| Dulfite said: Unless there is evidence that proves otherwise, it is personal stuff. His personal opinion vs. her personal opinion. If legal evidence had been brought forward, that would be different. And yeah, he could have just walked away and probably had a lot less stressful life, but why should he? He was clearly qualified for the position, as are the vast majority of candidates that are nominated by Presidents (regardless of ideology). So why should he give up the honor of the office, something he and many others on the court or aspiring to be work their entire careers towards, because someone accused him of something but couldn't prove it? Is that fair to him or anyone else seeking that office to lose everything they've worked towards when someone accuses them of something done decades ago but can't prove it? Also, whose to say there wouldn't be some other person waiting to accuse the next nominee? And then the next? As to needing to clear his name absolutely, first of all I'm not sure what else the man could do than provide his calendar with hand written notes from decades ago and his own witnesses. Like, what else did you want from him? I'm sure if he had anything else to offer he would have, just like she would have offered more if she had anything on him. We were given the details that we were given, and we all have to make a choice on that. If you feel that nominees require perfect records with evidence showing no foul play, that is fine and your right to demand that. I'm curious what you would think if a Democratic nominee had something like this happen. And for the record, if ever there WAS evidence showing he lied and did those terrible things to her, I would ABSOLUTELY want him to resign and face whatever legal consequences. |
Of all the stuff you said here, the bolded item stuck out to me as by far the most telling and significant, so I'll make your request here the focus of my response.
This may not have occurred to you, but though I am a registered Democrat, I don't view the question of sexual assault through a partisan lens. Without getting needlessly graphic, the issue is personal to me. I'm also among those who supported Bill Clinton's impeachment those two decades ago. (My perspective on the matter resembles the contemporaneously-stated view of Andrea Dworkin.)
I'm also a lot less psychologically attached to the Democratic Party than you seem to believe. I suppose I may come off as something of an ideological progressive or something under the present circumstances where we have Trump as president and I just really, really am against the heart and soul of what he stands for and has done to this country, but the truth is that I share your previously-stated interest in a Nikki Haley presidential run enough that I will likely change my party registration in order to vote for her in the 2024 Republican primary when nigh-inevitably she runs. I'd definitely vote for her over Joe Biden if he opted to run again (I'm pretty much just assuming that he'll be elected president this year at this point) and might even vote for her over Kamala Harris if Biden opted for only a single term, given his age. Why? Because while I strongly disagree with much of what Haley stands for (particularly when it comes to economic policy!), I see her as someone who would stand up for Hong Kong, stand up to Russia (unlike say our current president), defend freedom of speech online, on college campuses, and just in public spaces generally, and also probably sign legislation guaranteeing paid family leave into law. To that last point, she strikes me as a conservative feminist; the truth being that at this point I agree with the conservative feminists on at least as many issues as I do with the liberal feminists (being neither of those things myself). The fact is that the main problem I have with the GOP is the fact that it seems to have a problem with me. The Republicans have been the main political force in this country opposing everything from my right to marry and have kids as a lesbian to the renewal of the Violence Against Women Act and everything in-between and yeah, cumulatively I can't help but get the impression that they just don't like me. I don't have that feeling about Nikki Haley.
Enough about Nikki Haley though. The point is that I'm not a hack who holds one party to a different standard than the other. Yeah, a lot of people are, but I'm not among them. What matters to me when it comes to the case of Brett Kavanaugh is that I believe Dr. Blasey Ford. Do I have a video recording of the incident(s) in question to prove beyond any doubt that what she has said happened to her in fact did? No. That seems to be the standard you expect, but I think you know good and well that that kind of proof is unrealistic when we're talking about sexual assault. So what do we do? Just never reach any conclusions about sexual violence and let every rapist go about their merry way without even social, let alone legal, consequence? No. That can't be the answer! When we're not talking about the possibility of jail time, which is another thing...when we're talking about simply whether or not such a person as Brett Kavanaugh deserves the power to make law...the only question in my mind is...well, whether or not there's a question in my mind. Do I question his innocence? Do I question his respect for the law as someone to be tasked with making it? Do I question his ability to reach fair and reasonably objective verdicts on women's issues? The answer across the board here is a resounding "YES, I DO!" He acted guilty to my eyes and ears, responded far too emotionally to questioning for someone tasked with issuing fair and objective, legally binding verdicts...and really most importantly, he, unlike Dr. Blasey Ford, had a motive to lie. Christine Blasey Ford had nothing to gain and everything to lose by coming forward, and indeed she lost her career and will never be known henceforth as anything but "that bitch who stood in the way of Brett Kavanaugh's bright and promising career path". Her life actually is over. She has no future and will never be known for anything else. Kavanaugh, on the other hand, is now a Supreme Court justice for life. That's the reality of the situation. Now maybe that's what justice looks like to you, but it's not to me. It's also worth adding that Dr. Blasey Ford wasn't Kavanaugh's only accuser either. She's just the most famous one because she's the one who got to testify to the Senate. The odds that each of Mr. Kavanaugh's accusers were lying across the board strikes me as low. But maybe that's just me and I wouldn't know anything about how sexual predators and their survivors behave...oh wait.
I feel that President Trump could've just withdrawn Kavanaugh and nominated someone else with similar views minus the baggage. It wouldn't have been the first time a president has done just such a thing vis-a-vis Supreme Court nominations in my lifetime. Or the second either. But no! No, this was a matter of principle for Trump and the Republican Party! It had to be THIS GUY specifically! Or else how could you establish that sexual violence against women just isn't a concern worth taking seriously? I mean what's next, a better world where we don't reward that kind of behavior or casually dismiss those who may have survived it out of hand?
Last edited by Jaicee - on 10 September 2020
