The woman who was assaulted by Brett Kavanaugh has revealed her identity — she’s a psychology professor named Christine Blasey Ford — and spoken up about the details of ol’ Party Boy Brett’s callous disregard for women. I won’t repeat the story here, but want to mention that she revealed herself reluctantly, and for good reason.
By late August, Ford had decided not to come forward, calculating that doing so would upend her life and probably would not affect Kavanaugh’s confirmation. “Why suffer through the annihilation if it’s not going to matter?” she said.
That’s the looming threat in this story, and you know it’s happening even now. Kavanaugh has no worries, he’s got a mob at his back, but you know that Professor Blasey is looking up at an avalanche of shit coming her way. It’s not fair, but it’s what always happens — we remember Anita Hill, right?
There’s only one thing to do. Make sure that coming forward does matter. Stop that nomination cold.
Well said.
“NEW: Statement from Senate Judiciary Committee Republicans.”
Awful men, one and all.
All the Authoritarians care about right now is tilting the courts. Majorities in Congress come and go, but Judicial appointments are forever.
We are stuck with this nasty shit for the rest of our lives.
Good-bye Brett, that was a good run while it lasted.
Send in the next clown.
If only the US political system had a way to stop the nomination of a horrifically inappropriate appointment to a crucial public position.
Kavanaugh means nothing to Trump but a vote to keep Trump’s impending impeachment and crimes under control. Anita Hill had a much better chance to defeat Clarence Thomas at a time when Republicans were at least willing to listen. But times have changed, and Christine Ford’s chances are nil. I don’t watch Fox News, and I can only imagine how it will respond this week, but “a wanton whore seeking her 15 minutes of fame” comes to mind.
Update to #2 (cross-posted with Moments of Political Madness thread):
“NEWS: Sen. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) tells me in an intv he that doesn’t think the Judiciary Cmte should move ahead with its Thursday vote on Kavanaugh until they hear more from Christine Blasey Ford. ‘For me, we can’t vote until we hear more’.”
I much prefer the German version: no term limits on (almost all) politicians (president excepted, but then the German president is almost completely powerless), but supreme court judges do have term limits.
Can the Kavanaugh defense be used as precedent then?
Trump: Here is a list of 65 countries whose leaders say I didn’t conspire with them.
Every murderer: Here is a list of 65 people who say I didn’t murder them. Am I under arrest, officer?
If a black high school student had done what Brett Kavanaugh is accused of doing — holding a woman down, covering her mouth with his hand so she couldn’t scream, groping her — not only would he not be going to the Supreme Court, he would have been criminally prosecuted, put on the sex offender registry, and his life would have never been the same.
I understand people occasionally go berserk and do things that are completely out of character for them, and if this is that situation I would be willing to cut him some slack, but I also think we need to find out of indeed this was an isolated incident. My bet is that it isn’t and that there are probably more women out there.
thirdmill301, #10
I agree with the rest of your post, but someone going berserk and doing a one-time sexual assault that is totally out of their character shouldn’t be a SCOTUS justice. Not becoming a supreme court justice isn’t some horrible harsh punishment (or a punishment at all for that matter).
I hope you’re right, but I don’t really think so. Why would the republicans grow a conscience now?
@thirdmill301
Nah, it depends if the accused is a Republican or not. Because as PZ points out, we have had a similar experience with Clarence Thomas and Anita Hill. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anita_Hill#Clarence_Thomas_controversy
Saad, No. 11, just to be clear there are a dozen perfectly fine reasons to not confirm Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court. A sexual assault may even be one of them. With one caveat:
I think one of the problems with our judicial system is that in order to become a judge at almost any level, you have to have been someone who has never gotten into any real trouble, which means that you really don’t understand the problems of people who do get into trouble. If your only dealings with the police and the justice system have been positive, it’s easy to forget that other people have not been so lucky.
Maybe it’s not a bad idea to have at least some judges who themselves have not fared as well in the criminal justice system, who don’t trust or defer to the police, who understand that innocent people do get railroaded, and who believe in second chances even for people who actually did do something Maybe not third or fourth chances, but second chances.
Now, I’m not sure Brett Kavanaugh is a poster boy for what I’m suggesting. I’m not sure that what would amount to a blip in an otherwise privileged existence would be enough for him to get it. Also, I haven’t seen any signs of remorse or repentance from him, and I do think that’s necessary. And I suspect there are more women out there. So most of what I’ve said is more general than specifically related to him. Were I a senator, I would not confirm, though I would not have confirmed even before this allegation.
I believe in second chances too. But why does the second chance have to be about becoming a supreme court justice?
Does being wealthy and out of prison not sound like enough of a second chance?
npcavallo @16
Truly, you have a dizzying intellect.
#16 has about as much value as a dog pissing on a fence.
All feeling and no substance.
The republican party didn’t care when they had a senate (house?) candidate that was accused of being a pedophile. If anything, the accusations rallied more people to Roy Moore, and he only lost because there was some great voter turnout in Alabama. Why are they going to care about an alleged sexual assault from back when both of the people involved were minors? They won’t. They just won’t, and unlike a seat in congress there is no popular vote here.
It’s extremely brave of her to come forward, but it’s a losing gambit and she’s going to ruin her life for nothing. The republicans can force him through without the democrats, and I really doubt that a decades-old accusation, without any evidence behind it other than one woman’s claims is going to sway anyone in congress to flip. They want to pack the supreme court. Kavanaugh will enthusiastically tow the party line for them for the next 30 years. He’s going to be confirmed.
This is what happens when the democrats consistently fail to campaign at the local level and nominate a weak, divisive candidate for president, the other side wins and they get to pack the courts. Vote in November. Ideally against the establishment candidates.