Thread by @CliftonsNotes

Ok, my take on yesterday (thread):

It was supposed to be a dispassionate, bipartisan search for the truth concerning some deeply troubling, highly credible allegations. During Ford’s testimony, it was treated by both sides with the seriousness it deserved.

Then came #Kavenaugh

Guilty or innocent, I’d expect him to be upset. What I didn’t expect was the total abandonment of decorum, maturity, good-faith cooperation, and pursuit of truth. He shouted, interrupted, evaded, and outright refused to answer questions.

It was beneath the dignity of the position he’s nominated for, and what’s worse, he actually *framed* his recalcitrance in partisan terms—sweeping generalizations and even conspiracy theories about an entire political party, in an effort to shift both blame and focus.

Now, if there’s any job in the world for which it’s imperative to be objective, unbiased, and uninfluenced by political theater... it’s a Supreme Court Justice. And yet Kavanaugh aggressively made it clear that he has a political axe to grind. That alone should disqualify him.

Ford wants an investigation; he doesn’t. Ford wants more witnesses; he doesn’t. Ford passed a polygraph; he won’t take one.

This is not the behavior of a public servant who puts his country above his own ambitions. It’s not the behavior of someone who values truth and fairness.

Even if he is innocent... This is a guy who feels entitled to the job, impatient with the process, and who is both unable to see his circumstance objectively, and unconcerned with the effect his confirmation would leave on the reputation and image of highest court in the land.

He also, by the way, lied. Some examples (not exhaustive):

“Devil’s Triangle” is NOT a drinking game. It’s a sex position (in a threesome).

“Boof” isn’t flatulence; it’s ingesting drugs/alcohol up your ass to get fucked up quicker.

Seriously, Google it. (I digress...)

But Kavanaugh is one thing. Yes, he was (in sharp contrast to Ford) petulant, uncooperative, dishonest and openly disdainful of his examiners.

But (!!!) it was the job of the Judiciary Committee to hold him accountable for this—including, yes, Republicans.

Yet, Kavanaugh’s tantrum of an opening statement appears to have been interpreted by the Republican committee members as some kind of perverse green light to completely abandon even the pretense of fact-finding, using the remainder of their time to blame and attack Democrats.

They knew things were looking bad (this was always about optics, not truth), but when Durbin’s ‘FBI’ questions reduced Kavenaugh to a silent pout (an incredible moment), they *had* to run interference and rescue him.

...Rachel Mitchell was never heard from after that.

Let’s be clear about this: Rachel Mitchell, the sex crimes prosecutor whom Republicans hired to do *all* their questioning for them (its own controversy), was disposed of without warning halfway through the hearing, once it became clear Kavanaugh was refusing to answer questions.

This is politics in the age of Trump. Each Republican committee member took back the time they had previously ceded, and used that time instead to blame Democrats for the inconvenient timing (as if Ford’s initial desire for anonymity was some kind of partisan conspiracy).

Let’s stipulate that Feinstein should have betrayed Ford’s trust and gone to Grassley with her letter months ago.

Okay—this changes what?

1. The FBI can/should still investigate.
2. Mark Judge can/should still testify.
3. The (3?) other accusers can/should still be heard, etc.

Nor do these complaints about the process magically change Kavanaugh’s guilt or innocence.

There is no time limit on this. Votes can be, and are often, postponed.

That the nominee is *possibly* guilty of attempted rape makes “plowing through” this process inexcusable.

And keep in mind, even if Kavanaugh’s nomination were withdrawn right now, this is not some political “win” for Democrats. Trump just nominates a different conservative for the job—one who isn’t guaranteed to diminish the public’s trust in yet another of America’s institutions.

For what it’s worth, both the American Bar Association (whom Kavenaugh himself appealed to) and Yale Law School (Kavenaugh’s alma mater) agree with me.

nytimes.com/2018/09/28/us/…

(All I’ve got for now. This stuff unfolds fast. May add more later. I welcome factual corrections.)