominated one? I wouldn't, but obviously the majority of people are not moderates with a view of moral behavior that translates across board. It is those on both sides of the aisle, that are why we don't have honest, competent, fiscally responsible government. Ask yourself, would Bloomberg lie about anything, or be arrogant? No, he wouldn't, and Bloomberg is a moderate, and has governed from that place, while Mayor of New York city.
3
Although Trump has said the scope of the FBI investigation has been broadened, why haven't we seen a copy of the White House's
written and signed directive to the FBI to that effect? As we all know, Trump has a credibility problem. The news media should be demanding a copy.
3
He is as manifestly unfit as Trump. The Republicans repeatedly prove themselves the enemy of honesty, decency and the United States of America.
4
The democrats can thank the MeToo movement in learning hardball is the one way to play the game with the republicans or we'll end up with another Trump in '2020.
His remark, “What goes around comes around,” disqualifies him from sitting on SCOTUS.
5
Why the misleading headline about "derailing" this nomination? It's already a train wreck as it is, and there is a majority faction in our country that call for this nomination to be withdrawn due to massive unsuitability. There are plenty of other, better suited people to nominate, and I think we all know that.
4
From your headline, I thought that you were referring to the temperament and honesty of the Democratic Senators, which would truly be a no-brainer.
6
Women are being empowered by their increasingly acceptable and overdue display of anger. This should not be framed as someone getting angry. It’s about behaving like a madman during a second interview for a job you thought you were entitled to have and not getting a job offer.
12
It was shocking to remember that Kavanaugh was applying to be a judge (of any kind). He seems far more suited to be one of the shouting, angry right-wingers on FOX news.
6
If Kavanaugh were to make it through to the Supreme Court, would be allowed to take part in Gamble vs. US, 17-646? That seems awfully relevant and isn't something I've seen covered at all in the times.
2
@RS I have only seen it in the comments, that he is needed to be seated now so he can vote in October. The goal is to make it so that a presidential pardon for a federal offense will give total immunity, it will prevent prosecution at the state level. Couple that with Trump's demonstrated willingness to abuse the presidential pardon and his whole crew are then above the law.
He revealed himself to be an alcoholic with his textbook angry responses to questions about his drinking. He is unfit for any job that puts him in a position of authority over others.
3
She said. He lied, lied, lied. Under Oath. "Devils Triangle" is exactly the assault he is accused of, and he put it in his yearbook. Someone on Capital Hill yesterday attempted to add a reference to a drinking game to Wikipedia but later deleted the reference. There is no known reference to the term other than one in the urban dictionary. A child could tell who was lying. His child.
7
Provided fodder?
Did you SEE that Senate Judiciary Hearing? If Saturday Night Live didn't already exist, they'd have to create it just for that.
Look, Trump made it clear that the oligarchy isn't going to even try to pretend anymore, but this is beyond the pale.
2
This piece should have spent more time on Kavanaugh's many obvious lies, about his youthful drinking habits, the meanings of some of the notations on his yearbook page, and a few others. Many of the things he said, when he didn't dodge a question entirely, don't pass the laugh test. Even allowing for the laugh test occasionally being wrong, it's not going to be wrong this many times in a row.
Kavanaugh lied under oath — repeatedly and with the arrogant expectation of impunity. That is the best reason not to confirm him.
3
So, Mitch McConnell and others are accusing Democrats for "moving the goalposts."
Excuse me? Who was it that moved the goalposts in blocking Barack Obama's choice in Merrick Garland? Mitch McConnell.
Now, he wants to ram through Kavanaugh's confirmation to SCOTUS, while accusing Democrats for doing to Kavanaugh, what McConnell did to Garland.
I don't know which is worse; appointing a product of privilege whose past may now make him unfit for the job; nominated by another product if privilege, whose past should have disqualified him, for being unfit for his job?
Or, allowing another unfit Republican, who is one of the biggest hypocrites in Congress, to get his way for the sake of partisan politics?
2
We have all been tricked by poor use of grammar to thinking Kavanaugh has been made to "defend" himself. He hasn't. This is one of the dangers of using that meaningless phrase invented by a criminal USAG tryong to protect a rogue group of FBI agents "person of interest" instead of properly saying Suspect. Being a Suspect does not make you guilty or imply anything other than you have been close enough to a crime to be looked at by the investigators.
If you think anything else you do not have a correct understanding of constitution and the US Justice system.
The man has been asked questions based on an allegation just as any accused person would be asked questions. He has not been harmed by anyone but his and his allies reaction to having to answer more questions.
I think its pretty clear now why the republicans did not want more scrutiny is because they knew of his mental and emotional instability and I assume about the lies he has told.
2
They're shocked that the scurrilous behavior of the Left may affect Kavanough's future outlook from the bench? That's just laughable! After being sucker punched repeatedly in the most shameful fashion by one faction of the nation, you're disappointed and surprised that a justice might incorporate the reality of that faction's self-serving disregard for the truth and for the most basic tenants of American jurisprudence into his evaluation of any contentious cases that that group might bring forward? Really? So funny!
8
I can imagine a drunken Kavanaugh angrily berating anyone who disagrees with him on the Court.
That's probably going to happen and when it does. I hope someone will record him and it will go viral.
This won't be over when you think it's over. He seems to be a messed up guy with an alcohol and aggression problem, and confirmation is not going to fix that at all. You will likely be called upon to make excuses for his rough rude aggressive behavior again.
2
I don't understand why people in this forum are having trouble accepting Judge Kavanaugh's angry attitude during the hearing. For starters, he was ambushed by Senator who could have divulged the letter a while ago... the person accusing him has no proof of an incident that happened 40 yrs ago!! LOL this after he had 6 backgorund checks done already...he then received death threats... snarky cartoons from the alt left... late night TV hosts piling on..and now he has been fired as a Harvard lecturer all because they believe his accuser instead of him. What are his options now if he's not nominated? leave the country? I would be firing with all barrels too even if I'm a judge. There is a limit to turning the other cheek guys. I'm with him.
8
Does this mean Kavanaugh et al have forgotten about Hillary Clinton and how she remained professional through her hearings?
3
This nominee is a disaster, his flaws were laid bare for everyone to see. Only a person in complete denial or with alternative motives would consider him fit for a spot in the Supreme Court. The fact that his performance alone was not a instant disqualifier is a jaw dropping, how much more can the standard be lowered?
4
Will someone please continually remind Carrie Severino that the Republicans removed the goalposts from the stadium for 10 months in 2016. She can scoff at that, but it only makes here a hypocritical partisan hack.
5
He has a bad temperament because he responded emotionally to being slandered for political points? I'd rather have someone who cares passionately about justice than a soulless politician. Let's be honest. The rape accusation is merely a political weapon intended to buy votes in November. Nothing about how it was raised by our congresscritters shows any concern about integrity, just about political power.
6
This is the Supreme Court. Not Congress. Justices not on that Court to represent you.
Why do I bother? Conservatives would be perfectly happy to have the WWF run the Supreme Court as a wrestling match on TV.
They don't understand grade school civics. They think Regular Joe belongs on the Supreme Court. They cannot fathom AT ALL why someone's behavioral issues in high school and college would matter when hiring for the most ELITE job in the world.
Fine. Have it your way. The Court will meet in a beer bar and the winner of every debate will be the side that can boof the best.
FFFF he can try on RGB. Don't think he'll have any luck there though even if he manages to get her drunk.
2
So a man, husband, and father is subjected to the most disgraceful, shameful attack engineered by the Democrats with much media cooperation, and he reacts angrily. It was one of the most genuine moments in our national politics. The sanctimonious prattle coming out now that the facts point in the Judge’s favor is as bad as the baseless allegations.
9
A letter written by a private citizen who is credible, a professional, and not involved in politics in any way is not “engineered by the Democrats.” Nice stretch but this paranoid delusion/wishful thinking doesn’t connect.
This woman doesn’t even live in Washington. It is SO illogical to think a civilian woman would put herself and her family through this for...what, exactly? Fun? Why would she be so invested in a Supreme Court justice appointment in the first place?
It’s because he assaulted her. That would be a good reason to speak out: Civic Duty. Truth. Justice.
She spoke up because she saw a person who assaulted her about to be seated in the highest court, to stand in judgement of others. Occam’s Razor applies. Enough with peddling conspiracy theories; the logic is so weak.
3
Kavannaugh's behavior during high school doesnt concern me much unless it was illegal or until there are witnesses who will testify about it. What concerns me are being convicted by tabloid type stories. The foundation of our democracy and justice system is substantiated evidence furthered by argument. I believed Anita Hill who had 6 witnesses. Blassey Ford comes across as truthful. I read her parents know Kavannaugh's parents. And her parents seem supportive but devestated to deal with the fall out. I have been to many impromptu high school parties dorm parties its hard for me to believe that not one witness or even gossip at that time. I am no fan of Kavannaugh. One congressman asked him if he was a compulsive gambler because he had a 200k credit card bill mostly for sports tickets and sports gambling. He appears self centered and risk taking. If he is not confirmed it should be because of his questionable good judgement not because of unsubstatiated accusations.
6
Your article headline talks about honesty now being part of the issue. I read the article trying to get some insight into this concern. Nothing is talked about on this topic! No links or anything? I would think that the article headline should cover what the article is going to inform me about. I have heard many people talk about his lack of honesty at a very superficial level but no real detail to explain this statement
Help educate me not give me sound bites!
5
Clarence Thomas' temperament is best described as unconscious, so he's got that going for him.
2
Context is important, it fills in details, makes actions plausible. Kavanaugh was the center of his the high school jock culture practiced by upper middle class white kids whose parents held high paying jobs or political power. He lived in a closed circle that created their own legends, through drinking and sex.
in college, Kavanaugh repeats this experience, common on campuses, condoned by the institutions who ignored the behaviors.
Kavanaugh was a drunk frat boy, around inerbriated women encouraged to drink too much and who were easy prey for sex, with one person or a group. Every college student knew the stories. Every college woman knew the dangers.
The problem in context is Kavanaugh's veracity and sense of responsibility. His narratives sarcrifice one to avoid the other! He makes rhetorical shifts that misrepresent statements by his peers, extending their absent of knowledge into blanket denials of his involvement.
He could have left the paradox in place--a characteristic of the assaults described is they rarely had witnesses and were virtually impossible to prove. But when ego pushed him, the same ego unleased and observed as mean, aggressive, and sloppy by his peers, he built a new identity nobody recognized, not his high school or college peers--but worse, this new identity was built on lies, information omitted and ignored, but present in his yearbook, calender, in other statements by him.
He put self-interest above truth, as even a blind justice can see!
12
The fact that he lost it while knowing the world was watching is almost surreal. Can this be happening? What is wrong with this man? This leads me to believe Kavanaugh may have had a drink or two during his lunch. If he had the first drink on an empty stomach that alone would easily enable him to "lose" it. In my mind he is totally unqualified to be on the Supreme Court.
8
It is not just truthfulness, partisanship, and temperament, but also how he views woman matters. I can understand the Democrats focus shifting because the evidence for the first three displayed on national television. The compelling testimony of Dr. Ford forced Kavanaugh to reveal his true personality later in the afternoon. His behavior in prep school and college is consistent with his outbursts in his testimony. That behavior will only add credibility to Dr. Ford’s testimony.
4
The simple truth is that if the GOP and it’s supporters manage to secure Kavanaugh’s nomination, this country faces a history of crisis upon crisis. The reputation of the Supreme Court will in in ruins.Partisanship will emerge,without dispute, diversive decisions will ensure more rage and anger. The Supreme Court ,with Kavanaugh on board will reflect badly on lower courts and they in turn will mirror the actions of the highest court in the US. We the people, again, will have to step up to save the Judicial system in this country from becoming a rubber stamp for minority ultra conservative religious groups.
3
I'm continually flabbergasted by those commenting that Judge Kavanaugh should be confirmed unless the accusations of sexual assault can be proven - either beyond a reasonable doubt or based on a preponderance of evidence. This is not a criminal trial or even a civil suit. This is a job interview. Having been responsible for making numerous hiring decisions over the years, I can definitively say that there is no way that I would hire a candidate if a women was willing to testify under oath - and penalty of perjury - that said candidate sexually assaulted her. The potential downside is enormous. If I make that hire, and then the accusation proves to be true, or god forbid that person I hired sexually assaults someone else, my organizations liability is enormous. If the accusation is untrue, that's great, but I am in no better of a position then if I had hired the next equally qualified candidate. The potential downside is large, and the potential upside is small. Easy decision.
Even in the case of Supreme Court appointments, there are plenty of other equally qualified candidates. Plenty of other qualified candidates that share the same ideological leanings as well I'm sure. Move on.
2
.the undecided senators — Mr. Flake, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Susan Collins of Maine, all Republicans, and Heidi Heitkamp of North Dakota and Joe Manchin III of West Virginia, both Democrats — are keeping an open mind."
I fully expect Heitkamp to vote yes for Kavanaugh since she's really a Democrat only in name, one in sheep's clothing. She wouldn't support President Obama on background checks for gun show people buying guns. At least with her opponent Kramer, one knows he will always stand with Trump. Unfortunately my voice no longer matters, since I am now a resident of NM where liberal democracy actually exists.
3
That won't block the nomination - it'll rally the anti-liberals. Trump's misbehavior and dishonesty haven't stopped him from getting a critical mass of support.
2
I practiced law for decades in courts throughout the country. If any lawyer acted out in court the way BK acted before the Senate, he or she would be held in contempt faster than you can swing a gavel.
9
Senator Grassey, when referring to K's temperament "He should be excused for showing passion." His emotions appeared to be tactical; a diversion against the questions asked by Senators.
"Thou protest too loudly!"
4
There is a major difference between the confirmations of Clarence Thomas and Brett Kavanaugh.
Anita Hill's allegations had occurred in the recent past. The allegations against Kavanaugh are 36 years old.
In the latter, the accuser makes the charge of attempted rape. Such a charge might have made sense a month after the party. But after 36 years have elapsed memories have faded.
We don't know when the party occurred or where. Potential witnesses allege that Kavanaugh got drunk on occasion. But it is a significant stretch to go from being drunk to attempted rape.
We just don't know what happened. If Kavanaugh is in fact innocent he has a right to be angry.
Feminists argue that sexual assault is clearcut. But this is simply not true. Dating is a practice that is filled with deception. Misunderstandings are common. And there is a temptation to react vigorously to events which may have been ambiguous at the time, but acquire certainty with the retelling of the story after decades have passed.
Kavanaugh's life may be ruined. But Blasey may achieve 15 minutes of fame, and become a hero to the feminist movement.
There are ample motives for making false accusations, or more likely, of expanding a misunderstanding into an accusation.
Why did Trump win? He didn't expect to win. Maybe Democrats pushed too hard on the feminist agenda, and voters realized that Bill Clinton had sinned as much as Trump.
Why don't Democrats represent the entire electorate including men?
5
For those Senators and commentators who would excuse Kavanaugh's thoroughly un-judicial outbursts as understandable given his treatment by the Democrats, I would point to the dignity, grace and stamina under fire with which Hillary Clinton performed during nonstop grilling by Republicans who openly admitted that their repeated investigations were nothing more than an attempt to reduce her standing in the polls.
9
Yes, well, basically Judge Kavanaugh's opening remarks, after Dr. Ford's, basically explained why, of all the people on the short list, he got the nomination.
"Left wing conspiracy"? "The Clinton's"? What was all of that?
A Fox News contributing editorial? This wasn't a discussion of jurisprudence (and it certainly didn't display the least empathy for victims of sexual assault).
We're so deep into the absurd, that someone who is young enough to be a future Chief Justice feels fully-empowered to make such hyper-politicized statements.
...and the Republican party seems more than eager to run this nomination through, especially before the midterms...
(..."the midterms"...it seems the entire planet is waiting upon the outcome of the midterms. In "the old days" much of the electorate forgot they were even taking place...)
5
Judge Kavanaugh and the events surrounding his nomination and confirmation to the US Supreme Court appear to be a textbook example of the Peter Principle, the theory that otherwise competent people rise in their organization until they reach the level at which they are not competent (or incompetent, if you will) for the position to which they have been elevated. Or as the author of the Peter Principle has said, and I paraphrase, the cream rises to the top, where it sours. It looks like Judge Kavanaugh has soured, just below the level he seeks. I think it's time to skim the cream.
2
When someone is accused of a crime, it can be an emotional roller-coaster. Add to the fact that when it is published in the newspaper and on television increases the weight to various human emotions. Then consider the short time period the accused has known of the accusation in comparison to the accuser or complainant. Emotions do not verify or deny what occurred 35 years ago.
Let us find out the truth about what occurred many years past. Many of the accusations are being printed and televised without verification or conviction. This destroys a persons life and when and if they are proven innocent, exonerated, the stain of guilt will be with them for life.
Remember, just as you want people to do to you, do the same way to them.
4
I'm not sure I'd bring up Clarence Thomas as a point of comparison, if I were Senator Grassley.
It's pretty clear in hindsight, especially after reading "Strange Justice," that Justice Thomas perjured himself during his confirmation hearings, and that he squeaked by only because the Democrats and Republicans on the committee refused to call any witnesses corroborating Anita Hill's testimony.
5
If someone conducted themselves in Kavanaugh's courtroom the way he conducted himself in the Senate hearing, he'd be justified in holding them in contempt of court.
That he's still favored by the GOP shows their contempt for the institutions of our government.
7
Ideology alone wasn't enough. The assault allegations were promising but lost focus. The drinking proved a dead end. Parsing high school yearbooks proved a disappointment. So now the chorus changes key to bring us a lamentation about temperament and dissimulation, an interlude providing unintended comic relief that only serves to further undermine the rest of the opera. The piece now seems a desperate discordant mess, the worst kind of grab bag of styles that overshadow your one decent theme. You have buried your heroine in the rubble of an overzealous demolition. She was terrific in the first act but all but forgotten when the curtain descended.
8
@Frunobulax - He chose to testify. In doing so made his testimony part of the information to debate in his selection. By testifying he allowed for exactly the kind A | B comparison that the photo essay leading this piece demonstrates which leaves as asking, were you lying in our earlier testimony about being a justice or were you lying last week? They both can't be true.
You are either impartial as claimed earlier, or not, as demonstrated last week.
You are either independent as claimed earlier, or partisan as demonstrated last week.
You are either rational as claimed, or not, as demonstrated last week.
It is valid to look at it know as valid as if a candidate said "this is the worst company ever" as he walked out of the interview.
The relentless assault on our institutions is shocking. Daily actions by our own leaders degrade confidence in the FBI, the Supreme Court, and DOJ as non partisan institutions. The Senate is broken - party over country. I’m afraid for the slippery slope we are on
1
passion and indignation? those are almost irrelevant compared to a fact Kavanaugh totally lost control. radiating anger and fury in his face and voice
that type of behavior cannot and should not be excused and tolerated. It is inappopriate for a Justice in any Court. especially the Supreme Court
2
I am mortified to live in a state "represented" by Charles Grassley. Surely he would have understood, in his sharper days, that we need to hold SCOTUS nominees to a higher standard of behavior, rationality and temperament than we what we accept from Average Joes and Janes. Kavanaugh had days and weeks to prepare for his questioning, to compose himself and to carefully word his opening statement to avoid coming off as an explosive partisan prima donna. He had countless hours of professional grooming to, presumably, avoid slipping into belligerence or dishonesty. Did he learn nothing?
Even if Cornyn thinks "most guys" would react with sputtering self-righteous anger to an accusation of sexual misconduct, he is forgetting that we need a SCOTUS comprised of people who are made of better stuff than "most guys." If Grassley's best defense of Kavanaugh's resentful tantrum is to remind us all of the public defilement and pillory of the last woman to accuse a SCOTUS nominee of sexual misconduct, it shows he learned nothing from his participation in that shameful spectacle.
The country deserves SCOTUS judges who are not ego driven and who expect--even welcome--the scrutiny of those they are supposed to serve. Anyone who resents being challenged or who feels entitled to the benefit of the doubt is unqualified. Anyone who is loyal to one party or hostile to half the country is obviously not fair-minded. Trump may love Kavanaugh, but Trump isn't SCOTUS material, either.
6
thank you, well said
1
To everyone accusing the left of hunting for "lines of attack" and so on.
Okay, so let's just not have any hearings or investigation or vetting at all. Whoever's president just puts whoever s/he wants on the court, no questions asked. Cool?
2
Lawyers learn early on to identify common logical fallacies an adversary is likely to employ to bolster a bad argument. Ad hominem attacks--an attack on the person to avoid addressing the merits of the person's argument is ubiquitous in today's politics. The motives of the Democrats is irrelevant. What matters is whether they have a compelling argument against Kavanaugh's confirmation. All else is noise.
3
Kavanaugh’s latest performance before the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing was the tell.
This was about the revelation of disturbing temperament under fire and his anger laden, visceral rant of accusations of a full blown Democratic ultra-partisan plot to derail his confirmation.
All of this went far beyond passion and understandable indignation. It rightly prompted compelling concerns about his character, hIs impartiality, and his suitability to serve in any federal judgeship.
4
The concept of "temperament and honesty" went out with the election of Mr. Trump as President. More than being a reflection of the character of these two men, it is an endorsement of an amoral, unethical and indifferent electorate.
2
So Senator Grassley believes Clarence Thomas is the shining example that should be used to validate the tone, tenor and temperament displayed by Judge Kavanaugh during this statement - how appropriate. Sadly for our Country, Kavanaugh and Thomas might end up being two peas in the same Supreme Court pod.
I think it would be poetic justice, pardon the pun, if the question Senator Hatch asked Kavanaugh about "when he knew of the Deborah Ramirez allegation" is the one lie from Kavanaugh that ends up sinking him. The text messages, if they truly state what has been reported, certainly point to him knowing of the Ramirez allegation/incident well in advance of the New Yorker story, which is when he said he learned of it in response to Hatch's question.
4
Kavanaugh revealed his character when he said, when accepting his nomination, that “no president has ever consulted more widely, or talked with more people from more backgrounds, to seek input about a Supreme Court nomination."
It was at patently false, absurdly grandiose and completely unnecessary. People who kowtow this way, "manage up" in corporate-speak, very rarely treat those below them well or judiciously when their interests own are threatened.
6
Forget the blue or red wave. Make it a Womens' wave this FalL. Women, it was an exclusive, privileged group of religious white men exactly like Kavanaugh who we had to overcome to win the Right to Vote. Against many odds, the suffragette had to give their lives to fight privilege and exclusion. Here we are 100 years later seeing that same ugliness and lying by this man trying to gain a foothold in the court and build a wall of his own to women's rights. Women will have to face his decisions on their own birthing rights, workplace issues, sexual assault, and treatment all at his hands. Just get out and vote in November.
3
The hearings began as a she said/he said event, but it ended up as a major PR disaster for the Republicans.
That is because millions of people, of both parties, men and women, saw with their own eyes was that while they still didn't know IF he did this they knew he COULD have done it because he was exactly the kind of guy capable of doing it based on his own testimony, his own manner, his own attitude, all on display.
Now comes the GOP with its well-worn spin machine to salvage another disaster explaining away, defending, deflecting, rationalizing, blaming, but we all saw it. We all know what kind of person he is. Some us want him for exactly those reasons and the rest of don't want anyone like that in position in our government.
5
Smug Entitled Dishonest Belligerent
Unfit for the Supreme Court appointment.
Based upon what has been uncovered, if he respects the role and the process-- did he really think it unreasonable for Senators to ask him questions?
Could he really have forgotten the bar fight that got him questioned and his friend arrested? It points to aggression and a history of evasive behavior when confronted with responsibility.
Does he believe his responses on his past documented behavior (yearbook, MJ writings) are credible?
7
Kavanaugh creeps me out.
He wrote that creepy sexually explicit Clinton memo.
He included creepy sexual and derogatory language against women in his high school yearbook.
He aggressively tried to stop that immigrant girl from having an abortion when she was most likely pregnant from a result of being raped.
He did not want a fair investigation nor did he want to take a lie detector test nor did he want his best buddy who was allegedly in the room when the alleged sexual assault took place to testify.
He comes across as a privileged white frat boy.
Kavanaugh is the CREEP that Old White Boy Republicans want to RAM through to a position in the highest court in the land.
That should be deeply disturbing to all of us.
Are these the "leaders" that you would have running our country - a country that your kids will grow up in?
5
As a fellow Yale graduate of the class of 1987, I was shocked by Kavanaugh's demeanor at last week's hearing. He was evasive, defensive, disgustingly arrogant, alarmingly partisan and downright hostile. Ironically, in a strking lack of judgment, he failed to answer straightforward questions and expressed righteous indignation that they were even being asked. How DARE these senators? He lied repeatedly to the Committee and the American public (anyone who believes his claims that yearbook references to Renate were terms of endearment for a female pal doesn't deserve to question a nominee). It's hard to understand how anyone - Democrat OR Republican - could believe he is appropriate in any way to serve on the highest court of our land. If he is confirmed, it will make a mockery of the entire process and sear the Court with the stain of partisanship forever. GOP should be careful what they wish for...as Brett said, what goes around comes around. Tragic times for this country.
7
Judge Kavanaugh's explanation of his year book reminds me of the old joke about the psychiatrist administering the Rorschach test to his patient who consistently saw sexual images in each inkblot. When the doctor told the man that he had serious sexual problems, the patient responded "Me? You're the one with all the dirty pictures".
4
The fact that Matt Damon’s hilarious spoof of Kavanaugh on SNL was only slightly different than Kavanaugh’s ACTUAL testimony should be enough to convince even Lindsay Graham that K is not Special and does not have the temperament to be a judge.
11
Three bedrock principles of the law...
Presumed innocent
Innocent until proven guilty
Guilty beyond a reasonable doubt
The democrat Mob strikes out on all three.
8
Huh? This wasn’t a court hearing.
3
“In my teens and early twenties I often drank to excess. On some occasions I may have blacked out and later had no memory of what I said or did in my inebriated state. Although Dr. Ford’s recollections do not jibe with my own, it is possible that she is telling the truth. If that is the case, I sincerely apologize to her for the pain that she has suffered on my account over the past 36 years. If there were any way I could make it up to her, I would. In any case, this does not represent the man I am today.”
If Kavanaugh had spoken these or similar words, instead of venting his spleen and self-pity, he might by now, for better or worse, already have been confirmed. Instead, as Sen. Hirono said, his performance on Thursday was angry, belligerent and partisan. At the same time, it revealed something even more intrinsic to his character and disqualifying of his ambition to serve on the high court: he seems incapable of entertaining any vision of himself more complex than the Rockwellesque self-image he has nurtured from early on. That, in turn, points to an overall rigidity of outlook that is incompatible with a truly judicial temperament. In the initial hearings Kavanaugh promised to “try to keep an open mind” on any case that came before him. Thanks, indirectly, to Dr. Ford's brave testimony, we now know that mind was shuttered long ago.
6
I think you have just described the real issue. An inability to see himself honestly so how can he see the world with any wisdom?
3
@Fidelio
Yep, would have been better to lie than to tell the truth.
Truly Orwellian
Latest word from our powerful democratic leader Schumer; We ‘hope’ that there will be a full investigation!
That is all he had to say about one of the most important nominations to the Supreme Court, a man so extreme and pre-programmed, who should be ineligible to take any important job in Amercan society.
Preselected by Trump for his guaranteed approval of everything our local dictator in chief demands.
Incredibly sad that a minor but still large section of the voters still do not understand that what Trump wants from his base by kissing their behind overr and over, that they approve of his plans without any questioning.
what he doesn’t tell them is that he wants ro slash their social security, their healtcare, and take the little money they have from them to pay for the cost of tax cuts for the rich and all corporations.
Some American citizens are just as blindly in love with their corrupt strongman Trump, as evangelicals and catholics are for their fake preachers. the Germans were with Hitler, Russians with Putin, Chinese with Mao, Turks with Erdogan etc
And still American white males and females still wonder why the citizens in these countries didn’t stand up and threw out these dictators, as that would never happen in America. It does in a very serious way
And our strongman Schumer ‘hopes’ that Trump
who now dictates the FBI who they can interview and who not.
Wake up, you will be as guilty for all the after effects of your decision.
3
kavanaugh:temperament, honesty and RAPE , and character are all a very serious problem with him. He should be disqualified and disbarred
4
@observer
What about the character of those who falsely accuse Kavanaugh? Personally I find their character so lacking that they should be ignored.
5
Plan B.
Dog will not confess to eating homework, so dog needs to be shot.
3
@Sparky Jones
More like "when accused of eating homework, dog bites everyone within reach."
2
One thing is clear: It's time to change the way nominees are named.
Here's how it needs to go:
No one from the Federalist Society.
No one from the Ivy Leagues.
No one who is/has been financed from the 1%.
They have to have a record of written opinions that span the entire framework of our society. The poor. The homeless. Reproduction (remember, the Male Pill is less than 5 years away.) Inequality. Education. Pensions.
Let's say 20 different specific subjects.
Everyone submits or they don't make the list.
And, here's another point: I don't want to know anyone's religion.
In a proper secular country I would not have a clue if they were atheist or Anglican. The truth? I'm sick of Catholics running my legal system, all of them anti-abortion and hiding behind the First to protect the godless child-rapers and misogynists.
Add to that list of 20 Subjects exactly what the candidate considers "personal anatomy".
Until something changes, the Supreme Court is finished for me.
Yes, Kav The Caveman could get thrown back into the water, but, right now, whoever replaces his name is a name offered only by extreme right-wing groups that have been inching toward cult-status for the last 30 years.
We already have Clarence Thomas for life- we don't need his clone.
In fact, we don't need anyone. Leave it at 4-4. Or, dissolve it all.
McConnell has the Court he wants. It has nothing to do with me.
The Supreme Court is dead to me.
The Republican Party is dead to me.
Rest in pieces, Boyz.
5
Republicans are trying to put a horrible person on the Supreme Court because more $$$$$ for the rich.
Corporate rule is destroying the country.
But they are getting rich.
4
Wow! He drank beer in high school and college and may have not recalled the amount, exactly, during his hearing...threw ice on someone in a bar in college.....soiled his “nappies” at the age of ?
Dems are as pathetic as the Republicans!
(From a proud independent thinking voter)
9
The point isn’t that he drank beer in high school or college for that matter. The point is he lied and mis-represented himself. Can you wrap your “independent” head around that or is it alright with you?
5
So Kavanaugh drank in college. Yet he excelled academically and was a good athlete. To paraphrase Lincoln, perhaps we should find out what he drank and send our college age children a case of it.
7
@KAA
Which proves two things, he's good at sports and 2, taking tests. Too bad they don't give a grade for drinking beer and passing out.
1
I am so impressed how well the evil-democratic-mind-controlling-revenge for the Clintons-scheming-thinga-ma-jiggy machine worked last week! That machine made Kavanaugh write his ultra-partisan diatribe the night before the most important job interview and then yell it for 45 minutes for the whole world to hear.
Wow. To think that Alyssa Milano had so much mind-controlling power to will Kavanaugh to sound like a raving conspiratorial lunatic!
3
:) I giggled
How dare a man falsely accused of serial gang rapes passionately defend himself!
10
@RS That's a blatant mischaracterization of both his defense and the accusations.
4
Temperament and honesty are the New Democrat levers to defeat kavanaugh since the imaginary sex assault (no date, place or 3rd party corroboration) has fallen flat!
6
Yep. It’s called “new evidence.” And he handed it over willingly.
3
Chuck Schumer is all about the “sound bites” he can muster. Beyond that he’s an empty suit.
What will the Democrats do when the FBI comes back with no conclusive evidence?
They portrayed Kavanaugh as a sex offender and he took issue with it and was angry. Anyone who would not become furious about such accusations would be of a concern. Feinstein and the Dems like to play the victim card but had they left the original voting practice alone, Kavanaugh would need 60% approval not a simple majority. Where is the Times on reporting this fact. The short answer is nowhere. If it does not promote their liberal views no matter how factual, it never sees print. What a joke!
3
Read the article. “Being” angry is not the same as “acting unhinged.” Cause for serious concern.
1
@George
Well he did lie under oath, and that Sir is the truth. And that should automatically disqualify the man.
2
How can we keep our country moral, decent and honest? How can we protect our little children? How can we stop promoting indecent and immoral lifestyles to the rest of the world? Simply put God back into the equation.
Whether republican or democrat, male or female, Christian or atheists, if what we think, say, or do is decent, moral and right...then it comes from God. If what we think, say, or do is indecent, immoral and wrong then it does not come from God. You can only lie to yourself and others, but not to God. This may be why separation of church and state exists. Blessed be those that believe in His name: who are born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.
1
I hate the designated hitter rule. In fact, I hate designated hitters! They are not real baseball players. They sit on the bench for 3 hours every day, other than batting 3-4 times a game. It is a joke, a farce. They are part of a vast conspiracy to undermine everything that is good with the game of baseball.
But no need to worry, when they come to bat I'll just be calling balls and strikes.
1
Why is author of this article striving to paint Dem's sole motivation as "trying to derail nomination"? I really resent that.
Kavanaugh's belligerent attitude reflected his mindset of privilege, that he was "owed" this job. He said, "I worked my butt off to get into Yale!" The GOP Senate, circling the wagons, reflect the male bonding and protectionism so prevalent in the culture of patriarchy. In 5 weeks on Nov. 6 there will be an opportunity to loosen the stranglehold the Tea Party has on Congress. Don't let it pass you by.
4
I just don't think he has the temperament to be a judge at any level. He's too emotional. He gives the strong impression that if the case before him means anything to him personally, he's going to be emotionally invested in seeing his personal bias through.
Not SCOTUS material.
1
“I didn’t like some of the more partisan references and the tone, particularly with some of my colleagues,” Mr. Flake told an audience in Boston, singling out Judge Kavanaugh’s treatment of Ms. Klobuchar. But he said he might have been similarly angry if he had stood accused of sexual assault.
But Mr Flake was assailed and berated in an elevator by two angry, emotional sexual assault victims. He listened, he nodded and quietly came to the conclusion that an FBI investigation was warranted. He was similarly "accosted", if that is the word, but his response was different from Kavanaugh's, and for that matter, his colleague Lindsay Graham, who displayed a similar truculence to Kavanaugh.
It's not the emotions one has, but how one handles them that is the issue. Mr Kavanaugh clearly belied the old saying " as sober as a judge" - in more ways than one.
1
@Todge
Yeah, getting yelled at for 2 minutes in an elevator is the same thing as being falsely accused of a crime days before the biggest event of your life. Exactly the same thing.
2
Think about how this person presented himself in the hearings last week. Watch it again. That there is anyone in the world who considers him okay for the SC is stunning.
That is how far we've fallen as a nation of clear virtue.
11
GOP strategy on Kavanaugh is crystal-clear. They intend to ram him through, and then smugly tell us that we always have the option of impeaching him, knowing that the requisite 2/3 Senate vote will never, ever materialize, even if their Senate share were to dwindle to 35%, which is vanishingly unlikely.
This is a classic example of hardball politics, one that will be studied for centuries to come in political science classes.
1
I was accused of sexual harassment by a supervisor who wanted me to be fired. I was investigated by my employer, the University, and they found no basis for the allegations. I maintained my job and the accuser very soon left the University. That is the short story. My reaction at the time was not that of anger and fighting back. To suggest that this is the 'normal' reaction is an excuse to justify the angry outburst. I was advised to not approach the accuser and I followed that advice. It worked out well for me. The hardest part was after the process was the taunts and jokes made at my expense about the charge and the alleged victim by some. My other supervisor new the truth and defended me in the extensive email exchange during this incident.
There is no reason for a man to harass or attack a woman. We also have to recognize the sexual harassment charge can be used in an unethical way. That said I do believe there is way too much harassment of women by men and boys. The male culture has to change.
4
Have we lost our collective minds? The situation is really quite simple. Judge Cavanaugh was accused of something more than thirty years ago. He denies it ever happened, as do the only two possible witnesses. The other accusations are all in the nature of "well, I saw something" or " I didn't see anything but I think someone else did." The Democrats are clearly unwilling to apply the principles of burden of proof and presumption of innocence. Judge Cavanaugh's reputation has been permanently damaged, no doubt forever in this environment of instant information. Is it surprising that in this situation he allows his emotions to show in the presence of his critics? Not at all.
We should not underestimate the importance of this moment. If the Democrats are successful in their quest to derail Judge Cavanaugh's nomination, they should expect that they will never again gin the approval of a Democrat nominee.
3
Two whoppers here . . .
1. “This is another part of their moving the goal posts, which is happening at the speed of light at this point,” said Carrie Severino, the chief counsel for the Judicial Crisis Network, a conservative advocacy group.
Judicial temperament and honesty/candor are at the core of any nomination to the Supreme Court. These are not collateral or ancillary issues as is the suggestion in this quote.
2. Mr. Grassley . . . added of Justice Thomas, “He’s been on the Supreme Court for 26 years, and I’ve never heard anybody raise any questions about his temperament, . . .”
In fact, many commentators have mentioned Justice Thomas's refusal to participate in the time-honored practice of oral argument as evidence that he doesn't take his role on the court seriously.
7
Kavanaugh and the GOP waged war against Bill Clinton for lying about his affair with Monica Lewinsky and impeached him. YET Kavanaugh has obviously lied about many things that are somewhat related to this investigation and now there's the fact that he tried to circumvent the story about Ramirez allegations before it even came out in the New Yorker by txing those at the wedding in a photo that shows Ramirez at the same wedding. He wanted his friends at that same wedding to control the narrative in case things came out. So he's hiding what he did and is lying.
For that reason alone (he LIED) he should not be confirmed - his character is more than enough reason.
9
Another reason for the Democrats shifting to the credibility issue on Kavanaugh is the sudden realization that roughly half of their constituents are male, and that polls are showing a significant gender divide on the believability of the sexual assault allegations. To attack his credibility, or to oppose him for an unrelated third issue, as my home state Senator McCaskill rather incredulously did, takes the gender split out of the electoral equation.
2
Kavanaugh himself was able to see that his response to senator Klobuchar was beyond good behavior and later in private apologized to her. It might have been better for him to have waited until the interviews had restarted and made the apology while on camera. That was a missed opportunity on his part to be seen as less volatile and more self aware by the senators and the public.
I do find the reports of past strange behavior on his part as credible and I also find a faulty memory of his past behavior as part of a natural alcohol induced event . He can not remember these events since they have been blocked in much the same way as our dreams are mostly blocked from memory. I anticipate that a reasonably thorough FBI investigation will reveal more evidence that will support his accusers and that he will still not remember these events which seem at odds with his own view & memory of himself . He will feel falsely accused and will remain in denial to his own eternal loss.
If the Senators on the committee cannot come to see this in a coherent way then we will all lose. Kavanaugh will live out his life believing he has been the victim of a Clinton conspiracy. The Republican senators will see this all as hardball politics. The Democratic senators will see this as an attempt to stack the court with conservative puppets. And most Americans, if they do stop to think, won't know what to make of it.
Not dismissed, discounted given the evidence and testimony of the accused and the accusor. Meanwhile, Democrats have moved on themselves, despite the accusations. Given that fact, it can o longer be denied that this entire exercise was anything but a partisan attack on a SCOTUS nominee. Brett Kavanuagh was not using partisan rhetoric at the hearing; he was speaking truth to power.
1
I'd have thought that truthfulness (in general and particularly under oath), lack of overt partisanship and judicial temperament were expected of ALL judges at any level, but especially the Supreme Court.
Having debased respect for the law, IRS and tax payments, election system, FBI and National Security system, and even reality and objective facts, the "taint of Trump" (as one NPR commentator phrased it) has now spread to the Supreme Court.
6
Temperament and honesty along with the record of this judges rulings thus far should have been the primary focus all along. The accusations made by several women reflect on but do not completely define Kavanaugh's character and the danger he presents to the public and the Republic.
1
If someone other than Kavanaugh give him the advice to do his "fire and fury" outburst, that person needs to get out of the advice business.
Kavanaugh blew up any sense of being impartial when he specifically named the liberals and how they were getting back at Trump for winning the election.
That in itself apart from the allegations that are now being investigated should be more than sufficient reason to eliminate this man from consideration to the bench on our highest court.
1
If Judge Kavanaugh's nomination is not confirmed, he will go back to hearing arguments in cases before one of the most powerful appellate courts in the nation. He will be rightfully challenged for bias in every case assigned to him. His opening statement will be exhibit A in the moving papers. So now, the only job he can get, that means anything on a "real world" level, is on our Supreme Court. That's not ok.
1
Why is it that Yale and Harvard are the only places that Supreme Court justices can be found? Aren't there any public law schools where qualified candidates can be found? It seems that Americans have been conned into thinking that the ivy league schools are the gold standard and the rest of us are simply inadequate unless we attended an elitist school. Nominate someone who knows what it's like to live in the real America.
3
For someone to be placed in the high position of a Supreme Court judge; with the power that entails; for possibly the next 30 years; one should exhibit the highest standards of temperament and of course decorum. Brett Kavanaugh failed those tests with flying colors last week. Added to the growing evidence his issues with alcohol and beligerent behavior by those who knew him for years; and one must conclude there are far better candidates to fill this vital spot on the SCOTUS bench. Of course most of them do not have a partisan axe to grind the way Kavanaugh seems to. Time to move on to someone who deserves this honor.
7
Admiitedly, I have not watched all of the testimony offered by Ms. Ford or Judge Kavanaugh. After watching more than is probably healthy, I am amazed at how many media reports from NPR, CNN, FOX, CNBC etc all focused upon the credibility question of the assault allegation and his denial. Irrespective of the allegations, Judge Kavanaugh showed us all quite convincingly that he does not have the demeanor, temprement, objectivity, respect, the list goes on and on to serve as a jurist on the US Supreme Court. We can all look forward to the end of the Trump era. This appointment is for life. There are plenty of qualified individuals that are able to fill this post be they conservative, moderate or liberal. Brett Kavanaugh is not one of them. Any and every senator that votes to move this nomination forward followng last week's testimony is clearly motivated by something other than what is best for this country.
5
It was the "What goes around, comes around" response to a Senator that got me. Kavanaugh is not just angry, he promises revenge for what he considers an unfair job interview and that is a response well over the line for any Supreme Court judge.
5
As with other political crises over the past half-century, it isn't the 'original incident' that's the ultimate indictment. It's the attempt to explain, obfuscate and to cover up. Kavanaugh had his opportunity of demonstrate maturity and good judgment in his testimony. He wasn't able to, or didn't want to, or just plain lost it. That performance would have failed most interview standards for any job. Let's find someone else for the Court. The name of the anti-abortion law prof at Notre Dame comes up quite often. I'd rather take a chance on her than select an unhinged Kavanaugh. Best would be to keep the seat open until 2020. All's fair.
1
Quote: “I don’t think what he said is any different than what Justice Thomas said,” Mr. Grassley said. He added of Justice Thomas, “He’s been on the Supreme Court for 26 years, and I’ve never heard anybody raise any questions about his temperament, and it’s seemed to me to be just as dogmatic and as explosive as what he (Kavanaugh) said.”
Of course Thomas has been well-behaved on the SCOTUS- he ascended to a literal role of a lifetime, after his raging denial, during his hearing of the valid accusation of sexual misconduct by Anita Hill that was ultimately dismissed as "false." Kavanaugh used the same raging tactic during his hearing, and may also ascend to a role of a lifetime.
"Two wrongs," appointing these men. "do not make it right," though.
2
@NMV
What is a valid accusation? Aren't all accusations valid? Or only those accusations you want to believe? The others are invalid, by definition.
The best thing that could happen to Dem chances for a blue wave in November is if Kavanaugh is appointed to the SCOTUS.
Unfortunately it would be the worst thing for the country.
5
I know our local judges very well both socially and from watching them in action. Even when they are truly angry with people in their courts, they still act with respect and a certain level of calmness.
Brett Kavanaugh's temperament is not new news and had raised red flags for many people prior to the Thursday hearing. He also has made no secret that his extreme partisan positions of the past were not something he regretted. What was not allowed to be fully examined by the committee is how many of his prevarications and untruths in testimony to the Senate might be not only prevarications and untruths, but actual lies.
This is not new after Thursday's hearing it is still present and whether he remembers his misdeeds of the past or not, his (arguably) lies, prevarications, untruths and temperament are unsuitable for a federal judge. Senators, please reconsider this nomination and vote it down.
8
I am passionately opposed to the elevation of Judge Kavanaugh to the Supremes and in fact, have come to believe that he is unqualified for his current position.
Yes, I did believe Professor Ford, by gut reaction, but the professional in me did not find that to be defining. It was Judge Kavanaugh's intemperate disrespectful and un-judicial behavior of before the Senate Judiciary Committee last Thursday. Judge Kavanaugh was Exhibit A for the appearance of impropriety by a sitting judge and demonstrated that he is not fit for his current position, much less for the highest Court.
Some, in comment, have written that Justice Thomas reacted the same way. I do not recall, but that is not relevant. I have always viewed Justice Thomas as a man with a "yik factor" because of the allegations and I will always view Judge Kavanaugh the same. The Court should never have a "yik factor."
On the First Monday in October, 1979, I made my poor Mother sit through the whole morning session, in spite of the fact that there was a seriously un-bathed person on her right, with me on the left.
This was 10 months after I was admitted to the State Bar of California. I sat in awe. There before me were Justices that I did not agree with, but I respected them all. There, was Justice Rehnquist, whom I directed my Law Review article to his jurisprudential dishonesty when it came to precedent. But, I respected Justice Rehnquist. Kavanaugh is not of judicial temperament.
3
Just when American women are rising up as a real political power, we are tested by a good-old-boy heritage that would oversee us during this critical transition period. We can do better.
4
Look, I assume everyone on the GOP's list of potential nominees are on the same level as Kavanaugh in terms of intellectual ability. There is no reason for the GOP to cling to someone who's honesty was in question BEFORE Dr. Ford became known to the public. If you do not know what I mean by that, the transcripts of Kavanaugh's answers to relatively straightforward questions during the confirmation process are freely available. The details of Dr. Ford's testimony are particularly disturbing, but there was already ample reason for the GOP to move to the next name on the list.
But because Republicans failed to dismiss the man who lied repeatedly to the Senate and (by extension) the nation, Kavanaugh survived long enough to reveal his previously unknown temperance issues. Having already cursed the country with a lying president prone to throwing temper tantrums and abusing his powers to settle personal scores, the GOP now seems to have instinctively found a (more intelligent) judicial nominee with the same qualities. Conservatives told the nation that "President" Trump would be different after the campaign. Does anyone today really assert that Trump's honesty and temperament got BETTER once he gained power? Well, Kavanaugh's previously concealed character failings will NOT get better with a lifetime appointment. Believe that if nothing else.
So why can't the GOP pick someone else? Despite the fury over the stolen SCOTUS pick, Gorsuch didn't have these problems.
5
@matt. any psychologist will tell you that "Character" does not change. nor will Kavanaugh's. it is part of him and in times of stress, especially when combined with even moderate alcohol, he will always revert to the behavior we observed. not withstanding times when he can keep it underwraps and buried.
1
No one is moving the goalposts. An ability to be an impartial, open minded and calm observer and trier of fact is a basic job qualification for any judge. Up until last week’s hearing senators had only hints of Kavenaugh’s unfitness for the job based on his record. And yes, Kavanaugh could reasonably be expected to be angry. It looked like he was going to sail smoothly into a job that is as high as you can go in the legal profession only to have that prize put in jeopardy at what seemed to be the last moment. That is not the point. His performance was clear evidence that his temperament is injudicious. Reports are that he wrote his opening statement himself. The content and tone of that statement raise serious questions about his judgment. The least sober-minded reflection should have revealed that statement as an ineffective device to convince senators of his fitness. It was a remarkably stupid approach given that he was at the top of his Yale law school class. He seems to have missed learning about the difference between advocacy and judging. Add to that his rudeness to many of those on the hiring committee for the job he wants, and you have pretty clear evidence of his unfitness to be any kind of judge.
4
President t Obama should have been able to seat his choice. Republicans seem to be entitled "good ol' boys".
I think we need to seat President Obama choice now. we have seen enough shenanigans.
4
Excuse me Senator Grassley, but Justice Thomas and his wife have been an embarrassment to the Court with their actions and profits. You do disservice to the "Iowa nice" moniker.
Kavanaugh is a younger version of the rage of Thomas, in my opinion, both are and were unjustified. They have both proved themselves to be dishonest individuals which creates a stain on our highest court in our land!
4
His temperament is questioned but he was cross-examined, she wasn't.
The first questions in any proceeding regard conflicts of interest. She was never asked.
First, she calls herself a psychologist when she does not have a license to practice psychology. Isn't this fraud? Isn't fraud a lie?
Second, she's a paid consultant for a company with business before the Supreme Court. She has 6 publications on PubMed which document her paid consultant status. Isn't this a conflict of interest?
Third, does she have a history of political activism? What do her Facebook posts say?
Let's see her demeanor when you confront her with her life. It's easy to be a hero when no one can ask you anything.
Why is this off-limits? How can we ask for "justice" when one witness is interrogated about doodles in his high school yearbook and the other can't be asked any questions?
You destroy a man's life with an accusation that is completely without evidence. You withhold this information so as to continue a process in which he's already answered 30 hours of questions. Then he gets angry and you say he doesn't have the temperament?
These accusations are nothing but a stalling tactic. Due process, innocence until proven guilty, and justice is blind have all been violated because you lost an election.
Do you really want to live in a country where anyone can destroy you whenever they want and they can't be asked any questions?
Godspeed Brett. Let's have this vote.
5
His life hasn't been ruined. Even if he removed himself from consideration ten seconds from now, he would go back to his current job, no questions asked.
Face it, he failed his job interview by revealing his true self to the world. I'm surprised that conservatives aren't praising the Dems for using their low-road techniques.
3
@jkemp 1) You need a license if you're going to counsel patients. She earned a PhD in psychology, and works in academia, not as a practitioner. 2) Any ethical professional discloses professional affiliations when publishing, such as researchers publishing drug studies who are consultants or employed by the pharma company to address any potential conflict issues. 3) I don't know what you mean by political activist here. I'm sure she has her opinions but doesn't seem like the type to broadcast them. She reported her assault well before Kavanaugh was the nominee.
The Republicans dictated their questions to Rachel Miller. How was that not interrogation parity? Then the Republicans took over when it was Kavanaugh's turn and spent their 5 minutes grandstanding and tossing soft balls at him.
I already live in a country where a man who was elected president assaulted women his whole life and is proud of it. He and Kavanaugh are cut from the same cloth. They were both filth in school. Trump is still filth, only worse. Maybe Kavanaugh evolved, then he could admit to his prior acts and point to his redemption. It would have gained him a lot of points and guaranteed his confirmation, despite his lies and his anger issues, not to mention his dangerous opinions. Hopefully he and trump will both suffer consequences for the lives they've lived as adults.
2
@Gabrielle Rose
California Business and Professions Code section 2903 (a), states “No person may engage in the practice of psychology, or represent himself or herself to be a psychologist, without a license granted under this chapter."
Fraud is a fancy word for a lie.
I agree the Republicans chose not to cross-examine Dr. Ford because it was "insensitive" but that doesn't mean her testimony can't be questioned.
The Republicans deferred questions to Ms. Mitchell who did not cross-examine either witness. She did however say there is no evidence to proceed with a prosecution. Since there's no evidence and he says he didn't do it why should he admit to something he didn't do?
Great article from fivethirtyeight.com on the subject:
https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/why-humans-are-bad-at-spotting-lies/
To sum up: humans are no better in telling truth from lies than a coin flip and the hearings that "riveted the nation" are largely an exercise in confirmation bias.
I entirely agree with points made about Kavanaugh's unsuitability to be a Supreme Court judge: his unashamed partisanship, his anger, his inability to control his temper. But then if one looks at most Republican Senators in that Committee, they were equally unashamedly partisan, clearly holding their Party priorities over concerns about the highest Court in the land, unembarrassingly scathing about their Democrat counterparts, and some of them making Kavanaugh look like a master of self-control. It is not surprising that with a party run by that caliber of people at the highest level America has ended up with the president it has, and probably with the Supreme Court judge it's likely to get.
4
We know Kavanaugh is bereft in the temperament aspect, flashing a strong sense of entitlement and expectations. Additionally, and casting him in a worse light have been his lies about his past. Thirdly, a sexual assault against a 15 year old female that is documented publicly and believably on national tv and soon to be corroborated by the FBI. We do not want another dissolute libertine on the SCOTUS. Clarence Thomas is egregious enough.
3
What about his claim that his high school beer drinking was legal? He repeated that at the hearing even though after his Fox interview it was widely reported that the MD legal drinking age was 21. Thus it was both a lie and a remarkable show of contempt for the law from a lawyer, judge, and potential Supreme.
6
The Republicans are, of course, going to say that the Democrats have now changed course on their objections to approving Kavanaugh. But this is how investigations go. Allegations are made, information is found, investigations happen - and you never know where they will lead. Look where the Whitewater investigation took Bill Clinton - impeached for lying under oath, and obstruction. Doesn't that sound familiar in this case? After watching Judge Kavenaugh's behavior in the hearing last Thursday, and learning more each day, it appears that he has done both as well. Is this the type of person we want in a lifetime position on the Supreme Court. Certainly not.
1
Gee, you might want to add the fact that his decisions are uniformly in favor of corporations, and against workers and the environment.
8
Question for Times reporters - are we sure that people being interviewed by FBI are making a distinction between blacking out and passing out? I'm not convinced folks are making the distinction. Some witnesses reported never seeing Kavanaugh black out. I'm not sure how you see someone black out in the moment. Other witnesses report him as so intoxicated that he must have been blacking out - but still, how is a witness to know at the time if the person will go on to have no or spotty recollection of the previous night's events?
3
His ability to appear objective has been destroyed. Of course a man like himself, steeped in politics even more than most judicial conservatives, was always keeping a decorum that merely preserves the appearance of such.
He incinerated that when it appeared expedient to his chances of still receiving the seat.
And that in itself is the kernel; the conniving, ambitious, duplicitous, ruthless aspects of the man that won out.
That, ironically, should indeed end his consideration, regardless of the likely truth to other allegations.
2
if Feinstein had chosen to leak this scandal months ago, we could have been spared most of this. The FBI could have had enough time to investigate, and Kavanaugh probably would have withdrawn. By leaving it to the last possible moment, Feinstein created this circus which has further divided the country and dragged Congress and the Supreme Court into disrepute. All to maximize the impact of a tainted nomination process on an election, an impact which is debatable, because the circus has mostly just deepened existing divisions. Trump is still going to nominate an anti-abortion justice, and that justice will be confirmed. Further restrictions on abortion will be permitted in some states. What has destroying Kavanaugh's reputation gained us? Don't assume it's gained women much of anything. An awful lot of men look at Kavanaugh and decide they aren't going to support any movement that's going to judge their 1980s behavior by 2018 standards. That may not be fair, but it is reality.
2
The only problem with this new line of attack is everything he said was true:
"Some of you were lying in wait and had it ready. This first allegation was held in secret for weeks by a Democratic member of this committee, and by staff. It would be needed only if you couldn’t take me out on the merits.
When it was needed, this allegation was unleashed and publicly deployed over Dr. Ford’s wishes. And then — and then as no doubt was expected — if not planned — came a long series of false last-minute smears designed to scare me and drive me out of the process before any hearing occurred.
Crazy stuff. Gangs, illegitimate children, fights on boats in Rhode Island. All nonsense, reported breathlessly and often uncritically by the media.
This whole two-week effort has been a calculated and orchestrated political hit, fueled with apparent pent-up anger about President Trump and the 2016 election. Fear that has been unfairly stoked about my judicial record. Revenge on behalf of the Clintons. and millions of dollars in money from outside left-wing opposition groups.
This is a circus. The consequences will extend long past my nomination. The consequences will be with us for decades. This grotesque and coordinated character assassination will dissuade competent and good people of all political persuasions, from serving our country."
5
This is a new low. You make false accusations against a man that are totally politically motivated. Then when he gets angry, calls it out for what it is, and tearfully defends himself, you attack him for his temperament. If this highly partisan exercise in character assassination succeeds, no Constitutionalist Republican will ever be confirmed again. Guilty until proven innocent is the new refrain of liberals. God help us!
5
The problem is less that the Democrats wish to derail Judge Kavanaugh's nomination and more to prevent the confirmation of ANY conservative nominee. Had the goal been solely to derail Judge K, Senator Feinstein and Debra Katz would have advised Dr. Ford immediately to share her letter on a confidential basis with Senator Grassley. Grassley then could have advised the White House not to nominate Kavanaugh. This rapist and alcoholic would not then be a SCOTUS justice, however, some other conservative would -- and there lies the Democrat's conundrum. So instead, Senator Feinstein and Ms. Katz advise Dr. Ford to hold back on the letter. It is unclear what they suggested this would accomplish, but Dr. Ford, perhaps unfamiliar in the ways of Washington, took their advice. The letter was, not surprisingly, leaked to the media, Dr. Ford's identity was discovered, her confidentiality was blown and the only real way she could prevent a Kavanaugh confirmation was by testifying before the Senate. So much time had run at this point, that the Republicans either needed to commit to Kavanaugh or relinquish their shot at transforming SCOTUS. Guess which way they went. Can one really believe that Sen. Feinstein hadn't thought this through? Let's not be hypocrites. Let's be honest. This is not about the actions of Kavanaugh 36 years ago. This is about preventing a conservative SCOTUS majority. This is purely politics. Unclear how the process affects our institutions in the future. Shameful.
2
We know that all those who say his temperament was justified are lying to us or themselves because we know that had Dr. Ford been equally indigent at her treatment by the nominee all those years ago or by his supporters (including having to move from her home) that she would have been lambasted for it or had the nominee been a woman and acted as Kavanaugh did it would be all over.
And all those who keep repeating "falsely accused" you don't know if he was or was not. If we did the Republicans would have already approved him saying either he did nothing or we don't care, it was long ago. Either way he would be approved already.
2
If Sen. Grassley thinks Kavanaugh will distinguish himself in the same manner that Thomas has --almost utter silence for most of those 26 years and absolutely predictable vote-- he may be half right. It is obvious to all but those both blind and deaf, and illiterate as well, that a highly politically charged case before the court will hardly elicit reasoned and probing questioning from Judge Kavanaugh.
With the way Kavanaugh unloaded at the hearing, an interesting factoid to which we'll never have the answer is, what was his blood alcohol level during that moment? One commenter on an earlier Times article raised the possibility of this outburst as that of a "dry drunk." Alcohol unshackles inhibitions, and Kavanaugh was unquestionably uninhibited last Thursday. He most definitely is not, and almost declared it in so many words, impartial. But then, our Dear Leader and our good Republican Senators would not be "plowing" him forward if he were.
Supreme Court Justices are a rare breed, only one out of 36 million Americans hold the office, but the impact of a single Justice affects all 300+million of us. A snarky, snarling self-entitled and embittered judge is the not a good fit for the Supreme Court. And not by any stretch of the imagination beneficial for the citizens of our nation.
9
Unless the FBI finds evidence of sexual misconduct, Kavanaugh will be confirmed on a straight party-line vote. This is the sad reality of our current single-party government. The endless articles about character and personality sells newsprint and TV time, and provides ammunition for election ads, but has nothing to do with the Senate votes.
The original headline of this article, “Temperament and Honesty Become Focus of Democrats Trying to Derail Nomination” does not accurately describe the events. The title insinuates that the Democrats are acting out of rote partisanship. In fact, the Democrats are responding to 4 seemingly credible accusations of sexual assault, and many apparent untruths told by Kavanaugh during his hearing.
I beg the NYT to not frame news as partisanship, as it does a disservice to readers and our democracy.
5
The lies, uncivil behavior, partisanship, and the alleged sexual assault have been the object of scrutiny thus far. But what about the large portion of files related to Kavanaugh's past performance that has been classified, effectively banning access to a recent period in his professional life? Would any candidate to a coveted position be considered if he or she concealed part of his or her curriculum? Would you hire him or her? Why hasn't this issue been the object of more discussion?
2
It's rich what Grassley said about Clarence Thomas. He has gotten even at every opportunity while on the bench with those liberals he felt had induced Anita Hill to testify against him.
So Mr. Grassley, yes people have a great deal to fear that Kavanaugh is going to be another Thomas.
5
The huge number of blatant lies, his partisan attacks and ill-mannered bordering on mentally unwell temperament means that he simply doesn't belong on the Supreme Court. No Senator who takes advice and consent seriously should vote to confirm Kavanaugh.
1
Some introspection would do Judge Kavanaugh a lot of good. One must wonder if he knows even what introspection is.
2
How typical that Grassley claiming not to have heard any questions about Thomas's temperament in 26 years justifies voting for Kavanaugh now. How tone-deaf can you be? It also helps to be, you know, listening in the first place.
As for Thomas? Perhaps the least curious member of the court in history as he rarely asks questions and often appears to be asleep during deliberations. His votes are as predictable as the sun coming up. Facts are simply annoying.
So adding an activist, partisan bully with misogyny, drinking, anger and candor issues is actively supported by these fossils because who wouldn't be upset when confronted with the truth? Doesn't mean he can't judge other people because they've been doing it their entire lives.
1
Give me a break. Being a judge, an angel, or a Saint doesn’t mean you can’t defend yourself or display anger while doing so. These hearings were not judicial proceedings, and BK did not have the role of judge. Rather, he sat there as the accused. And despite all this pious talk about the proceedings as a “job interview,” who actually can deny that, at least culturally, BK is in the dock. Add to this Sen. Feinstein’s poor management (IMO) of the Ford allegations and the 11th hour reopening of the hearing, all in a context in which every Democrat on the committee has long been opposed to the nomination, I am not surprised that BK would be angry and even unglued. Of course, ideally, I would want him to sit there and be judicious and calm - just as if his life was not involved - but I am not going to harangue him for being a human being in a world that is far from ideal.
2
There are two ways to ascertain underlying character. First, how does the person handle adversity. Second, how does the person handle power. Better yet, how does a person in power handle adversity.
"...Mr. Grassley said. He added of Justice Thomas, “He’s been on the Supreme Court for 26 years, and I’ve never heard anybody raise any questions about his temperament,..."
Well, Senator Grassley, maybe that's because you weren't listening...or is it that you simply can't hear anything you don't want to hear. Once Clarence Thomas was on the court, he didn't need to lash out verbally at his perceived enemies, he could simply do so with his vote. The same is true of Kavanaugh. No more angry outbursts once he is on the court. Just quiet revenge.
Neither Thomas nor Kavanaugh demonstrated judicial temperament at their hearings when confronted with adverse information. What this tells us is that neither man can divorce his feelings of victimhood from his public comments, and likely his judicial rulings. Neither man is fit to be a judge.
Ask yourself if you want an angry judge making rulings that affect your life, If the answer is no, then remember to
VOTE OUT ALL REPUBLICANS
2
Those who still support Kavanaugh claim his outrageous, immature tirade was somehow justified because he thought he was being unfairly accused, but shouldn't a SC justice have more control of their emotions? He obviously didn't have control over his drinking in high school (when he was drinking illegally, by the time he turned 18 the drinking age in Maryland was 21, I guess he figured the law didn't apply to him since he was such a good student), nor apparently in college. Great control re academics, not so with personal control. There are a lot more qualified candidates out there, pick a better one.
2
Well, when assessing Kavanaugh's fitness for an appointment to the Supreme Court I think it quite reasonable that we ask ourselves if this decision is any less important then that of choosing a US President? And further, knowing-two years after the fact-what we do know about a similarly volatile and apparently easily provoked individual who was recently selected to sit in the Oval Office, would the people of the US make that same selection?
So, sorry Senator Grassely , in light of the fact that you and your party are rapidly running out of excuses for the sometimes frequently irresponsible (if not borderline unhinged) behavior of the fellow who now sits in the White House, isn't it time (way past time in fact) that your Party begins to acknowledge that it is not only reasonable for the American people to expect a political Party to put forth nominees for high positions within our government based on displaying an even temperament (even under stress),are honest in everything they say or do and who respects ALL people, but it is absolutely critical and obviously essential to a well governed Democracy ?
274
@Birddog
Perfect answer - flawless in fact.
2
@Birddog
So the real question is WHY is the GOP putting all their money on such a very flawed candidate?
They have a long list of 25 other SC candidates who have already been vetted by ultra conservatives, so why on earth keep
pushing this most unpopular Kavanaugh who is sweating so profusely.
This is not rocket science. Thank Kavanaugh for his service, cut him loose to go back to his District Court position (or not) and nominate another conservative who does not have so much baggage.
Attempting to ride this Kavanaugh horse with 2 broken legs (assault allegations and dishonest statements) across the finish line makes absolutely NO sense!
And when something doesn't make sense, follow the money $$$!
2
@Birddog If you were too dumb not to know that your vote for the Donald would seat a guy that at times can be volatile then you haven't been paying attention for at least 25 years.
Chairman Grassley said that even though Thomas was angry, after 26 years on the Supreme Court no one ever suggestions Justice Thomas' temperament, therefore it's safe for us to overlook Kavanaugh's temperament. Hmm. Let's see. Thomas did not speak from the bench in 10 years. Not once in 10 years, and now hardly ever speaks out loud. I don't think this is very good. And I don't recall Thomas getting angry or losing his temper the way Kavanaugh did at Yale or in the Senate last week. Thomas' high tech lynching comment basically meant that he felt because he was black, he couldn't get a fair hearing from a white Senate Judiciary panel. Kavanaugh is basically saying that the credible allegations against him make him so angry that he can express his anger by attacking Senators, yelling and screaming and refusing to answer questions that could shed light on whether or not there's a reasonable doubt that he is telling the truth. I don't care how angry he is. The whole point of judicial temperament is to be able to resist one's emotions enough to perform as an impartial judge. Most Republicans have become blind to common sense. Thank Goodness for Senator Flake, Murkowski, and Collins.
26
He has never taken a case to trial. He was not a trial judge. His rage is intemperate and might well have led to a contempt charge from another judge in a court of law. The ABA commenters noted he was rigid in his views. So he is educated and well connected but not judge material for the Supreme Court. Add to that those abused denying Jesuits (his high school's order) just said maybe he is not so great for the country. Dems should be making the case that this silver spoon boy is a privileged 1% lackey sent to grind under women, healthcare and the individual voter over the corporate overlords.
20
Now that it is looking like the FBI investigation has concluded with no fatal flaw for Judge Kavanaugh, the Democrats are lining up another grenade to derail the confirmation. Judge Kavanaugh's opening statement sounded partisan because he was reiterating Democratic Senators' prior statements about him. As to his highly emotional and raw testimony, let's see how we would all react if we were accused of being a gang rapist in front of the entire world knowing we were innocent. And for those who say that this is a job interview, this is not just a job interview, this is about Judge Kavanaugh and his family's lives, including his ability to teach, coach, volunteer, go grocery shopping with heads held high.
With respect to Senator Feinstein, I am so disappointed in how she handled this. Senator Feinstein said she did not act upon Dr. Ford's letter, until it was leaked, because she wanted to honor Dr. Ford's wish to remain anonymous. So, what would Senator Feinstein have done if the letter was not leaked? Almost two months passed and she had not alerted anyone about the letter or asked any questions. She could have asked Judge Kavanaugh, have you ever... without mentioning any names or data points outlined in Dr. Ford's allegations. Would she have kept the letter confidential even as Judge Kavanaugh became Justice Kavanaugh, if the letter was not leaked?
6
@Integra Casey
If the man can't tell the truth about so called "drinking games" which we know these games have nothing to do with drinking though it may be involved tells one all they need to know about this sick odious man. Perhaps he can check Google to refresh his memory.
1
Flake is right that anyone accused might be angry, but that does not give Mr. Kavanaugh, a job applicant, the right to scream, yell, cry, contort, attack, treat Senators with contempt, and invoke partisan conspiracy theories. He is the most temperamentally unfit person for the SC I can imagine. The hearings are supposed to reveal something and they certainly did that--Jekyll and Hyde Kavanaugh.
The MAJORITY of the American people do not want Kavanaugh on our Supreme Court. Why would Republicans want to foist him upon us while other candidates are waiting. They want to use the Court to force America into positions it does NOT WANT (especially regarding Presidential power and civil rights). Graham can yell about political scams all he wants, but I'm a good bit older than him, and this GOP maneuver to control government without consensus is the worst I've seen. Next applicant.
27
@Mary O'Connell
Can you explain what the rational for the anger might be?
I don't see how any innocent person could be angry about it. That he is a judge and should know how common mistakes are and that they get resolved properly by our system regularly only makes it worse to me that he is so angry.
I think the anger is about something other than the allegation and he and his allies are just using the allegation to hide that.
What the press and pundits and journalists want us to call "temperament" is in fact prima facie evidence of the disrespect and abuse women have been socialized to accommodate. In no particular order, I offer this evidence:
Rachel Mitchell was brought in to question Ford precisely because the GOP men could not face "optics" of their own making...the fact that eleven angry, white, privileged men had been given the power to dismiss a woman doing her civic duty and raising concerns long before the final stages of the nomination process.
We were led to believe that Ms. Mitchell would be questioning both Ford and Kavanaugh, the only possible rationale for this stratagem. But the moment K took his seat, Mitchell was silenced. When it got down to the "real business" of the day, those men sure found their voices fast. Mitchell could safely be ditched because, I mean really, what real man allows a woman to speak for herself or especially for him?
Then we have the Klobuchar debacle. If a female interviewee had turned on her potential employer and snapped, "Have you passed out?" she would have been shown the door instantaneously. She and Feinstein were derided by male colleagues and the potential SCOTUS in ways that defy belief. If any woman had "defended" herself as he did, she would have been taken out in a straitjacket, a real one.
None of this has any direct bearing on the actual Ford case. This is how institutionalized the sexism we swim in is. We're drowning in it.
21
Use of Kavanaugh's demeanor and words in his hearings as an element of the decision-making process is not a "line of attack in the Kavanaugh wars." It is a legitimate concern. We hold hearings on judicial nominees, rather than relying solely on the written record, for the exact purpose of evaluating the candidate's behavior before decision makers and the general public, to assess how the candidate handles what must be a stressful situation. That is the case with any job interview. Pundits' use of hyperbolic language does not help alleviate the bitter partisanship that already exists.
17
The man's behavior disqualifies him for any judicial position whatsoever. He may in fact not remember what he did the night of the "party" but based upon numerous descriptions from people acquainted with him, he was outright lying before the committee about his drinking habits and disrespect for women. The twisted interpretations of his many yearbook entries were an insult to all our collective intelligence. In the end, he was a classic spoiled "preppy" as a student and seems to have not given up his arrogance and sense of entitlement to this day. His performance at the hearing was proof enough. His nomination must be rejected and his impeachment from the appeals court should begin immediately.
14
It's not what he did in high school.
We all make mistakes.
But his lies about his behavior automatically disqualify him.
25
Let's face it, right now the only qualifications that matter to the GOP are whether his votes will align with extreme right wing ideology on the matters of abortion, separation of church and state, and last but most, the power and lack of regulation of corporations. That and whether they believe they can get enough voters to swallow their rationalizations for this horrendous nominee not to suffer a lethal blow at the polls.
It may be all we can do is try to assure the lethal blow at the polls and then impeach this man if they decide to push him through. Enough is enough and we are so far past that it's nauseating.
17
@alan haigh
Abortion is red meat for the base and a red herring for the GOP. What matters to them are the rulings that justify taking the peoples power to regulate & control the economy away from them.
1
@magicisnotreal You mean, what matters to their donors and future employers once they leave public office. Don't I know it- I realize the reason they oppose abortion is for political expediency- the reason evangelical preachers now focus on the "sin" of abortions undoubtedly has to do with dark money as well- when I was young this was the domain of the Catholic Church not evangelicals.
The Koch-Murdoch extreme right wing cabal will happily marry the church to the state, allow unlimited distribution of firearms and overturn Roe v Wade in exchange for the votes to shrink the power of the federal government to the level of their lap-dog.
I have to say that I have a problem with Dr. Ford's testimony that states that she had one beer. This would have occurred prior to any alleged attack in the upstairs bedroom. She has consistently stated that she has no recollection of earlier events, because it was not during the assault, which she states was imprinted in her memory. The fact that she states that she is sure that she had one beer, but cannot recall the day, month or year, from what reports are saying, is way too convenient to me. Why would you only remember the amount of beer you drank 36 years ago.
9
Senator Grassley took Justice Thomas as example for not having any one questioning his temperament in the supreme court for 26 years. i thought that was strange. Thomas was mostly day-dreaming in court. he seldom had any questions for matters in front of him.
3
Once I realized that Kavanaugh is not a conservative but a partisan, I began to understand the impact that he will have on politicizing the court itself. At the very least, he will need to recuse himself on matters concerning politics, gerrymandering, campaign funding, etc.
21
Each day on the floor of the Senate, Mitch McConnell accuses the Democrats of moving the goal posts. Well if to talk in football terms well Mitch, while the Dems are moving the goal posts you're tampering with the clock. Really, a vote "this week", no time to look over the FBI reports? So much for a "fair hearing."
And as McConnell's complaint of "stalling," guess he must have "blacked out" on Kentucky Bourbon rather than beer, all through 2016.
18
Whether the complaints on him true or false, based on the way he showed his temperament, he is unfit for a Supreme Court judge.
14
If you were to chose a judge on the basis of the way they responded to questioning would you choose Ford or Kavanaugh? Any open-minded person would surely choose Ford. If the Republicans push Kavanaugh through it will be a travesty of justice.
9
There's no need for Brett Kavanaugh to blame Democrats, the Clintons, or anyone else for this one. He dug his own pit by repeatedly exclaiming how 'impartial' he is, before completely breaking down into an angry, whining mess.
One must wonder, if he's able to lose his composure so quickly under these circumstances, what would he be like on the Supreme Court bench...for an entire lifetime?
While some Democrats may have had the foresight to be able to answer to this, and were therefore "determined to derail Judge Kavanaugh" -- the honest-to-God fact remains that it's actually he who has managed to do it to himself.
And the world is watching.
21
Loved his anger! Righteous indignation as his reputation was being slandered, his career destroyed and his family smeared! You go Brett!
7
@Bar tenant: Except that if Blasey Ford is telling the truth -- and nobody seems to think she isn't -- all of that indignation isn't righteous. It's all an act, and a grandiose, melodramatic one at that.
14
@Allison
There are a lot of folk who question the truthfulness of Ford. Her story is not credible.
https://www.wsj.com/articles/this-case-is-even-weaker-than-that-1538433190
@Bar tennant
Even if true, how is his career destroyed - unless you believe that a seat on the Supreme Court is an entitlement?
He has a life long job already.
Once again, this reporter appears to frame all objections to Brett Kavanaugh merely due to Democratic Party strategy. Such myopic efforts are a big part of our country’s problem and unworthy of an independent media that serves our democracy.
How about better reporting on who a conformation hearing is supposed to be for: the American citizenry. Any rational person well knows if a woman or a member of any other party other than the GOP had even one of the multiple questions about sexual assault come up OR if he/she was so derisive, condescending, evasive and contemptuous of the process, screaming at Senators, crying at the hearing, OR if that person began ranting against the GOP and throwing around conspiracy theories of those “against me” the nomination would be ridiculed, torn apart in the media, and thrown out. As it should be regardless of who does it.
11
The judge somewhere missed the lesson on expressing indignation with dignity. Disqualifying.
12
“I would defy anyone not to be angry about that if they believe the allegations against them were completely false,” said Senator John Cornyn of Texas, the No. 2 Republican in the chamber, adding: “He became very emotional as he choked back tears. But I must say, he wasn’t the only one choking back tears during his defense of his good name and his reputation.”
That's how Conservatives will justify seating Kavanaugh. It's not about judicial poise, restraint, grace under pressure, or character. It's certainly not about honesty, or integrity, which has been disturbingly lacking in Judge Kavanaugh's testimony throughout the proceedings.
It's really about theatre, as provided by Cornyn's adlib about all the other flowing tears.
All that was missing was a parade of American flags around the judge, followed by the serving of apple pie to the room, delivered by a bevy of properly matronly women.
The Kavanaugh - Blasey-Ford story is, until an eyewitness steps forward, or some hard evidence is discovered, a "she said, he said". Please stop pretending that it isn't.
But Kavanaugh in these hearings, that Kavanaugh has millions of eyewitnesses. That Kavanaugh, who sidestepped every opportunity to demonstrate that he has the courage and integrity to admit his flaws, to show a true respect for probity and truthfullness with regard not only to past behaviors but to current judicial philosophy, is very much in evidence.
5
He’s still the same immature frat boy. Three years ago, speaking at a law school to young students, he alluded to hijinks at his prep school by saying “What happens at Georgetown Prep stays at Georgetown Prep.” What dignified Judge would DO that? This is what he models? He’s Trump’s mini-me when it comes to dignity, appropriateness, moderation. He’s got so much baggage and would taint the Court.
I keep thinking of Ruth Bader Ginsberg. After her life’s work of uplifting women, she must be stunned at the degree to which we’ve regressed in our country.
15
What about the religiosity?
"Going to Church for me is like brushing my teeth."
"My daughter had us pray for Dr. Ford."
Better hope he keeps God and the law separate...but I wouldn't count on it.
15
@vmur
This is a bigoted thing to think and write.
Do you really think someone should be disqualified from the court because they go to church weekly and their daughter prayed for someone in pain?
Please tell us all what other positions or jobs this disqualifies someone for? Should a president not go to church? Should a teacher not go to church?
Kavanaugh's performance was stellar but not in a good way. He was combative and belligerent. He lied and evaded answering questions. He was aggressive with Democratic senators and offensive in his treatment of Senator Klobuchar (which I am sure he was told to apologize for). He played the victim as Thomas did using some of the same words, calling the hearing a circus and a partisan hit. Calling anything partisan is rich coming from a man who has been a GOP operative for years. Would he want to have the questions he suggested for Bill Clinton posed to him? He suggested that nothing be barred in the Starr investigation. He was petulant, repetitive, and rambled on and on about his life of school, sports, friends, church and beer, and beer and beer.
This man has skated through life based on his privilege and connections. He never imagined he would be in this position. He may well have tanked his SCOTUS nomination and also put his old job in jeopardy. If he succeeds in the first or goes back to the second , he may find himself the subject of investigation by the House and possible impeachment should the Dems take the House back. Aside from the lies and evasions, his demeanour is not that of an impartial judge. I have no doubt that his politics impact his decisions.
15
If any woman had behaved the way that BK behaved, she would have been dismissed from the hearing before it was scheduled to end. Her behavior would have been considered inappropriate.
17
"Moving the goalposts"?!
I think lying to congress is the original goalpost, he went and moved himself back by lying so openly about his past.
13
In what other scenario can a candidate for a job erupt into screaming, accusations, and tears and still be a contender for said job?
Kavanaugh's temperament and partisanship were on full display last week. This outburst should absolutely be taken into account while Kavanaugh is being evaluated for this role. Characterizing this as "moving the goalposts" is unfair, as Kavanaugh himself injected it into the mix.
Yes, someone who feels they have been wrongly accused as the right to be angry, the right to be hurt. Does that translate into "rightful" lying (we know he did) and histrionics? No. This righteous indignation went into the realm of "don't take from me what is MINE." Such incredible entitlement.
On the other hand, surely there is some kind of backroom deal (cue the conspiracy theorists) involving presidential immunity and the like that makes Kavanaugh a most desirable nominee in the eyes of Trump. The whole thing doesn't pass the sniff test.
9
And he was even scripted in his most belligerent outbursts! Can you imagine the guy in a moment of impulse?!? It makes my skin crawl.
3
Judge Kavanaugh's temperament and judgment can be measured by evaluating the 300+ opinions written by him.
This story is not about the search for Judge Kavanaugh's temperament as a jurist nor about Dr, Ford's sexual assault allegations. This is a political hit to prevent an outstanding Judge from acting as a U.S. Associate Supreme Court Justice.
I suggest liberals should start getting used to the term Associate Justice Kavanaugh - Life Tenure.
4
@F1Driver You mean dishones extreme partisan Justice for Life Kavanaugh. That is what his 300+ opinions show., when you combine them with his previous lies under testimony.
1
I don't know whether to be amused or upset about all the crocodile tears the Republicans are crying over the Kavanaugh hearings. They are reaping exactly what they sowed. Whatever the outcome, at least Kavanaugh had his day in front of the Senate. Something which Merrick Garland did not. Nor do I recall any public rants from Garland about the "unfairness" of the situation. And that, I think, says a lot about the relative fitness of each of these gentlemen for the highest court in the land.
4
Your reporter refers to remarks from a Democratic senator as “...giving a hint of the Democrats’ strategy.” This makes it sound as if the only reason the remarks about temperament are being made are because they are part of a strategy to derail the nomination at any cost - not because the senator actually believes what they are saying.
Your reporters understand the nature of political speech better than readers do. So perhaps this is the right way to frame the story. But it also rings of both-sides-ism and politics-as-sport. It diminishes (belittles, really) the remarks of both parties’ senators.
4
When I first heard that allegations of sexual misconduct from high school days could derail Mr. Kavanaugh from his pending seat on the Supreme Court, I was sympathetic to Mr.Kavanaugh, but after hearing his rebuttal and his tearful (albeit, without actual tears) denials, I have to say I was shocked and embarrassed by his conduct.
He revealed himself to be brutal partisan and a shameless manipulator and liar. I can only guess, by his defensiveness about his "beer" drinking, that he still drinks excessively and is defending not only his past but his current drinking habits. Perhaps he is simply in denial, perhaps he has a lot of blackouts, but in either case he is still unstable.
As a former alcohol abuser (I am what is considered in some circles, a sober alcoholic, not having has a drink in over 40 years), I can only say I have heard similar rationalizations about one's drinking many times over.
My heart goes out to Mr. Kavanaugh as it is evident he has worked hard and clearly feels he deserves to be ruling in the highest court of the land, but I do not believe that he is stable enough or honest enough at this juncture in his life, to be appointed to such an elevated position.
413
@Manuela
Right on. I think there is more here...there are a trio of troublesome allegations: self-abusive drinking (including rumors of direct intake of alcohol via the colon, which would get someone drunk fast by avoiding the liver); gambling; and extreme sex. Yes, the instances are taken from the past, not proven, but they form a pattern not unlike the tip of an iceberg. They are possible warning signs of an addictive personality. This could point toward a deeper tendency, something that is not so easily left behind, along with all the baggage it brings with it, including hiding things from others.
Based on what we know, which isn't a complete picture, Judge K's behavior on the stand doesn't reflect someone who has done their work, whether 12 step or otherwise. He is defensive and perhaps in denial of past/present addictions.
Why an issue? It certainly can affect judgment, pun intended. The gambling, if it continued, could lead to debts to others and being beholden to them not only for dough, but provide leverage to someone who has an agenda in how they want a judge to vote.
I like my judges truly boring: without an axe to grind, ruling according to existing legal principles and with no intention to legislate from the bench (an abhorrent practice no matter from the left or right). This fellow is way too interesting.
@Manuela As I watched his performance, I wondered what an alcoholic would say about it. I was curious what an alcoholic would think; you've answered my question. Thank you.
@Manuela Well said!
Senator Grassley is saying he has never heard anybody ask questions about Justice Thomas' demeanor? Clearly, he is not paying much attention.
6
If you think that it's just the Democrats who noticed the lack of decorum, temperament and professionalism on the part of Judge Kavanaugh, you'd be mistaken. Attempting to defend his behavior last Thursday has become exhausting.
12
Kavanaugh channeling the meanness, lack of temper control, and right-wing hatred of his inner Trump disqualifies him as unfit to serve.
Thankfully he showed his real character instead of that sham he put on display earlier before it was too late to undo his nomination.
10
As Black American man, I really feel for Judge Kavanaugh. He is being put into a position that many black men have to deal with on almost a routine basis - being called everything under the sun, having every fiber of your being called into question, and then being asked to consistently respond to that sort of "scrutiny" with superhuman levels of dignity and decorum. I'd say that for a non-black man with his resume, he's handling this situation as well as anyone not used to this sort of treatment to handle it. If he counts any black men as personal friends, now is the time to talk to them - daily.
4
@DB
This allegation is entirely false.
He has only been asked to come sit and answer more questions. It just so happens that his behavior and the effort to force he and his allies to the table an innocent person would have asked for first, have revealed that he has been lying to us all through this process.
2
Kavanaugh partisan attacks are self disqualification by his own standard after telling the Judiciary Committee that the Supreme Court “must never be viewed as a partisan institution.”
5
he lied under oath
the answers about his yearbook quotes, the drinking
these can be proven as lies
the whole weak stomach thing - is absurd
these were lies
he was under oath
isn't that the story
why isnt this being discussed more
he lies under oath - to the us senate - outrageous behavior
6
This has been said, but it bears repeating often, until the tone deaf get it. Imagine if the roles had been reversed, and Dr. Blasey came out with both guns drawn, loaded for bear, as Kavanaugh did. Imagine if she's cried about lifting weights at Tobin's house, and keeping a calendar as her Mom had. Imagine if she'd delivered a partisan screed - even though she's not the one seeking to be promoted to the highest court in the land. The old white men of the Senate and their enablers would have called her unhinged. Not credible simply because of her behavior. Add to this Kavanaugh's repeated, demonstrable, laughable lies and you see why women are seething. This is not only about the alleged sexual assault - though that's a serious charge that goes to the heart of this man's character. It's about his credibility. His willingness to lie about things big and small in order to grab what he clearly considers his "due". It's about his temperament. His inability to keep his emotions in check even when the nation is watching. Imagine how he behaves in private (though his email to the "boys" after a 2001 boys weekend, when he admitted getting aggressive after something as inconsequential as losing a game of dice, which he admitted he didn't recall, and admonished the boys to keep it all confidential, provides a glimpse). About his raw, naked partisanship and clear disdain for Dems, libs and anyone who doesn't share his views. He's unfit to be an impartial judge of anything. Period.
15
Men are angry. Women are angry. Republicans and Democrats, conservatives and progressives are angry.
And Brett Kavanaugh is angry.
What distinguishes an emotionally mature, empathetic, open-minded well-balanced adult...is how they handle their anger.
Kavanaugh has revealed who he really is.
10
So the standard is this now: You provoke an honorable, good man with career-ending lies on a national platform and that he reacts with a temper becomes disqualifying?
This is exactly (except way worse) how paparazzi stalk celebrities to get them upset so they can peddle photos of angry or compromising expressions.
Doesn't matter, though. He'll be voted in on Friday and I hope he maintains his rage against those who have wronged him.
3
Why is this "career ending"? He has his present job, a good paycheck, a devoted family, loyal friends. What is missing? No one is entitled to a supreme court seat!
The interview in Congress is to see if he is an honorable, good man. He is having a hard time showing that. Rage is not something I would want to see during an interview and for you to want him to carry rage against those who he thinks wronged him to the Supreme Court is disturbing. That is disqualifying, both him on the court and you as a citizen who should follow the constitution.
The common thread; Kavanaugh /Trump.....is outrage at being
exposed as dishonorable men.....
And the common thread of all angry dishonorable men who are
exposed....regardless of their race....those that have fallen from
grace....is that they protest because they have lost the respect of
what had been their peers....those peers being those whom we
can respect who are serving on The Supreme Court and in the
US Congress.
Remember to vote on November 6th....for those who deserve
your respect.
6
The progressive movement has become an embarrassment to the democrat party and the nation as a whole.
If a person would read and do research they would find.
1. Inconsistencies in Dr. Fords time table.
2. Dr. Fords own writings have dealt with psychological counseling and phantom memories.
3.Witness do not collaborate her memories.
4.The third party paid polygraph. Proved that something may have happened to her. but there was never any questions relation to her and Judge Kavanaugh.
The conclusion is. This entire story has been orchestrated bu a very dangerous element in the democrat party.
5
@fjs
Even if the lie that the accusations are a manufactured by the 'progressives" were true no honest person can ignore the facts of how he conducted himself in the video here.
He demonstrated that he is unfit, it no longer matters whether or not he also committed sex assault as alleged.
12
You give yourself away with the “Democrat” Party thing. It’s Democratic Party. Sad.
Daily revelations of excessive drinking and attendant behaviors in Brett Kavanaugh's past, along with his histrionic performance at a Senate hearing disqualify him as a nominee for the Supreme Court.
Harvard has already suspended the class that he was going to give this winter. Mitch McConnell is playing the "good cop" to Jeff Flake's "bad cop" on the FBI investigation. Trump obviously wants to be perceived as being fair and above it all, but he has bigger fish to fry: the women's vote for the 2018 midterms and the 2020 re-election bid - so his stakes are broader than Kavanaugh.
That Republicans are still holding out the notion that going along with Trump overrides everyone's common sense is pathetic. How can Kavanaugh show his face to Chief Justice John Roberts, much less have lunch with him and the other Justices if his nomination succeeds?
The huge cloud that hangs over Brett Kavanaugh is one of his own making last week at the Senate hearing. It seems almost Shakespearan in its magnitude of Karma finally coming home to rest for Kavanaugh.
5
A fine candidate for the US Supreme Court. I don't even Trump realized that he had a soulmate in Kavanaugh. Oh well, another day in the insanity known as the Republican side of Congress.
2
His response to Sen Klobuchar’s completely calm and non-threatening demeanor was completely inappropriate, especially since she had just said her father was an alcoholic.
There was a time when someone who acted like that would have withdrawn out of shame, but those days are long gone.
21
@Me
Kavanaugh's reaction was a clear example of classic alcoholic behavior. Period.
7
That exchange was cringe worthy not to mention a classic case of deflecting from his own issues with alcohol. Whether or not Kavanaugh still has a drinking problem today, he stepped out of line to suggest that the senator is the same as her father in regards to alcoholism.
Kavanaugh perfectly demonstrated in his afternoon tirade what Professor Ford described earlier in the day - an overbearing brutish male making claim to what he felt he was entitled to.
His performance will be on playback until he resigns whether that happens tomorrow, 12 months from now or years from now.
He is tempermentally unfit for the role as a Supreme Court justice, or as a judge anywhere.
As to the republicans
Putin sowed the seed of our self destruction
trump "watered" the seed of our self destruction
the senate majority "fertilized" the seed of our self destruction
Time for the public to take back the republic. VOTE and protest and keep protesting until we, the public, have righted the wrongs perpetrated here.
13
“I don’t think what he said is any different than what Justice Thomas said,” Mr. Grassley said. He added of Justice Thomas, “He’s been on the Supreme Court for 26 years, and I’ve never heard anybody raise any questions about his temperament, and it’s seemed to me to be just as dogmatic and as explosive as what he said.”
But Thomas is a hard, bitter conservative. Who knows how much the confirmation process embittered him. Righteous anger does not compel a man to make wild, baseless accusations of conspiracy, insolently attack Senators doing their jobs and grossly lie and distort facts. That is the conduct of a guilty person caught in a web of lies, trying to bluster and intimidate his way through .
11
So, what happened to the attempted rape charge?
All this just shows how completely political this is. The Democrats just don't want to see Trump get another supreme court appointment from a list of justices who do correspond to their political preferences.
There will always be a reason to oppose the nomination.
8
If you actually think that having a committee vet a nominee for a seat on the Supreme Court and do their job thoroughly to make certain that a judge with poor judgement does not end up in a life-long position serving on the highest court in the land is playing politics, I doubt that anyone could ever convince you that it isn’t.
1
To Mac: The attempted rape charge is now, finally, being investigated by FBI. If Flake and Coons hadn't stepped in to interject some wisdom into the sham hearing, the investigation would never have happened. You know what's evergreen? GOP'S criticism that "there's no evidence!" When in fact, Ford has offered much corroboration--she told her husband, friends, therapist years ago. When Ford learned K. might be nominated 6 years ago, she expressed her concern. She contacted WaPo, she took a polygraph (which K. hasn't done--why not?) There is already evidence in plain sight K. has perjured himself, and that makes him unfit to sit on SC.
On what planet would a person interviewing for a job behave as Kavanaugh behaved? One had to turn away from the television during his hysterical outburst. It was too embarrassing to witness.
13
I was told that some endured it by alternating jaw clenching with a series of moaning sounds with rising volume or ululating - might be worth a try if you feel the process will extend another month. Then, there’s ear plugs.
Trump nominated Kavanaugh as a “get out of jail free” card due to his particular views on investigating and indicting a sitting president.
The rush to confirm Kavanaugh is to have him seated prior to the SC hearing Gamble vs United States.
I don’t understand why the media isn’t devoting more time to this case before the SC.
Gamble vs United States was filed in Alabama the day after Kavanaugh was tapped by Trump for the court. It’s asking the SC to rule to end dual sovereignty, the ability to prosecute a person at the Federal level and again at the state level. It was filed by a felon in Alabama, who was stopped by law officers who subsequently found a gun. He feels he should not be prosecuted “twice”, even though his felon status prohibits him from owning a gun.
Think about this for a moment.....President Trump, and his associates, if they were to face Federal charges, or be charged at the Federal level, could not be prosecuted at the state level... just think how this might affect Manafort, Cohen and of course, Trump. We all know that Mueller’s team is uncovering loads of Federal crimes and referring many back to state.
This case is a potential “get out of ALL jails free, card” and Trump and the Republicans know it. If you don’t believe me, Orrin Hatch has already filed a 44 page amicus brief on this. He wants to end dual sovereignty. If Hatch and the Republican do with this, a Presidential pardon would block any state prosecution.
9
@JTH This, coupled with his stated opinion that the President shouldn't be investigated while in office, point to Kavanaugh as a true Manchurian nominee, put in place to keep the closest thing to a Manchurian president we have ever had in office.
1
This guy comes with a huge baggage, part of it is temperament, big ego and a large sense of entitlement, i.e. how dare you question me? I was born to be a supreme court justice! Clearly not cut from the right cloth for this life time appointment...
9
I don’t care if he genuinely folded under pressure and lost his temper, or behaved that way because he’d been coached to please Donald Trump and his base voters before the Midterms.
None of that is impartiality, or what you’d expect from a Justice. It’s disqualifying, period, whatever corkscrewed nonsense right-wingers come up with.
And then we get to the lightly-veiled threats, which have become typical on the Right...
17
You hit the truth in your headline "Trying to derail the nomination." This process is about working any topic, of any size and type, into something that will hurt the nomination with some group or subgroup, in the hopes that these hurts will eventually motivate and polarize enough groups and points of view to kill the nomination. What a miserable, terrible, cynical, hateful, hurtful, maiming process.
When will someone stand up and say "Enough!"? When will we get someone of courage to say that we are all Americans, we all want our country to succeed, we are or should be one people? Appeal to our better natures, our ideals, our inspirations instead of the basest fears, innuendo, character assassinations and slanders? I personally have had enough.
7
@John Many Republicans, blinded by their ideology, have said, “Enough.” To which I say I agree. Kavanaugh should withdraw and Trump should nominate the next clone from the Federalist Society’s list.
1
Putting a stooge of corporate America on the Supreme Court would certainly be a bad way to bring America together...
It would have been a lot better if the Democrats on the Judiciary Committee had responded forcefully---in REAL TIME, meaning right when it happened---to Kavanaugh's belligerent ravings and his, not really partisanship, it was more bordering on conspiracy theory ranting. I am amazed they didn't have the intelligence to hit back immediately, in the strongest terms and say *this*---what you are saying and doing right now, not 30+ years ago---is why you are not qualified. It plays into the Republicans' hands to bring this up many days later. It then has the appearance of a tactic in contrast to it being a matter of principle.
9
@Richard You are correct the democrats on that committee lacked the ability to think on their feet. They still believe that decorum exists in politics today, it doesn't. Had this been reversed and someone like say Trey Gowdy been there it would have been responded to voraciously and immediately. We need a third party to fill the void created by the unresponsive Democrats and left of right Republicans. We need something in the middle.
Dude, do you realize this is exactly what they say to women who report assault “after the fact”?
The major problem with this nomination is not the candidate himself but the majority leader in the Senate. In the first few months of the Obama presidency he declared the commitment to make Obama a one term president. So there wasn't to be any help at all for the 8 years of the Obama presidency from the
Republican party.
But then "poker player" Mitch, with what was known to be a bluff, refused to even allow a review of Merrick Garland's credentials for the Supreme Court much less a vote. Then he just a few days ago stood in the congressional chamber to read his ridiculous diatribe about how the democrats are obstructionists and he did that with such a straight, angelic face, one could get the impression he was auditioning for a part in "Inherit the Wind," Why he was auditioning for either role - Spencer Tracy's as Henry Drummond (Clarence Darrow) or Frederick March as Matthew Brady).
Even if Kavanaugh makes it to the Supreme Court and the Republicans and "poker player" Mitch rejoice, he will never erase the stain on his legacy that he put party, during his leadership period, far, far above the country's interests
9
This is not an "angle of attack". To describe it that way implies it is a choice that does not have to be made or that the facts are not factual.
This is a factual situation that exists in reality. How could any honest person have seen that hissy fit regardless of why and not realize he is unfit and must be removed from the bench? That anger cannot possibly be due to a mistaken ID by a sexual assault victiim from his perspective. He's a judge he knows this is a common mistake that is handled effectively by the system all the time.
The question Congress needs to answer isn't whether he sexually assaulted anyone, it is whether he is mentally and emotionally fit for the job.
His anger and partisanship was a surprise to me. I guess I had unconsciously accepted the claim he was smart. That angry guy was not a smart man. He was immature, injudicious, reckless, vindictive, he seemed to think he was entitled to the seat and was indulging in paranoid partisan fantasy. We have all of that disqualifying information about him which he gave us freely while supposedly defending himself before we begin to address the implications of the disqualifying lies he has told us about himself as a young man. Apparently he has been lying about things most people can speak about openly and without shame before age 35 because they actually are childish things that are behind them.
The man is so obviously unqualified I can't imagine the GOP did not know? Is the GOP isn't Borking us again?
12
Cornyn’s comment is a sham:
“I would defy anyone not to be angry about that if they believe the allegations against them were completely false,” said Senator John Cornyn of Texas, the No. 2 Republican in the chamber, adding: “He became very emotional as he choked back tears. But I must say, he wasn’t the only one choking back tears during his defense of his good name and his reputation.”
That’s because Cornyn’s boss, trump, chronically lies. Cornyn, Grassley, Kennedy and McConnell have found lying to be a convenient strategy. And Cornyn’a last sentence is incoherent.
And Grassley sounds like one of those crusty, old Senators back in the Vietnam war period. Repubiicans haven’t advanced at all.
McConnell started this all. McConnell waxes indignantly, but he purposely stymied the Merric Garland nomination. We all feel his righteousness and pridefulness.
All of these men better have a goodbye plan. As Rick Wilson States in his book, “Everything trump touches dies.” If Dems take congress this Fall, there will be hell to pay. McConnell wlll be beat up by Dems, and then get beat up by trump. It’s the price he pays for keeping his wife in the trump government.
7
@Charles
What good name and reputation?
Outside the GOP machine where he is a happy apparatchik everything the man has done as an adult is at best highly suspect behavior for a good decent person. For a devout Catholic most of it is against the Catholic Faith he claims to abide by and all of it is unChristian.
Each of these lines of attack is flawed.
a) Ruth Bader Ginsburg publicly expressed her opposition to Donald Trump during the 2016 campaign. If showing your political stripes is disqualifying for a Justice (or should cause recusals), then this charge applies equally to Justice Ginsburg. If the left wants Kavanaugh out on this basis, fine. But then Ginsburg must go too.
b) The charge that Kavanaugh lied about his drinking is highly dubious. While under oath and otherwise he has acknowledged drinking to excess. The word "excess" is broad enough to cover everything leveled at him to date. As for his Yale roommate, apparently there was bad blood between him and Kavanaugh - meaning there is an ax here. The roommate's appearance on "Cuomo" last night itself was stumbling and far from definitive. More important, the roommate denied ever seeing Kavanaugh aggressive toward women - drunk or not.
c) As for temperament, Kavanaugh wouldn't be human if he didn't lose control to some degree when testifying last week. After all, his reputation had been destroyed, his family the subject of death threats and disgusting emails, and he was accused of enabling serial gang rapes among other crimes. How would you react if you knew yourself to be innocent?
5
It’s his lies, his anger, his vindictive partisan threats, his sense of entitlement, the seemingly erasure of his enormous debt, and his past resume that should make him ineligible for confirmation. He’s weak. And somebody owns him. If he's confirmed, the Supreme Court will no longer be supreme or trusted -- one more institution destroyed by Trump's war on the Justice system.
6
As much as I despise his politics, if Kavanaugh had responded to Ford's charges by saying, "It's true I drank too much in high school, may well have blacked out, could have done some stupid things that hurt people, I feel terrible about it now" - I might have given him a pass on his youthful transgressions. Instead, he sat there lying, and seemed to have a pathological inability to admit to any faults at all. To "pivot" to his temperament is hardly a strategy - his behavior today seems more alarming than his high school problems.
13
"For Democrats determined to derail Judge Kavanaugh..."
Judge Kavanaugh is clearly unsuited for the Supreme Court, from his temperament, to his blatant partisanship, to his lying and obfuscation, and potential sexual assault. Democrats are trying to keep an unsuited person off the Supreme Court, not "derail" his nomination.
17
@Dennis O'Connor
He even lied about the so called "drinking" games, which we all know is NOT about drinking. If he lies about the small things what else does he lie about. He is a frat boy who has never fully developed into a man, perhaps due to his binge drinking and passing out at frat parties. The man is not fit to hold any job that requires him to sit in judgement of anything.
14
Yep. Basically, the guy went flying into the Philadelphia yard at about 170, and wants us to blame the crowd waiting to catch the train.
1
So you go to a job interview. You know the panel is packed in your favor. All you have to do is coast to the finish line. It's not a trial. You must demonstrate your knowledge of the law and that you have judicial temperament. Anyone stupid enough to screw this up does not deserve a life time appointment to the Supreme Court. He is only qualified to be a US Senator or a cabinet member.
13
@JFR -- Detached from reality, you are.
To continue the scene: Then members of the panel who oppose you start to say that they've 'heard' you were a woman-beating rapist who had a drinking problem -- but with no corroborating evidence, of course.
Not only that, but all of this happened on national television, threatening not only your current career but your relationship with your family and friends.
Yeah, I'm sure the interviewee would calmly sit there as if it was an any other interview...
Based on temperament alone Mr. Kavanaugh is simply not qualified. Can we please ask Trump to spell temperament?
5
@peter bailey
Better yet, can we please ask Trump not to exhibit it?
John Cornyn's assumption that any man would react as explosively and as immaturely as Kavanaugh did says volumes about him, none of it positive. That attitude fits right in for a Senator who only caters to "his" voters and big donors and acts as if the Democratic voters he is also supposed to represent have no business existing upon the earth.
How are aggression and belligerance a "normal" adult reaction to anything except possibly someone attacking you with a machete? It is certainly not acceptable behavior in any kind of a hearing. Kavanaugh reacted like a defiant teenager caught in bad behavior, huffing and snorting like an indignant pig. He wallowed in self-pity, got maudlin, had hysterics, insulted Senators, and ranted about "leftists" and a Democratic "conspiracy." He was unhinged and irrational.
As others have pointed out, we have not seen that kind of childlike petulance in Democratic politicians who were subjected to overt slurs and public humiliation. Nobody ever saw Barack or Michelle Obama or even Hillary Clinton behave like that, even though Republicans have publicly vilified them in every possible way, and continue to do so, even though none of them are in government any more. Republicans are devolving into a party of angry, hate-filled, and paranoid people. Kavanaugh is an immature, partisan hack and has no business being in a courtroom with sane adults.
18
Kavanaugh perjured himself in front of the Senate Subcommittee and on national television.
He ain’t so smart.
10
@New World Highly educated but not very smart.
1
@New World
Do you honestly believe the herd cares?
I suggest anyone indignant about Kavanaugh's difficult time in front of the court to think about the habitual liars they've met. What are the stages of denial when you confront a liar? 1) Wide-eyed innocence 2) Bargaining with facts 3) Deflection and reflection 4) Righteous anger 5) Plea for pity. Kavanaugh is a textbook case. I don't know how much he is lying about, but he doesn't act like someone that has truth on his side.
6
“I don’t think what he said is any different than what Justice Thomas said,” Mr. Grassley said. And Senator Grassley is tone deaf. Perhaps what Thomas did back in 1991 didn't matter to him then or to a good many other people. But Thomas didn't go into hysterics or cry and snivel. Thomas was not as qualified at Kavanaugh is but he shouldn't have been confirmed anyway. He was not selected based on his abilities or his qualifications. He was selected because he didn't have enough of a paper trail and he was/is African American. His selection was an insult to the man who had held the seat before him: Thurgood Marshall.
At this point Kavanaugh is not an acceptable candidate for the Supreme Court no matter what Grassley, Trump, McConnell or the rest of the GOP think. He has disqualified himself by going on the attack, by losing his temper, and by being evasive in the first hearings. We have a right to know what sort of person is going to sit on the Supreme Court whether we agree with his politics and positions or not.
After his performance(s) I wouldn't trust him to bus a table properly. In fact, I don't think he should be allowed to take up his previous position. He is unable to be objective.
7
Seems like the Democrats are finally playing hardball
with the republicans . It’s about time . Hard to believe their response to the “ democrat “ attack when the republicans did the same and usually worse . They didn’t even let Obama nominee Garland be nominated ! Ask a typical Trumpster about Garland and you get a blank stare and furrowed brow . They don’t even know who he is . Lol lol
5
Democrats in the Senate slinging mud have a very fragile basis to do so: The indignation of admitted groper Corey Booker, Stolen-valor Blumenthal, and ambush-scripting Feinstein raise only revulsion in those paying attention.
7
@OldEngineer
The same could be said of Hatch, Grassley and Graham. Isn't time these men retired? They are out of step with reality.
1
There is no similarity between the testimony of Clarence Thomas and Kavanaugh. Moreover, the issues were different. Anita Hill claimed sexual harassment, whereas, Dr. Ford claimed Kavanaugh attempted rape while holding his hand over her mouth. Thomas was emotional, however, it was not out of line. Kavanaugh's behavior shows he lacks the judicial temperament of a Supreme Court justice.
5
@MC
The main difference is that Clarence Thomas could play the 'Race Card' to escape any culpability....which he did.
2
To all those readers who believe judges are automatons, I suggest you go before any judge and make arguments the judge finds irrelevant. You'll quickly learn about the limits of judicial temperament.
7
A war? pfft! Americans want the truth about Kavanaugh. We do not want a compromised, angry, misogynist on the supreme court. It's not just democrats; anyone with an ounce of decency and respect for the independence of our courts wants judges they can trust to be fair, nonpartisan and grounded. Kavanaugh ruled for corporations against people 90% of the time. He tried to prevent a woman from getting a 'legal' abortion and when he was overuled, he blew his top. Now we find out he has drinking and temper issues along with conspiracy theory paranoia. He's a partisan hack who most probably did assault these women. Listen to him speak. He thinks he is "entitled" to the supreme court position because ... "I went to Yale!" He should have been disqualified in the first hearing where he told his first lies under oath. Last I checked, perjury is a felony.
14
An matter perhaps overlooked:
Sen. Lindsay Graham's saying the Kavanguah was not Cosby or Weinstien was laced with presume Racism and Anti-Semitism in his constitutency; it was playing to both.
This is not merely about male anger.
It is about white male christian anger.
4
Someone with the arrogant, angry, and flippant behavior of Judge Kavanaugh at the hearing last Thursday doesn’t deserve to stand in judgement of anyone.
12
Because of Trump the republicans have lowered the bar of what’s expected as acceptable behavior of our President, his Cabinet members, GOP politicians and this SC candidate. There is a reason Trump got laughed at the U.N. because he and his ilk are thought of around the world as a joke, pathetic.
7
He lies. It's proven.
9
Clarence Thomas's feigned, cynical, indignance, called the process "a high tech lynching of an uppity black" after being coached by the White House Team instructed to get him through the nomination. This was was the model for Brett Kavanaugh's outburst, and may have in its bluster buried the fact based, serious testimony of Ford who had nothing to gain by appearing. After year of litigation and prosecution, he is a skilled method actor, able momentarily to actually believed he was wronged, bing his trial into thee fray and dredge up tears as well as Meryl Streep could if she were playing the same role as the wronged Supreme Court Nominee. Can't the Republican's find something better amongst their ranks. This emperor has no clothes
6
Plan B.
2
This is a joke perpetrated by the Dems because they don't want a conservative leaning judge on the bench. Sexual assault allegations will not be verified, so they continue looking at his high school yearbook for clues on his drinking habits. Their next fishing expedition will focus on whether the young Kavanaugh participated in Halloween pranks as a sixth grader. Get over it Dems, soon enough you will be in charge and have the opportunity to nominate and approve a left leaning judge
8
@Vincent Campbell
Frankly, I believe it has to do with not wanting a partisan angry man appointed to the life long judicial bench.
4
Is there someone else they can put in the SC? Why does it have to be Kavanaugh? He's causing alot of problems. Tell him to step aside. He's not the only entitled white dude they can put in the seat. Find another person without so much baggage. He's such a headache.
13
Any administration from George Washington through Barack Obama would have pulled such a tainted candidate long before this point, if they were so craven to make such an appointment in the first place because of the damage he is doing and would do if confirmed
Any political party would reject such a candidate coming from their own as an affront to the party itself being tainted by such an abomination
Until now. Republicans have shed any semblance of being an organization rooted in American values. And trumpism has elevated the worst and the vilest representatives of human nature to the halls of power.
Kavanaugh was appointed for the simple reason that the Dear Leader sees him as a get out of jail card. He and his quivering Quislings would gladly destroy the republic if it meets that single goal
21
There is irrefutable evidence that Kavanaugh is a serial liar.
Even in Trump's America, that should be disqualifying. Oh, and he tried to rape Dr. Ford.
6
The Dems give this guy a black eye and a bloody nose and then they object to the way he defends himself!
8
@Larry Tell me Larry, did he lie?
6
@Larry
Grown ups, even guilty ones, know better than to behave like he did when he was "defending" himself.
Innocent Judges faced with being mistakenly identified by a sexual assault victim don;'t get angry, they get compassionate and interested in the well being of the accuser. It never occurs to them to think of themselves first as they already know themselves to be innocent.
4
Senate majority leader Mitch McConell said it best the democrats keep moving the post. Judge Kavanaigh's temperament is just fine considering he had to defend himself. If a justice cannot defend himself how can he defend 300 million plus Americans. Senator Kennedy said it well " None of the democrats are going to vote for confirming judge Kavanaugh any way. So put down the bong" I had never heard that phrase before. I guess it means stop smoking pot.
5
@Girish Kotwal You speak as if anything the Kennedy said made any sense at all. His 5 minutes the next morning was the most incoherent speech that I have heard in years. You also engage in circular logic when you say that Kavanaugh's temperament is fine considering that he had to defend himself. For most of us that aren't absolutely welded to one side, he came off looking entitled, rash, childish, and disrespectful; much like defendants in court that are subsequently found guilty of contempt of court.
1
Yes. People who are Honest, have a Social Conscience, show Humility and Courage - along with having a strong fighting spirit - are the kind of people WE THE PEOPLE want managing/running OUR United States of America.
Exactly the opposite of what we have now.
We didn't ever have to question President Obama's character, honesty or if he had the best interests of 99% of us top of mind.
I believe that is why he won Presidential elections twice and why many of us are wishing from the bottom of our hearts that he was still in charge.
Our saving grace is that WE THE PEOPLE have the real power with our votes and WE will show the world the kind of country/democracy WE want on November 6 and in every election in the foreseeable future.
Meantime WE must fight like hell to save OUR country from
The Con Don and his Robber Baron brethren.
17
OK, so basically he lied while under oath, I was not biased when I spoke last week but now under pressure I am biased. Which one is it sir? You have become unhinged, have proven yourself to be favorably biased towards potus and can't be trusted. You are a liar and won't answer questions when asked, you evade and deflect and lie. All traits our current president holds dear. I don't' understand how Heitkamp and Minchin could be on the fence nor can I believe that Collins and Murkowski could be. This man is dangerous and has no business being on the Supreme Court, not now not ever.
34
“Derail” in the headline makes it sound like the Dems are doing something unfair or purely partisan. Poor choices of wording lately, NYT...
22
@Holly B I’d say Kavanaugh has become unhinged and has derailed his own nomination.
7
It's unfortunate that the debate about Kavanaugh has been reduced to this kind of "he said/she said" situation, which can never be decided with absolute certainty.
I say this because there is ample evidence (based on his late 90's/early 00s history) that that he was/is a zealous political partisan who questioned women's rights, supported torture, advocated taking the lowest possible road in the Clinton investigations and clerked for a judge who was found to be a sexual harasser. It's highly likely that is more damning evidence among the 100,000 pages of still-unreleased Kavanaugh writings. And, this morning we have a police report indicating he was questioned about his role in a violent, alcohol fueled assault in a New Haven bar (an assault confirmed by a Yale classmate).
The overall tapestry here is not pretty. And while one can debate the validity of the the Ford/Fernandez accusations, a look at the totality of the Judge's history and his opening words and subsequent behavior at last Friday's hearing raises grave concerns about whether he possesses the kind of judicial temperament required by the nation's highest court.
Kavanaugh will likely be confirmed, and (either way) we'll almost surely see a conservative justice in this seat. But my concern is that this nominee's partisan distemper will prevent any sober-minded interpretation of the Constitution (originalist or otherwise). And that this potential problem could diminish the Court for decades to come.
19
It has become popular for Supreme Court nominees, including Brett Kavanaugh, to claim that their role is as an impartial umpire, simply calling balls and strikes to judge each case. Let’s look at the the case of Supreme Court v. Legitimacy.
Strike 1: Bush v. Gore
Strike 2: Merrick Garland
Strike 3: Brett Kavanaugh, should he be approved
Kavanaugh’s lack of judicial temperament and stated desire for partisan revenge will taint any politically charge verdict as long as he is on the Court, severely damaging its existentially important legitimacy with the American public. Chief Justice Roberts, as well as the Senate and the public, should be very concerned.
11
Brett sounds like just the guy to hang out with, drink some brewskis, punch some guys out, hit on some chicks. You know. SCOTUS material.
27
@Jordan
Or you know presidential. Perfect fit.
The Republican politicians are acting like they can get away with saying that even if half of Kavanaugh’s buttocks is guilty of crimes as a teenager the other half of his buttocks is innocent as an adult!
Isn't the point that the man doesn’t appear to respect women enough to grant a fair government lean for the rights of women under the constitution on women’s issues?
It would be no different than religious and political groups wanting to abolish the rights and freedoms of men to have vasectomies currently and wanted to appoint a female supreme judge who was accused of threatening to cut men’s phalluses off when she was a teenager.
I am tired of the Republican leaderships double-sided-buttock standards.
8
@HonorB14U Rather cheeky of you.
5
I watched Kavanaugh lie to the faces of Senators. "Devil's Triangle" is not a drinking game. "Boofing" is not a term for flatulence. What amazes me the most is not how obvious and easy to prove these lies are, but that lying under oath to the Senate won't stop him from becoming one of the most powerful men in America.
30
This article frames the question of Kavanaugh's temperament as if it is neatly distinct from the original question of whether he assaulted Christine Blasey Ford. That's simply not so. Kavanaugh's angry lies and dissembling about his youthful self are all evidence for that question.
Kavanaugh says they moved in different social circles. False. She was dating his pal.
Kavanaugh says he didn't slut shame Renate Dolphin in high school. A highly motivated believer might accept that as true.
Kavanaugh sputters and angrily projects when asked if he drank to excess, suggesting--along with the testimony of multiples friends and acquaintances--that he was, and maybe still is, a problem drunk.
All of those things tilt the scales towards Ford's truthfulness.
18
@TMSquared How could anyone believe his explanation for the “Renate alumnius” references which appeared in his yearbook and 14 others? Obviously a group effort to make a mean, nasty joke at her expense. Renember the old saying, school boys throw rocks at frogs in jest, but the frogs die in earnest. Same concept. They can’t imagine that their little self-centered joke could hurt anyone.
6
Carrie Severino, the conservative lawyer, accuses the Democrats of "moving the goalposts."But it's the nominee himself who moved the goalposts with his brazen attacks on his Democratic questioners, his arrogance, and his dodgy answers. I can't remember the last time a nominee exhibited such raw partisanship, which prompts legitimate doubts about Kavanaugh's ability to put the law above politics. Can you imagine what holy hell the Republicans would raise if a Democratic president's nominee acted that way?
11
Honesty and judicial temperment are the only things that really matter here. It matters less what Kavanaugh did 30 years ago as a teenager and much more about what he says about it yesterday. We may never know what happened between him and ford, but we do know he can, apparently without thinking, misrepresent, dissemble, deflect, be wrong about, numerous small issues, questions his credibility on larger ones. As for judicial temperment, that crying, vengeful, hurt, vindictive performance of his should scare the hell out everybody. There are cases coming before him he has already decided upon.
16
For the life of me, I cannot understand why they didn't just nominate someone else instead weeks ago. This is ridiculously harmful to our country-the president is going around calling Democrats criminals, a supreme court judge thinks Democrats are all part of a vast left wing conspiracy brought to you by the likes of Fox news and Alex Jones. I turned 50 this year and I am beyond disappointed with the state of this country. We have been hijacked by a bunch of greedy politicians who live for financing their campaigns and fancy lifestyles, and clearly don't give a damn about the people, especially women.
35
It seems reasonable that the FBI Background Checks should go back further than 18 years. Age appropriate behavior is a record that starts at the age of accountability at least in my family. Honesty about bad judgement or lack of common sense needs to be addressed when age inappropriate behavior becomes a problem for adapting to life's stresses. Obviously, Judge Kavanaugh has had difficulty adapting to social and emotional situations where his innate disposition has been challenged.
7
Republicans are claiming that the Democrats are shifting the goalposts. But surely non partisanship and a steady temperament have always been in the list of requirements for the job of Supreme Court justice. If a candidate displays a lack of these qualities during extra hearings, reconsidering the nomination is not shifting the goalposts, it is noticing that the candidate keeps missing the goal.
26
The very first rule governing the conduct of federal judges demands that they preserve the "integrity and independence of the judiciary". Canon 1, Code of Judicial Conduct for United States Judges.
In his emotional, combative testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday, federal judge Brett Kavanaugh demonstrated that he is an extreme right-wing partisan (even citing a wild conspiracy theory against Democrats) filled with boiling anger and animus toward Democrats and especially the Clintons. (And let's not forget that, in front of the 20 million viewers of the hearing Kavanaugh actually bullied a woman, and sitting US Senator, Amy Klobuchar). This from a man who worked as a GOP partisan for years (in the George W. Bush White House and on the Kenneth Starr team that pushed the impeachment of Bill Clinton, e.g.).
So Kavanaugh's past and his testimony establish him to be a strong GOP partisan. Partisanship is the opposite of independence, which is the first requirement for US judges.
Even Kavanaugh has said (in his initial hearing): “The Supreme Court must never, never be viewed as a partisan institution.” As Kavanaugh does not display independence but rather extreme partisanship, Kavanaugh should "never, never be" seated on the Supreme Court.
13
To respond to Senator Grassley's comment about Justice Thomas who also became angrily indignant during his confirmation hearing where he was accused of sexual harassment: Yes, Clarence Thomas has been on the Court for 26 years and nobody has raised any questions about his "temperament." But there are certainly questions about his judgment and lack of judicial competence expected from a Supreme Court justice during those 26 years.
13
I think every member of congress should submit to the same scrutiny. This would include their HS and college years. Let's face it these are lifetime appointments too. How many of them have skeletons in their closet from those years long ago?
I thought we were moving away from having anyone with a real life, some texture and experience in the real world automatically disqualified. Bush had a DUI, Cheney had two. Obama owned his frequent use of illegal drugs. Now we are headed back to the bad old days. No wonder Cuomo said America was never that great. We are left with candidates and politicians like Trump who proudly boasted he had never had a beer.
No one would defend abuse under any circumstances-full stop. But it seems increasingly that Judge Kavanaugh is being examined through a lens that only non drinkers during their college years would survive.
4
It seems like there are 3 different versions of Dr. Ford's story. One that she gave to the Washington Post, one in a letter to Feinstein and one that was her testimony. There is no one to corroborate her story even her best friend. The Democrats have turned the SCOTUS nomination into a circus because they have no message and they know it. Now they can only resist and destroy.
8
@P McGrath: oh come on. Democrats can only "resist and destroy"? Wasn't that the entire Republican mission from 2009 to 2017? And even longer, judging by their farcical campaign to repeal the AFA without the slightest clue of what they were going to replace it with. And Democrats can hardly have turned the Supreme Court nomination process into a circus. The Republicans did that, all by themselves, 2 years ago. And as Justice Kavanaugh was so anxious to point out, what goes around does indeed come around.
1
As an Independent voter, I am inclined to support Judge Kavanaugh's appointment.
Not trusting either party, I had an opportunity to watch the opening of the confirmation hearing on Sep 4th. It was an outright disgrace; a pitiful performance by Democratic committee members and activists. I watched the testimony and questioning of Mrs. Blasey Ford. I watched the testimony and questioning of Judge Kavanaugh, I read the full opinion of Ms. Mitchell's analysis of testimony. I watched the sanctimonious rants of Sen. Spartacus and Sen. Blumenthal. One, heroically releasing committee confidential papers at supposedly great risk (they were in the process of being released); the other, struggling with selective memory regarding whether he served in Vietnam or received 5 deferments. Embellishing the truth is not a foreign concept to the political class. Listening to the moral preening emanating from Washington is analogous to listening to the devil lecture me on why I should be virtuous. I'm suspicious of it.
Clearly this hearing is for partisans. Democrats are committing the same flaw they exhibited in 2016, going all in with Identity Politics and activist groups, to achieve an end. Energizing the base and alienating the middle.
For this independent voter, Democratic motives and actions are seemingly transparent. The wanton destruction of individuals and dragging the public into an intellectual cesspool are reasons why I would not vote for a Democrat this year.
7
@D
Completely agreed, the Democrats need to convince and sway the Middle 10%, instead they are doubling down on the very things that alienated Independents.
1
@Russian Bot
Independent voters are one of the reasons why we ended up with Donald Trump.
@Russian Bot
Actually, what both sides need to do step away from the toxic partisanship and treat the citizenry they represent as intelligent voters, not a collection of a troglodytes in need of being led around by sentiment alone.
Voted for neither Democrat or Republican, trust our Democracy is strong enough to weather a dip in the cesspool.
Waiting for a third party that is capable of winning 5 seats in the Senate. All of a sudden, you'll see a return to some level of compromise.
The Democrats are going to get this guy, by any means possible. They may regret it on Election Day, if voters remember how and why they did this. If they don’t take the Senate, the next nominee will make Kavanaugh look like a liberal.
9
For women who have been assaulted, we will be voting in November. On both sides of the aisle.
4
Obviously, Kavanaugh's temperament is unsuitable and he's not an honest person.
What troubles me about the focus of the media and the Democrats is that it looks at those personally disqualifying traits and ignores the huge dangers that Kavanaugh and his sponsors represent.
The simple fact is that Kavanaugh, Gorsuch, Roberts and the other "conservatives" on the court are against the rights of regular citizens in service of the billionaire elites.
Kavanaugh's judicial record shows outright hostility to women's rights, labor unions, worker protections, the environment, civil rights, consumer protection, and other fundamentals of a fair, functioning democracy.
The goal of Kavanaugh's sponsors is to return the USA to the robber baron era, by ruling against all the progressive, intelligent precedents created starting with the FDR administration.
These cons want to return us to the days of child labor, women consigned to gestation slavery, corporations and wealthy elites plundering the environment and treating workers as slaves.
That's what's really important here, not just Kavanaugh's obvious unfitness to be a judge in any court.
9
The question to keep asking is Why. Not if or maybe or anything else. Why do they want someone this flawed? Why hasn’t he stepped away?
12
Credibility issues? Kavanauh repeatedly committed perjury as he told lie after lie while under oath. To be clear, he committed felony after felony--apparently he's so special the law does not apply to him.
2
What I kept thinking hearing Brett Kavanaugh's entitled protestations to Senators daring to probe his fitness to be elevated to a lifetime position making life-death decisions for millions and millions of people on the Supreme Court, is this how he acts as a judge trying to sort out truth? If he were a worthy judge, he would have insisted on an FBI investigation. Instead, he railed about the conspiracy of liberals, Democrats, those upset at how Trump was installed in the White House, and, of course, the Clintons. More troubling, his "what goes around comes around" statement that would utterly disqualify him from deciding any case concerning women's rights, voting rights, reproductive rights, civil rights. Can you imagine a case involving police brutality? And just as Trump said he identified with a man "falsely accused" of sexual assault, Kavanaugh, who has already sent strong messages to Trump that he would shield him from any investigation, would no doubt end investigations into Trump. Kavanaugh is not fit to sit on the Supreme Court. But now the Republicans are dug in. This is about them exerting power & will. It has become yet another cause celebre, like climate change, heatlh care.
8
Behavior of Judge Kavanaugh “focus of democrats” - ONLY?
This is not just a focus of dems. It’s a focus independents, many women (and men who love them) - even from the right.
Kavanaugh himself has made his arrogant, belligerent behavior a focus here. He’s made slipshod testifying a focus.
The more we learn, the more “in focus” Judge Kavanaugh comes. This is a factor of the way he behaved in high school, the way he behaved at Yale, and the way he is demonstrating to the nation, and the world, that he lacks the character, the temperament and the ability to set aside personal pique - on behalf of We the People who are indeed paying attention.
9
Eleven Necessary Changes:
-- The Supreme Court needs to be increased in size. (At its present
size, the Justices are still one member shy of being able to daven as a
minyan.)
-- Lifetime appointments should be eliminated. Ten years is enough.
-- The overreliance on Harvard and Yale Law Schools must be ended. Too much drinking and other anti-social behavior in both places.
-- The Court needs a few nonlawyers alert to social and economic
issues in the country. Bartenders, marriage counselors, school teachers and cops would be useful additions.
-- The Court should cease its virtually total reliance on Federal Judges.
Adding a few Police Magistrates and Juvenile Court Judges to the mix
would be good start.
-- The Court should televise its hearings.
-- Slavish devotion to precedents in business cases should be
discontinued. They grant far too much power to the highly monied
segments of society.
-- Males and females should be represented on the Court in fairly equal numbers.
-- The Court should be moved to Taos, New Mexico or some other
distant location far away from the debilitating political influences of Washington D.C.
-- The Court should be granted the power to directly remove Presidents who display clear-cut evidence of erratic behavior and physical or mental decline.
-- No more 5-4 decisions.
3
Democrats stating the facts about Brett Kavanaugh’s outburst during the nominating process are essential. Senator Mazie K. Hirono, Democrat of Hawaii, was fulfilling her responsibility as a member of the Judiciary Committee. It is unfair, to say she “seized “on those comments on Monday as she laced into Judge Kavanaugh in a speech on the Senate floor.”
And to sum up the article with Senator Charles E. Grassley, Republican of Iowa and the Judiciary Committee chairman, saying that Judge Kavanaugh could be excused for showing passion, just as Clarence Thomas did in 1991 after sexual allegations from Anita Hill, is not providing reportorial balance.
Just days ago, the NY Times ran articles delineating how so little has been learned since Anita Hill’s testimony. It’s time to take Dr. Christine Blasey Ford’s accusations and the temperament and honesty of Judge Brett Kavanaugh seriously and get it right. The reputation of our country is at stake not one individual.
3
Without regard to the accuracy of Dr. Ford's account, Kavanaugh's performance during his testimony, show that he is unfit to sit on the Supreme Court, or any court. His inappropriate anger and aggression support accounts of his earlier years. Those traits are stable after adolescence and are why his teenage behavior is relevant. The real question is whether Republicans in the Senate are going to push this challenged man onto the Court in disregard of our nation's well being. I think they will. They are primarily concerned with packing the Court with people who will rule in favor of the economic elite, and are not willing to risk an unfavorable outcome in the coming election. Such a move should show voters where the real interests of the Republican Party rest.
4
Isn't all of this about temperament and fitness? There is a single line that runs from a teenager who pushes a girl into a bedroom and holds a hand over her mouth and a man who yells and disrespects senators on national television. These are the behaviors of entitled people, people who are used to being in charge and having power. There is no difference between the two and this article misses this crucial point when they claim that Democrats have identified a "new front".
I would also like to imagine a world where sentences that begin with "For Democrats determined to derail Judge Kavanaugh" instead said "For Democrats who are concerned about Judge Kavanaugh's fitness to serve on the Supreme Court"... I implore the New York Times and other media outlets to stop using charged language like in this article and writing as if about warring factions or sports teams or horse races. It is tearing the country apart. It is also paints every single thing that anyone does as partisan, makes the people in the country more cynical and depresses voter turn out. People can think "What a mess" and go about their business. Ignoring the fact that who sits on the Supreme Court will impact all of us at work, at home and in the public square. The change we need starts with changing sentences like the one in this article.
9
As a former chief administrative law judge, and someone who has hired judges and disciplined them for ethical concerns, I am glad to see that Judge Kavanaugh's temperament is being appropriately scrutinized. "Embroilment" is a common ethical issue that comes up with respect to the canons of ethics--i.e., a judge should not become angrily engaged with a party before him or her. Even though the senate hearings are not courtrooms settings, Judge Kavanaugh's rage and politically charged disparagement of the Democrats signals a very negative tendency for any judge, let alone a Supreme Court judge. Even if he felt he was falsely accused, and was taking advice from the administration about how to present himself, his vociferous approach showed terrible judgment. If this is truly a type of job interview, Judge Kavanaugh should be sent packing. He's not qualified.
16
Completely agree with the article. Since Democrats represent 50% or slightly more of the American society, at least judging by the latest popular vote, you simply cannot have a Supreme Court judge who denounces a Democrat conspiration against him which is the vengeance of the Clintons, or that the Senate confirmation procedure was a circus. Impartial, this candidate is definitely not.
1
It wouldn't be so bad for Brett Kavanaugh if he lost his judgeships. He could make more money on the speaker circuit - giving his partisan performance to well paying groups of conservative men.
Lindsey Graham could join Brett on the speaking circuit. Together they could give a spectacular performance. A couple months on the road and they could earn much more than they are paid at their current job. And Graham could still do his Senate job on the side.
On second thought - maybe the twosome wouldn't last. How would they split the speaking fees - 50 50, or 60 40 or 70 30 ?
Having watch every excruciating second of Judge Kavanaugh's opening statement, I would never have guessed subterfuge would be a positive quality to display at an interview any job let alone one for life.
3
We are all tip-toeing around a larger truth: It appears Kavanaugh is an alcoholic in the throes of late stage active use. If he still drinks today after drinking like a lunatic in high school and college -- as has been attested to by his classmates in the press -- he is most likely in the throes of alcoholism. Alcohol abuse gets worse after decades of excessive drinking, never better. I know since I have been there and am now eight years sober in recovery. (It is reported that 20% of attorneys suffer from alcohol abuse.)
Perhaps Kavanaugh is on the verge of hitting his "bottom" hence the defensiveness, wild swings in emotions from vitriolic anger to attack to near weeping I know myself. Perhaps he had some alcohol in him at the hearing. It's not an excuse, and he does not deserve a position on the Supreme Court.
6
I have been opposed to the Kavanaugh nomination since it was first made. But I oppose him due to key portions of his legal philosophy, not any of these ancient accusations unsupported by any real evidence.
The Times is so intensely partisan and biased that its front page today even carries a major article that Kavanaugh was questioned by police after some bar fight 33 years ago. Imagine how terrible that shows him to be! He was questioned by police! The horror! I wish EVERY judge of EVERY court had been not only questioned by police when they were young, I wish they were arrested. They would be better judges if they had endured police treatment, both proper treatment by police and especially abusive treatment by police.
4
I believe the real issue is whether the Judge was truthful. The Times is reporting a large number of people who knew the Judge while in school, have made clear that the Judge is misleading if not outright lying about who he was in school. They have made clear that he was a sloppy drunk and an angry one. He was not the choir boy that he is claiming to have been.
I personally don't agree with his temperament and would not approve his nomination because of it, but clearly his supporters will look past this. However, his lack of truthfulness about his character at Yale and in high school should be disqualifying for any voting Senator.
4
When Brett Kavanaugh uttered “What goes around, comes around,” was he just dredging up his perception of past events, or was he also signalling what might influence his judicial decisionmaking in the future? I’d like to know what was really on his mind when he said that.
5
The country saw him lie to the Senate this past week. He lied about words that he used on his calendar and in his yearbook. On 9/27 new entries were made to the Urban dictionary and were flooded with hits so the new definitions of drinking games would show up first, before that the dictionary showed many of Kavanaugh's high school activities were related to sex.
As a retired school teachers I have seen kids who were caught doing something acting just like Kavanaugh, but it was all an act. If Kavanaugh had the demeanor desired in a judge, he would have answered the Democrats honestly, and not yelled at them while repeating his opening statement.
The Republicans were very revealing how they brought in an outside prosecutor to intimidate Dr. Ford, but dropped her when she appeared to be asking Mr. Kavanaugh serious questions that he could not rant about.
4
He fails on both Temperament and Honesty.
You would think that after that Thursday opening statement the R's would be having second thoughts on him since he should now be forced to recuse himself from any clearly partisan cases that come before the court. I am not saying that the other justices are NOT partisan, but at least they were SMART enough to not broadcast their partisanship in a public forum
14
The temperament argument is an amazing and clever twist of tautology: antagonize an individual relentlessly with the most salacious and uncorroborated allegations, then point out that said inflicted victim failed to be meek and reticent. Rather than ask if the Senators have no shame in abusing both he process and the man, we are supposed to focus on the intensity of his response. Frankly, they have no shame, and outside the blue echo chamber, Kavanaugh was and deserved to be cheered for defending himself, shielding his marriage and children, and burning this moment into our national hippocampus. We should never forget how he defended the rule of law, himself, and the confirmation process as it should have been and needs to be in the future. If he did not save his nomination, he at least made it that much harder for future nominees to be derived of due process and the basic standards that underlie our legal system. Future Justices will have him to thank. An individual who takes a principled stand in the face of organized and ruthless Machiavellians increases his/her stature, not just for the Court, but as a human being.
6
In nominating Brett Kavanaugh the right wing gave notice they have no desire to bring the country together. When Kavanaugh takes his seat on the court I think the center will finally accede to that demand.
Your Civil War wasn't about which side would govern America , it was about one side no longer wanting to be part of America.
When it is realized that the Supreme Court will serve the interests of the chosen for more than a generation I think too many will realize the nation will never be fixed and politics will not solve your real problems.
1
Since the charges of sexual misconduct can’t be corroborated - this is the new line of attack. If the man had testified calmly and without any emotion the Democrats would have called him an automaton and without feeling. This isn’t like Merrick Garland who went back to his position unscathed - you could make an argument that McConnell spared him that. Kavanaugh is fighting for his life, his family, his career and his reputation. What do you expect him to do - sit and take it quietly? The Democrats are overplaying this and it’s becoming more obvious every day. I think they will come to regret the way this has been handled.
10
@Me
Well for starters I wouldn't expect a judge to cry about reminiscing about lifting weights at a friends house and claiming retribution from the Clintons.
6
Temperament and honesty. These are the true divisions between the GOP and the Dems. They are also why people hated the Clintons and Obama. People who are intelligent, capable, and have the comportment to lead are despised by people who think leadership is a matter of brute force, lies, and intimidation. This is also why so many of us are disgusted by the current administration.
Like Trump, Kavanaugh is a symptom of a much more pernicious disease.
7
@JNR2
Democrats taking a stand on "Temperament and Honesty" after 2016 is about the most surreal thing I have ever seen.
2
@JNR2, fact check him, the media, ABA, lawmakers, everyone should fact check every statement he made before the Judiciary committee hearings, from top to bottom. And then, without any doubt, unequivocally state that he LIED before congress, under oath, hence he is subject to the law, U.S. Code sections 1621 and 1001 of Title 18.
2
So far, I have not heard one single defender of Justice Kavanaugh step up to urge Kavanaugh is truthful, non-partisan and has displayed a fine judicial temperament.
That should be "game over."
Just imagine this revenge-promising conspiracy-theorist being on SCOTUS and gloating about delivering "what comes around" to litigants with any connection to those he claims have persecuted him -- which covers women, enviornmentalists, anti-gerrymandering folk and a host of liberal groups (such as the Democratic Attorney General group, Sierra Club, and others who have been so successful in litigating against DJT's policies, often because of failure to abide by laws governing required governmental procedures and respect for basic Constitutional rights).
Not a picture of rectitude, not a picture of fairness, not a picture of a person who deserves to become a SCOTUS justice.
And a thought that must be occurring to Kavanaugh himself.
12
Clearly Senator Grassley isn’t reading everything out there. Many of us and especially women, now in our later years, remember the Thomas hearings quite well and still look at that judicial panel with disbelief and disdain. We also still believe Anita. Some men will always have their heads in the sand......or somewhere else which I not lower myself by typing it here!
6
The whole charade is a disgrace. The Democrats are shameless in their vendetta and cruelty at ruining a man...and his families life. Yes, they have ruined a man’s life. And for Sheryl Stolberg to mock “raw emotions,” is unconscionable and shallow. How would she like to be put through what this man has been through? Or ANY man or woman. I do not defend Kavanaugh. I loathe the process, the ultimate and dastardly politics that has been played on both sides. Our children and grandchildren watch, read and hear the lowest of low, so-called adults stopping to the depths of incivility, rudeness, and attacks for political reasons ONLY. Both sides have shown they are incapable of honesty, reasoning or fairness. It’s a travesty, a tragedy and embarrassment all around.
6
This isn't about "moving the goalposts." This is about defining what everyone witnessed during his hearing : the man was unhinged.
From his constant disdainful sniffling, to his outrage (some of it seemingly an attempt at rage), to his partisan political rant, to his making faces, to his constant shifting in his seat, to his not being able to look women in the eye, to his comeback against a woman Senator about HER blackouts and drinking...the man was simply unhinged.
If this is the best this administration can come up with, that is what the problem is.
28
Rather than opinionating that this is a new avenue of attack, report the news that Democrats are pointing to what they consider Kavanaugh''s inappropriate behavior during the interview. Report the news, not sensationalism.
1
And Trump took such care in picking Kavanaugh.
1
The case against Kavanaugh:
1. He wrote dumb things in his high school yearbook;
2. He threw some ice in a bar;
3. He doesn't "believe" somebody who has no proof and said nothing for three decades.
I am bowled over by the depth of the case ... bowled over that the Senate Judiciary Committee has not moved this nomination forward despite this farce ....
11
Reread the article. You’re not paying attention.
5
@JOHN
He lied. Do you understand that? He lied about those so called "drinking" games, he couldn't even come to grips with that or face the truth about how disgusting that sounds. His daughter can google those phrases for herself and perhaps the smart judge can refresh his memory lapse due to blackouts no doubt. But hey he's a republican and he'll get a pass on this one. Sad.
1
Yale Law.perhaps, is not our only choice?
4
@northlander
Raymond Kethledge? Is that you??? :)
Yes, seems Jurisprudence is limited to Yale and Harvard. Not sure why.
1
Funny how Republicans denounce "intellectuals" with college or advanced degrees as "elitist" until it suits their narrative or supports their position to highlight a "Yale (or wherever)" law degree.
5
I simply cannot abide a Supreme Court justice who was nominated by an unindicted co-conspirator and sexual predator. And the Republicans conveniently choose to overlook this. Kavanaugh’s mealy mouthed defense of his own behavior does not add to his appeal, either.
1
Angry drunks have been supreme court justices in the past ( Roger Taney for example ). There has also have also been angry drunk presidents ( Jackson and Grant for example ).
So this guy is seriously flawed? So what?
Resist and delay. When the debate is lost, slander becomes the tool of the losers. The liberal media and Democrats have become good at slander. It is all they have left, because their policies are weak and dysfunctional.
7
No Democratic Senator believes that Kavanaugh's nomination can be derailed. They are simply using the process to fund raise, and demonstrate to likely Democratic voters that 'we feel your rage'. Sturm and drang also distracts folks from the reality: Hillary's 2016 loss cost the Democrats a Supreme Court majority for a generation.
3
@Richard
What an overly partisan and simplistic evaluation.
Apparently you fail to see there's more to it than that.
Why not ask the reason why Republicans are trying to push Kavanaugh through so quickly -- and why they didn't come up with the idea of a F.B.I. probe themselves?
Besides that, every American should be concerned about who is appointed to the Supreme Court regardless of party affiliation.
1
Analysis of Kavanaugh's behavior focuses on the indignation anyone would feel if falsely accused of being a sexual predator. If he is innocent then the anger is justified.
He went off the rails with his direct venom against the Democratic senators questioning him. Not one Republican on that committee has expressed any opinion which deems Dr. Ford a perjurer. To a man (and of course there are only men on that side) they all said Dr. Ford was a very credible witness.
So a very credible, brilliant, well-educated woman with no obvious political agenda or connections says this man attempted to rape her, wrote about it when he was just one of several on the short list, subjected herself to the nightmare of testifying in front of the committee and Kavanaugh responded with furious accusations about a vast left wing conspiracy including the Clintons. Not only that, he threatened the left with "what goes around comes around" rhetoric and displayed shamefully inappropriate behavior when being questioned about obvious things.
The "conspiracy" centers on how and when the letter was made public. That is a red herring. Even if it was mishandled, the facts of the original charge remain. Once Dr. Ford testified so compellingly it was his job to defend himself and refute her charge. Any conspiracy would have had to include her and her intentions when writing her letter. The GOP cannot have it both ways: saying she is credible but also the pivotal person in a deliberate conspiracy.
4
@Joanna Stasia NYC
Turns out she is not so credible.
https://www.wsj.com/articles/this-case-is-even-weaker-than-that-1538433190
1
@jaco hmm, a prosecutor that was called in by one side to sidestep the appearance of questioning by a bunch of old men, in a trial where no evidence was allowed, or witnesses called, where she is pulled after asking questions of the accuser. Yeah, sure, here opinion is credible. By the way, this isn't a criminal case it is a job interview.
You have to wonder about what his parents were thinking while all this drinking and carousing were going on.
5
That Judge Kavanaugh “feels” angry. I have no problem with that.
That Judge Kavanaugh “lost it” emotionally at a Senate hearing, that’s huge RED FLAG. A huge inability to hold his tongue and his temper - something which is disqualifying in almost any employment circumstance or any place of work.
Brett Kavanaugh sat in front of a sign that gave him the “term” Hon (honorable). But he dishonored that sign. He dishonored himself. He dishonored the Senate. And he dishonored the Court on which he already sits.
Dishonor.
That’s what we witnessed - from the dishonorable Brett Kavanaugh.
27
Mr. Kavanaugh, who advocated extremely explicit and aggressive investigation into Bill Clinton's sexual misbehavior, ominously tells the judiciary committee "what goes around, comes around." Senator Grassley defends Judge Kavanaugh by describing what he said as "no different from what Clarence Thomas said in his hearings. Simultaneously, Donald Trump empathizes with Judge Kavanaugh because he too has suffered the indignity of these false sexual accusations. Keep talking, gentlemen.
3
I saw with my own eyes and heard with my own ears who Kavanaugh really is. I was not swayed by the Democrats questioning him,although I think they were civil and on point. I was convinced by Dr.Ford, her demeanor and thoughtful answers. But it was Kavanaugh’s lack of control, his inadequate rhetoric, his ridiculous calendar, (I was convinced his father was dead), and his bratty retorts to questions he didn’t like that convinced me that this is not who we want for SCOTUS! Also the theatrics by Lindsey Graham on Kavanaugh sealed the deal for me. But he will be appointed. Trump wants him and the republicans want him. The investigation gives Collins,Murkowski,and Flake the ok to vote yes. We are doomed!
6
They both looked like weird privileged people existing in a bubble. Ford's performance is a perfect example of why the #metoo movement is toast. Trying to portray her as an everyday woman was quite a stretch. This was more like an episode of 'Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous, the Teen Years ' than an important hearing.
5
Really! The committee chairman is comparing Kavanaugh's testimony with Justice Thomas's? I don't remember Justice Thomas having a week long training session with Bush 41 on righteous hyperbole like Kavanaugh had with President Trump. I don't remember Justice Thomas attacking Senators and asking them personal questions about their drinking. I don't remember Justice Thomas talking about conspiracies blamed on a President 25 from years previously that Republicans were so grievously wounded by. No, Justice Thomas was talking about the real racism and prejudice faced by black people in our country, not shedding tears as an elitist being questioned about his boorish behavior.
10
And now emails have appeared showing that Kavanaugh knew about and tried to influence the path of the Ramirez allegations before they were written about in the New Yorker. He testified that he hadn't known about them until he saw the piece. Lies lies lies....
12
Same game plan as lefts derailing of Trump. Start with Russian collusion, nothing there, pivot to obstruction of justice.
With the judge Kavanaugh, start with sexual assault, nothing there, pivot to temperament.
This would be pathetic if not so dangerous!
7
Clearly, you have no problem with the Republicans shut down of President Obama’s SC nominee. Now you decry dirty politics. Seriously? What a bunch of hypocrites.
9
It’s called “new evidence.” And your man handed it to us himself.
5
@JTH, who was it who said, “elections have consequences”?
No matter which side of the political spectrum you’re on the behavior all around has been deplorable. The Democrats are obviously attempting to do a hatchet job on a man, dredging up stuff from his teenage years and now apparently unable to find more substantiating evidence on the “ sexual assault” charges are really scraping the bottom bringing up a pretty minor example of a bar fight in College and a “panty raid”, both topics I am sure are foreign and offensive to the Chardonnay sipping, oh so caring, sensitive set screaming for his head(odd but why doesn’t it bother these sensitive folks when one of their own, say a vulture capitalist, raids a venerable old company destroying thousands of lives). If there was real concern over this Feinstein shouldn’t have withheld the information for so long in an obvious eye on the November elections, her time would have been better spent trying to come up with a few candidates that were electable to the still majority of Americans who become more disgusted day by day with politics as usual. Were I Judge Kavanaugh I would have been furious as well when Klobuchar, Booker, Feinstein, Blumenthal and the rest were grinding him for hours over how much beer he drank as a kid. I get it these people are angry and resentful as they were clearly not in a WASP group that was popular during that time, they are getting even. I speak from experience growing up in a Jewish family in the fifties and sixties, I understand envy, but I got over it.
9
kavanaugh's performance was clearly disqualifying for any position. The republicans have no intellect, morals, principles, ethics or shame.
4
The question to ask is why the Republicans want exactly this guy on the Supreme Court. There are other very conservative judges who have far better reputations and temperaments. The answer to this question is obvious, and it was on display at the hearing last week. Kavanaugh is not impartial. He is vindictive, unethical, and cares not for the rule of law (consider his lies under oath). He will do what is best for himself and his handlers, not the country. Perhaps none of the other judges, conservative though they may be, are unethical enough for the current GOP.
I believe Kavanaugh will be confirmed. There is unlikely to be any new evidence that will come to light this week to change that. Besides, a very large majority of Republicans think he should be confirmed even if he did commit sexual assault. They don’t care about an attempted rape and they don’t care about him lying under oath. One more of our institutions, a very important one, is about to be ruined completely. Personally, I cannot respect any decision that is made by SCOTUS with such a vindictive little man as Kavanaugh on the highest court in our land. He taints the whole thing.
The blatant hypocrisy and lack of concern for the American people is staggering. We truly no longer have a government that represents us. And without an honorable and impartial high court to support our rights, we will have none.
6
It’s clearly desperation time for the Dems. All their other despicable attempts to tarnish Judge Kavanaugh have failed. They did their best.....that’s the tragic part!
10
@Jerry
The thing is, Kavanaugh is a deeply flawed candidate for the Supreme Court -- the only thing the "Dems" tried to do was show why.
I am surprised that no one has brought up the movie "And Justice for All", where Al Pacino represents a client who is a judge that is accused of raping and beating a woman. The last court room scene is classic in how it relates to today where Pacino talks about truth and how each side wants to win regardless of the truth because "winning is everything". Everyone should watch this last trial scene in the movie and see which side they fall on. As Pacino says, "why? Why would she lie?
5
I am appalled by your headline. "...Democrats Trying to Derail Nomination." Worthy of Fox News and it's ilk, and totally disheartening.
22
@Kathleen
You don't think democrats are trying to derail Kavanaugh's nomination?
1
He came out swinging with almost exactly the same words that Clarence Thomas had used. And look how well that has worked out for us. A silent, oft-dozing Supreme Court Justice with a nasty pornography habit. But, don't let the analogy stop Lindsay Graham from telling us that the questioning of Brett Kavanaugh's drinking habits are the worst travesty he has ever seen. Pretty charmed life, Lindsay. Take a trip to the Trump southern border of the United States. You'll see babies screaming for their mothers. But, you know -- that pales in comparison to Brett being asked if he has an alcohol problem.
4
Why are Kananaugh's temperament and honesty issues the concern of only of Democrats?
4
Moving the goal post to honesty, yeah that's not good.
5
Anyone who was not both enlightened and offended by Kavanaugh's behavior during the hearing last week does not understand the subtle reservedness necessary to be a "professional" judge. That he is a judge at all should be reconsidered. His paranoid lambasting of the senators, whose difficult job it is to approve or disapprove nominations to the highest court in the land, is clear evidence that—even if the accusations against him cannot be disproven—he does not meet the criteria of being a Supreme Court Justice.
A youthful indiscretion might be forgiven, but the inability to conduct oneself—as an adult—with respect and humility while being questioned in a hearing to determine if he is up to the job of judging others fairly and without bias, cannot be. Mr. Kavanaugh's condescending and disrespectful attitude during his questioning showed that he considers himself to be above the reproach of others.
There should never be room on the US Supreme Court for judges who feel their behavior is above the scrutiny of others.
726
@Gerithegreek518 Respect and Humility are what is needed from judges and from all elected officials. This show was pure theater and that's because that is what courts have become. Lawyers in court don't care about integrity and decorum, they want to make a splash and get a win, get quoted and lauded for their performance.
1
That was my reaction watching the testimony Thursday. He came across as “How dare you question me, Brett Kavanaugh? Don’t you know who I am?”
Like a celebrity stopped by police, he acted as if his celebrity alone should exonerate him.
So you’re right. Someone like that doesn’t deserve to stand in judgement of anyone.
1
@Gerithegreek518
I did not find Judge Kavanaugh condescending at all. He was offended by the democratic blitzkrieg of his character over an event anyone who wateches NYC Underfcover would describe as a "he said, she said" type deal over 30 yrs ago that is destroying his life. Please stop with the sanctimonious character analysis of his reaction... an analysis you refrained from making for Clarence Thomas, I'm sure who reacted the same way except.... he's black... may I say that if Judge Kavanaugh were black and defensive you would qualify his reaction as justified and not as a tantrum... Hmmmm
I think Kavanaugh should be rejected. He's exactly the kind of guy who would force himself on a woman, and his temperament is a poor fit for the court. But... as long as we are talking about inconsistencies in testimony; am I the only one whose alarms were set off by Dr. Ford's inability to remember whether she took her polygraph the day of her grandmother's funeral, or the day after, right before she flew out? It was just in August, for gods sake, and she had to schedule her flight and hotel stay around it. I realize I sound insensitive, but she should have been pushed harder on her inexplicable lack of memory of this event. It was... odd.
4
@Jim I don't see how that matters, but I'm sure she would be happy to share that information if anyone sought her out about it. As she made clear at the hearing she was very eager to share as much detail as she could remember and to present everything in the most precise scientific language. And unlike Kavanaugh, she was honest about what she did and didn't remember. She wanted the committee to have as much information as possible as they moved forwards.
I don't remember everything that happened around the day of my grandfather's funeral, and I'm sure if I'd done something else in that time, even something important like taking a polygraph, I might not have remembered exactly what happened that day. Doesn't mean I'd be lying if I gave you a gist of what I did that day.
There seem to be a lot of misunderstanding about how trauma and memory works on the part of Kavanaugh's defenders. Triggering details are often burned into the memory of the victim while certain specifics get lost over time. That's natural and normal and doesn't imply that a person is lying when they discuss their trauma. If victims of a crime had to recall every detail of the crime with near photographic memory every time criminal trials commenced, prosecution would be a) impossible and b) nearly unbearable for all involved.
There are a lot of questions here, and I think the way Mr. Kavanaugh handled what was essentially a job interview is a fair one.
@Jim She said she did remember it and clearly said so. Go look at the video.
It's not moving the goalposts to expect a U.S Supreme Court nominee to tell the truth while sworn in before a Senate committee.
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@Louis James
If he can't tell the truth about those "drinking games" then what else can he lie about? Unfit.
Someone who at his age is still trying to hide the foolish misdeeds of his youth and skillfully lies about it must have a very distorted morality. Judge Kavanaugh is undoubtedly an intelligent lawyer who has learned the tricks of the legal game. We never would have seen him in action were it not for the foolishness of his youth and a brave woman who realized as many of us now do that Bret Kavanaugh does not have the moral grounding to make decisions that affect the lives of so many. It is not what he did decades ago. Those things could be overlooked as youthful 'indiscretions'. It is how he has now tried to hide what he could have just apologized for that makes him unfit for the Supreme Court or, for that matter, any other court.
7
He was accused of gang rape and didn’t take it well. His reputation and that of his family is being destroyed and he didn’t take it well. For someone that is innocent these are fighting words.
And I am sure if Kavanaugh sat there like a stone and showed no emotion that would be an issue too.
Now it’s Kavanaughs drinking in college is the issue. Kavanaugh isn’t in college anymore. Obama did cocaine in college and that fine. Obama said he did cocaine because he used it to ease the trouble of his racial identity. Who believes that? This is all politics.
9
@Jim. There is a big difference between snorting cocaine and a man who attempts to rape a woman while holding his hand over her mouth to prevent her screams from being heard to rape. It's also called kidnapping.
@Jim I mean doing cocaine and doing something violent to deliberately harm someone else are very different actions.
And I am no great defender of cocaine use. Or for that matter, everything Obama said or did.
@Jim It's not about the fact that he drank. It's about the possibility that his drinking may have led to inexcusable behavior toward his female contemporaries. If it was just the drinking, I doubt many would hold that against him.
2
If Judge Kavanaugh makes it to the Supreme Court, it would
make 2 of 9 of the judges to have been accused by women
of serious sexual allegations. 2 too many in my opinion.
7
The drama on both sides is a sign that we need major change. Trump is weakening our institutions and our elected officials are standing by and watching it happen. He is nominating blatantly partisan individuals to judiciary. He already has GOP senators in his pocket and afraid to go against him. He is trying to discredit the media and create so much confusion with his lies that nobody knows what to believe. We need our elected officials to stand up and do what is right for the country. If they can not, we need a full change in leadership. Elect people that will speak to each other rather than play games. The tribalism that is tearing the country apart needs to stop and it needs to stop first and foremost with our senators. Do what is right and do not confirm Kavanaugh. Wait for a centrist that can get 80+ votes!
3
Remember when Serena Williams was expressively angry when she believed the US Open judge was unfair to her? Lots of people criticized her for her angry actions.
How come it is understandable, even laudable, for Brett Kavanaugh to show his anger and disdain during the hearing, but it was wrong for Serena to do so? Both had a lot to lose, both felt their reputations to be on the line, both felt unfairly judged.
20
@Lissa: No kidding! I read hundreds of comments in the Times, the majority of them from men, castigating Williams for her "lack of control," "disrespect," and "unprofessionalism." Now, many of those same men are back, defending Kavanaugh to the hilt for his "righteous" anger. The hypocrisy and lack of self-awareness in these men is astounding. They are immersed in sexism and have no clue, because they cannot see the bigger picture here.
2
"Democratic efforts to highlight sexual assault charges that are more than 30 years old have been dismissed by supporters of Judge Brett M. Kavanaugh as the dredgings of ancient history. " - that's a very charged statement that implies guilt on the part of Mr Kavanaugh, an assumption made by the author used to paint those that support his confirmation in a negative light.
Our current system isn't based on guilty until proven innocent. It seems unfair of the author to lead into a story about Honesty of all things making a dubious and rather dishonest statement.
2
Seems perfectly factual to me.
Entirely apart from all the sexual allegations, a man with the public demeanor he showed last week lastingly degrades himself and debases the courts.
17
So after you attack someone with decades old charges that are being impossible to disprove, call he a gang rapist, have a majpr newspaper say he is unfit to coach his daughter's girls basketball team, and he responds as anyone human, even Mr Rogers would the problem is that he has anger issues? To paraphrase Joseph Welch " Democrats have you no decency".
7
This is not about his “right” to be angry. Everyone has that — Dr. Blasey Ford included. It’s about not being able to control the anger, along with naked partisanship, that makes him unfit for a lifetime seat on our nation’s highest court.
1
I read that Kavanaugh had a tough time staying calm during his prep for the hearing. Can you imagine what we would have seen if he hadn't rehearsed?
5
I hope others saw the graphs that showed Dr. Fords questions and answers side by side with Judge Kavanaughs. Dr. Fords was a sea of calm - no avoidance, dissembling, or refusal to answer questions. She cooperated and answered all. Judge Kavanaughs on the other hand looked like an earthquake was in progress with His refusal, avoidance, argumentative, dissembling to questions asked by judiciary.
The crotchety old men who defend his 'passion' are just spinning/gaslighting his lies and behavior. Trying to normalize the abnormal. Hurling insults, being belligerent, and verbally abusive at your job interview is a disqualifier. It is not acceptable. Then, adding insult to injury - Kavanaugh threatened revenge if allowed on high court...OMG. Mind boggling.
Kavanaugh is not qualified - his lack of forthrightness does not look like 'passion' it stinks to high heaven... he and the old croonies are hiding behind a pile of garbage trying to convince us into believing it's perfume. It's an insult to all American people.
Our courts oppose the righteous, and justice is nowhere to be found. Truth stumbles in the streets, and honesty has been outlawed.
Isaiah 59:14 NLT
14
It's not just Democrats.
I don't belong to any political party and tuned in to the hearing Thursday with what I believe was an open mind. During the afternoon I realized that I didn't need to decide whether I believed Dr. Ford or not; there were so many other reasons to oppose Judge Kavanaugh's nomination. Chief among them are his temperament and the fact that he was obviously committing perjury. On what planet does a gang of high school football players claiming to be alumni(us) of some girl mean they really admired her and maybe went to a dance with her?
22
I am by no mean an authority on Supreme Court nominations nor have I paid much attention to previous selections. Why aren’t there other candidates who are on the short list being interviewed by the committee and then the best candidate from this pool selected based on the qualities/ethics, etc.?
12
@chouchou14 The President nominates, not the Senate. Trump was given a list of conservatives by the Federalist Society and if this nomination fails he’ll just pick a new one from that list.
1
Demonstrating passion and anger under the circumstances is understandable, however his hysteria combined with inauthenticity should be disqualifying.
In addition to his inability to restrain his emotions throughout the lengthy testimony, Judge Kavanaugh appeared to be heeding President Trump’s call to ratchet up the anger and go on the attack. As is often the case, acting in this manner - such as his obnoxious responses to the Senator from Minnesota - demonstrated a willingness to play to his political patrons and act in a way that doesn’t comport with his legal education and likely his natural inclination.
Judge Kavanaugh’s testimony demonstrated to the country and the world, that he hasn’t quite matured enough from that weightlifting, beer-drinking high schooler who may or may not have sexually assaulted a peer.
31
Why would Kavanaugh mention Clinton's on his rant? Is it his fear, real or imagined, in his recorded overzealousness in digging up dirt against Bill Clinton?
Just like his high school escapade, it's amusing how his past is creeping up now. Karma is a b
13
This man has a long history of working on the most hyper-partisan stuff and his behavior before the Judiciary Committee showed it is as it appears. He worked with Ken Starr on the Clinton Special Counsel and pursued the most salacious stuff. He worked on the election theft in 2000. He was involved in the Bush White House that disappeared people from the streets, denied the accused Habeas Corpus, accepted the fiction of "unlawful combatant" instead of Prisoner of War, shipped some to CIA Black Sites where they were tortured against our laws and treaties.
This man should have never been seated on any court and probably should not have a law license.
30
There is an old saying which brings great light to this line of reasoning: This is truly a wicked animal. When attacked ... it defends itself.
His response is properly called righteous indignation. He had every right to forcefully defend himself if he believes he has been falsely accused of a crime.
6
Sure, but in doing so in this situation and venue, he presented himself as most unfit for a lifetime appointment to our nation’s highest court.
“I would defy anyone not to be angry about that if they believe the allegations against them were completely false,” said Senator John Cornyn of Texas.
Sentor Cornyn, if you remember, President Obama never was angry over the false allegation that he was born in Nigeria.
Perhaps you were misquoted Senator Cornyn was misquoted. I'm sure what you actually meant was "I would defy Republican not to be angry about that if they believe the allegations against them wasn't positive”.
1
Believing this entire slanderous spectacle was not wholly orchestrated by lefties on and off the Committee simply makes you a fool. And the Democrats love fools. Meanwhile in their own leadership, Keith Ellison was cleared of all wrongdoing by the special leftie lawyers after his live-in girlfriend could only produce a detailed account of time and place of his "narcissistic abuse" and photos of her physical injuries. I don't remember Matt Damon doing a SNL skit on that one.
7
Watching Kavanaugh, Graham, Trump try to spin and spin the truth regarding his action years ago I am reminded of a book passage. Author Jo Nesbo wrote in his book, "The Bat." "The truth is that no one lives off the truth and that's why no one cares about the truth. The truth we make for ourselves is just the sum of what is in someone's interest, balanced by the power they hold." In this case there are three that no the truth. Ford, Kavanaugh and God. The rest of us, well reread the above.
1
Regardless the outcome of the FBI mock nonvestigation, if, as astonishingly still-(Golly Ole Perjury)Judge Kavanaugh has stated, the Supreme Court "must never be viewed as a partisan institution," then he can't be on it, Merrick Garland must be on it, and nominations cannot be decided by less than 61 Senators.
9
Mitchell's report to the committee was irritating to say the least. She's talking about preponderance of the evidence, and acting like the prosecutor they wanted her to be, but as many others have said this was not a trial, this was a job interview. Based on demeanor alone, in any other job interview the job would go to Dr. Ford. She was able to be civil even to the people attacking her. Kavanaugh acted like a spoiled baby about to lose his favorite toy. If this man is confirmed in an already partisan Court, all but the most wealthy ideologues can kiss Justice goodbye.
12
@Georgia Lockwood
The "job interview' is little more than a talking point. Feigning innocence by one group to excuse questionable behavior.
This stopped being a job interview once Kavanaugh was accused of being a rapist. Don't know of any job interview I, or anyone else for that matter, had where the questioning became accusations of a heinous crime.
Here's Mitchells reasoning for acting like the prosecutor: "There is no clear standard of proof for allegations made during the Senate’s confirmation process. But the world in which I work is the legal world, not the political world. Thus, I can only provide my assessment of Dr. Ford’s allegations in that legal context."
1
Wait, why are they attacking him anew? I thought once the FBI updated its background check Dems were all on board! Vote him in.
7
Please vote in Judge Kavanaugh.
5
@NYC Dweller
Wait for the findings of the F.B.I. investigation.
Kavanaugh is “country club trash”
My late mother would have said”money doesn’t care who owns it”.
Having privilege does not make someone humble, ethical and kind.
His “silver spoon” is made of lead.
The lead clearly poisoned his brain, making him mean, arrogant,
dishonest and entitled..........and clearly unfit to sit on the Supreme court.
11
Why did it take anyone, especially the Democrats, so long to address the question of Kavanagh's temperamental fitness for a seat on the Supreme Court?
Laughable is the defense that anyone would be angry about such accusations. Excuse me: Kavanaugh had weeks to get used to the idea that he would face questions about his behavior, yet he still could not control himself when the time came. The tone with and attacks on his job interviewers, his contemptuous remarks for those with whom he disagrees, and his conspiratorial theory-mongering (any guilt lurking in the darker recesses of his mind?) all suggest an emotionally unstable, morally and socially unrestrained, and intellectually bankrupt individual.
But qualified for the Supreme Court? Only to the GOP deplorables in the Senate.
14