Only two weeks ago, the Democrats seemed to have lost hope and Brett Kavanaugh appeared to be cruising towards the United States Supreme Court. President Trump was poised to score another judicial nomination victory.
Then the Hail Mary. Senator Dianne Feinstein publicized the accusation of sexual misconduct against Kavanaugh from a woman called Christine Blasey Ford. Feinstein referred the allegation to the FBI on Sept. 13. The bureau declined to investigate, saying the matter should typically be handled by local authorities.
The timing of Feinstein’s forwarding of the letter to the FBI appeared to have one goal: to delay Kavanaugh’s confirmation . The Senate Judiciary Committee was scheduled to vote on Kavanaugh’s nomination on Sept. 20. The California Senator is said to have sat on the letter since July.
Apparently, the Democrats hoped that if the accusation didn’t derail Kavanaugh outright, it would delay the confirmation until after the midterm election. The calculation is, if the Democrats win the Senate in November, they can deny Trump’s second nominee to the top court.
According to the Washington Post, Ford alleged that Kavanaugh sexually assaultedher in 1982 when she was 15 and he was 17 in an alcohol-fueled party of high schoolers.
However, Ford couldn’t remember the exact date or even the year when the incident allegedly happened. She couldn’t recall the address of the location of the purported attack. She named two male witnesses who were said to be present when the incident took place. But the two men, Mark Judge and Patrick Smyth, both strongly denied they were at the alleged party or heard anything inappropriate involving Kavanaugh.
There was allegedly a third witness, a woman named Leland Keyser (nee Ingham), a long-time friend of Ford. Keyser’s lawyer told Politico, Keyser “does not know Mr. Kavanaugh and she has no recollection of ever being at a party or gathering where he was present, with, or without, Dr. Ford.” Curiously, the Washington Post knew Keyser’s name and identity, but never mentioned this in the Sept. 16 story.
So far, there hasn’t been a single piece of evidence that links the incident Ford alleged to have taken place to Kavanaugh. There is no evidence that supports the said attack ever occured. On the contrary, Kavanaugh, two male witnesses, and a female witness all denied knowledge of the alleged incident.
A former classmate of Ford claimed to have heard about the attack on social media. Upon inquiry, she quickly backpedaled and deleted her post, saying she didn’t know if the incident happened.
Even Dianne Feinstein sought to distance herself from Ford, stating she can’t say everything Ford said was “truthful.”
Accusation is not evidence. It can be false. The Duke LaCrosse scandal and Rolling Stone’s fantasy titled “A Rape on Campus” are two examples. Both turned out to be total fabrications. They also demonstrated there are people on the left who are willing to do anything to advance a political agenda.
Last week, a professor argued on the New York Times that the allegation alone is sufficient to disqualify Kavanaugh. So if someone accuses the professor of having murdered people, should she step down from her job immediately? This is totally nuts, something one would expect to see in Stalin’s Russia or Mao’s China. How this person can be a “professor of law” anywhere in the United States is beyond me.
I have nothing against Ford. I don’t “believe him.” Neither do I “believe her.” I believe in due process and evidence. As far as I’m concerned, before Kavanaugh is proven guilty beyond reasonable doubt, he remains the most qualified nominee for the top court and the best legal mind in this country. Sadly, given our current political climate, regardless what happens next, there will be no winner in this affair.
