With apologies to Peter King, here are 10 things I think I think about the Kavanaugh confirmation process. This post is made on the day that he was voted out of committee with the agreement of a brief additional FBI investigation. So it is likely not to age well. Just look at it as a snapshot.
- It is hard to find much of anyone whose opinions about Dr. Ford’s claims and the resulting process are not easily predicted by their broader political views and their previously-held views about Judge Kavanaugh.
- Victims of sexual assault should be taken seriously and treated respectfully. That said, there is a reason that these claims are so hard to prove. And that can’t mean a presumption of guilt. However, those two things are not mutually exclusive. (That said, I do not claim to know the answer of how best to handle these claims.)
- Something happened to Dr. Ford.
- The Democrats used Dr. Ford as a political pawn, with her own lawyers keeping her in the dark and acting contrary to her wishes and her interests.
- It is hard to argue that the way the Democrats handled this was anything other than an effort to cause maximum delay. [UPDATE: Immediately after posting this I see reports of “Dr. Ford’s lawyer” (see item 4) is arguing against any time limits on the investigation.]
- Kavanaugh’s chippiness was not a good look for him but does not really say much about his “judicial temperment” or his fitness for office. (As a lawyer who has prepared and presented many witnesses during testimony, I can tell you that the pressure of being questioned impacts people in different ways that don’t have any obvious connection to their character.)
- There are a few possible scenarios that don’t depend on anyone lying:
- Kavanaugh was very drunk, did something along the lines of what Dr. Ford alleges, and simply doesn’t remember it;
- Something happened but it was not intended or perceived by Kavanaugh the way that Ford perceived it, and Kavanaugh therefore does not remember it;
- Ford was simply mistaken. That said, I do discount as a significant possibility that Ford was lying.
- Another possibility is that Kavanaugh did it, realized he went too far, and then lived an honorable life for the next 35 years, and feels justified and even righteous about lying about it. [ALTERNATE HISTORY: What if Kavanaugh had said, “Yes, it happened. As it was happening I realized it was wrong, and I stopped. I apologize to Dr. Ford for the pain I caused her. It has haunted me for 35 years. In those years I have always tried to do the right thing, and it has helped me to be a better man. Would that Kavanaugh get confirmed? UPDATE: It worked for Corey Booker, though he had to face the voters, and they decided.]
- I think Jeff Flake did the right thing, though I am open to being proven wrong.
- I hope that the FBI investigation will shed light on the following:
- Is Dr. Ford willing to disclose her therapy notes to the FBI? What do Dr. they say about the assault?
- If there is a video of the polygraph and what does it show?
- What do Kavanaugh’s friends have to say about “Devil’s Triangle?” The assertion that it is a variant of quarters is pretty absurd.
- What do Kavanaugh’s close male high school friends, especially Mark Judge, say about his drinking? (Kavanaugh’s claims that he never had any memory lapses from drinking is not very believable to me.)
- Why was Ford’s social media scrubbed, and what did it say?
- Did Mark Judge work at Safeway in the summer of 1982?
- [Pretty sure there are more.]