A "terrified," but remarkably composed and articulate Christine Blasey-Ford testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday morning. She was somewhat reserved, but firm, and never belligerent in telling her story of being sexually assaulted by Brett Kavanaugh when she was 15 and he was 17.
When asked by Sen. Dick Durben (D-IL) to what degree did she believe that it was Brett Kavanaugh that assaulted her, she was unequivocal: "100%," she said.
Dr. Blasey Ford, who has a PhD in research psychology and is on the faculty at Stanford, came across as authentic and natural, forthright and honest, and altogether believable.
In fact, former federal prosecutor Daniel Goldman, speaking on MSNBC, said: In all his years as a prosecutor, she was the most credible witness he had ever seen.
Then the afternoon brought testimony from Judge Brett Kavanaugh, who was channeling the man who appointed him, President Donald Trump, who had reportedly been disappointed with Kavanaugh's bland appearance on Fox News. He let it be known that he thought Kavanaugh should be more forceful.
So the judge gave the boss what he asked for -- in spades. He came out ready for battle, seething with anger as he read his opening statement. He was combative with Democratic senators, interrupting their questions, dodging questions, throwing questions back at them -- often in a very disrespectful manner.
One example was with Sen. Amy Klobachar who was asking him about his reputation in high school as a heavy drinker. She had prefaced her question with some comment about her own father being an alcoholic. Kavanaugh threw the question back at her -- "Yes, I like beer. Do you like beer, Senator? Have you ever drunk too much and not been able to remember what happened?
In fairness to him, after the break, he did apologize to her. But all in all, what he showed us, in my opinion, was not that he can be forceful; but that he is a bully, when he gets angry.
Which confirms what his college roommate said about him: "When he drinks a lot, he can become aggressive and belligerent." The bullying temperament confirms what we know about his dissent in a case of a pregnant teenage immigrant girl, who already had a judge's approval to get an abortion. His dissent was to the decision on appeal that allowed this to go forward. He alone, among the panel of judges, tried to put further obstacles to delay this being carried out.
I'm sure his boss (Trump) and Trump's base loved it. To me, it raised serious questions about whether he has the requisite judicial temperament -- aside from his far-right policy positions.
Kavanaugh likes to parade all the letters signed by women who know him and love him and say he is a gentle and faithful friend for years. But I also believe that he has this other side -- the anger out of control, aggressive, belligerent side that is consistent with the stories of sexual assault at question in these hearings.
He was asked at least seven different times whether he would ask the President to instruct the FBI to reopen its background investigation of him to check out these three new allegations -- and, if he is innocent, clear his name. He never answered the question. When he tried his usual dodge with Kamala Harris, she said calmly: "I'll take that as a No." Why, if he is innocent, is he so opposed to further FBI scrutiny? What's he afraid will be found?
The American Bar Association, speaking for its 400,000 members, has called on the Judiciary committee to delay the vote until the FBI can do a proper investigation of these allegations against Judge Kavanaugh.
At the end of Blasey-Ford's testimony, the mood felt like she had hit a home run and that his confirmation was probably doomed. He may have saved it with Trump and most of the Republican senators with his performance. But it may also be that it will backfire with enough who were wavering that they vote against it.
The Republican caucus was set to meet later Thursday night to decide how to proceed. Mitch McConnell had scheduled a committee vote for Friday morning, with a vote of the full Senate set for early next week, if the Justice Committee advances his nomination.
Ralph
PS: A side note to all this. Lindsey Graham had two grand-standing, angry, Democrat-blaming tirades on TV, one in the hallway and one inside the hearing -- supporting Kavanaugh, of course and blaming the Democrats for a con job farce. I'm more convinced now of what I've been suspecting for some time, since Graham went from being critical of Trump to being his #1 supporter and frequent golf partner. Lindsey wants to be the next Attorney General.
Friday, September 28, 2018
Thursday, September 27, 2018
Third woman accuses Kavanaugh
As some commentators on MSNBC have been saying, the Kavanaugh confirmation is "hanging by a thread." Now a third woman has come forward with a deposition made under oath accusing him of being present at teen-age parties at which punch was spiked with drugs and alcohol to render girls "unable to say no," and that there would then be a line of boys outside a bedroom door waiting their turn to have sex with the girl.
Under the careful guidance of her attorney, Michael Avanatti, this woman does not say that Kavanaugh was one of the boys drugging or raping the girls; but she is very specific in saying that he was there when this was happening.
Further, his freshman roommate has stated that Kavanaugh was frequently "incoherently drunk" and that, when he was very drunk, he tended to be "aggressive and belligerent."
Kavanaugh and his wife went on Fox News (totally unprecedented for a Supreme Court nominee) to present his defense: that he did drink beer and occasionally maybe one too many -- but that mostly he was devoting himself to his studies, sports, and church. This really didn't come off very well; it probably backfired.
And we haven't even had the hearing yet. Republican members of the Judicial Committee are not allowing the second, and now this third accuser, to testify tomorrow at the hearing, nor are they allowing a delay to investigate these other claims. So it comes down to how effective Dr. Christine Blasey Ford will be in telling her story to these Republican senators -- these eleven white men, several of whom are old white men.
As former Rep. Donna Edwards (D-MD) said on MSNBC yesterday to Nicole Wallace: Whether it's immediately following the opening gavel, or whether it's after the closing gavel -- this will all be over tomorrow.
Ralph
Under the careful guidance of her attorney, Michael Avanatti, this woman does not say that Kavanaugh was one of the boys drugging or raping the girls; but she is very specific in saying that he was there when this was happening.
Further, his freshman roommate has stated that Kavanaugh was frequently "incoherently drunk" and that, when he was very drunk, he tended to be "aggressive and belligerent."
Kavanaugh and his wife went on Fox News (totally unprecedented for a Supreme Court nominee) to present his defense: that he did drink beer and occasionally maybe one too many -- but that mostly he was devoting himself to his studies, sports, and church. This really didn't come off very well; it probably backfired.
And we haven't even had the hearing yet. Republican members of the Judicial Committee are not allowing the second, and now this third accuser, to testify tomorrow at the hearing, nor are they allowing a delay to investigate these other claims. So it comes down to how effective Dr. Christine Blasey Ford will be in telling her story to these Republican senators -- these eleven white men, several of whom are old white men.
As former Rep. Donna Edwards (D-MD) said on MSNBC yesterday to Nicole Wallace: Whether it's immediately following the opening gavel, or whether it's after the closing gavel -- this will all be over tomorrow.
Ralph
Tuesday, September 25, 2018
You'd better think again, Republicans
Despite some uncharacteristic civility emanating from the Republican ranks when it comes to handling the allegations from Dr. Christine Blasey Ford against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh, individual senators have made their share of snide, prejudicial comments -- and then the president weighed in with a comment that even Republican Senator Susan Collins had to denounce.
It's clear that the Judiciary Committee Chair, Senator Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and others of the "old white guys" crowd still don't get it. But at least they're listening to younger staff members who must be advising them that it would be political suicide to attack the woman accuser.
So, we have a he-said, she-said hearing coming up -- without any investigation or attempt to determine facts preceding the hearing, as Dr. Blasey Ford has asked for. The real Republican posture is not to get to the truth but to hold a fake "hearing" so they can claim they gave the accuser a chance -- and then rush through the vote to pack the Supreme Court with another conservative who seems to be Donald Trump's dream come true -- a man who will vote to protect and even expand presidential power and vote to protect Trump from any charges, subpoenas, or depositions while in office.
But . . . not so fast. There is a remedy. Even if Republicans ram this through and put Kavanaugh on the court with a lifetime appointment, he can be impeached once in office.
This is already being talked about in Democratic circles. If they take control of the House, that's where an impeachment of justices, like presidents, would arise. And it takes only a simple majority to bring impeachment charges. The House would then do the investigation that the Republicans are now refusing to ask the FBI to do.
Even if we do not take control of the Senate, which must vote by 2/3 majority to convict, the investigation will have occurred in the House before presenting its evidence to the Senate.
So we may yet get that investigation -- and depending on the outcome -- it could lead to Kavanaugh's resignation or impeachment. Or, on the other hand, it could clear his name. So, if he is innocent, why would he not want to have such an investigation?
It seems suspicious that he and Republicans are fighting so hard to prevent the kind of full investigation and hearing that could clear him. Instead, he will sit on the court, along with Clarence Thomas, under a cloud of suspicion of sexual abuse that just won't go away, especially now with another allegation of sexual misconduct while a Yale undergraduate. And then we would have a court, where one-third of the six men have that cloud over them, when they vote on important cases concerning women and their rights.
Ralph
PS: Two new developments. Another woman has come forward charging that, as Yale freshman, Kavanaugh exposed himself and force a young woman to touch his penis at a party. And now his freshman roommate, a friend of this woman, says that Kavanaugh was an especially heavy drinker, even in that drinking culture -- and that, when he was drunk, he would become "aggressive and belligerent."
PS: Two new developments. Another woman has come forward charging that, as Yale freshman, Kavanaugh exposed himself and force a young woman to touch his penis at a party. And now his freshman roommate, a friend of this woman, says that Kavanaugh was an especially heavy drinker, even in that drinking culture -- and that, when he was drunk, he would become "aggressive and belligerent."
Sunday, September 23, 2018
The plight of Puerto Rico - one year later
Last Thursday, Sept. 20th, was the one-year anniversary of Hurricane Maria's devastation of the island of Puerto Rico, the worst storm to hit the island in 100 years, according to some estimates.
Now remember that Puerto Rico is a territory of the United States; it's people are citizens of the United States -- and as such entitled to the full services of agencies such as FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency). President Trump claims his administration should get an A+ for its performance in assisting Puerto Rico's recovery. According to most of the residents this is a bad joke.
In many ways, FEMA did a lot. But there was so much to be done . . . and so much still left to be done. According to the New York Times, $1.6 billion was allocated to funding for direct emergency home repairs; and another $1.4 billion was made available in the form of grants to make home repairs and pay for temporary lodging. And that's only looking at individual residences. There's also the whole infrastructure, including a totally destroyed electric grid.
But of the 1.1 million people who requested FEMA help for housing repair, about 58% were denied. Inability to produce a deed was a common cause of denial. The median grant that was given, $1,800, compared with about $9,127 given out to the victims of the Hurricane Harvey in Texas.
Again, from the Times, "A new roof of cheap corrugated zinc typically starts at about $5,ooo [in Puerto Rico] and might blow off again in the next hurricane; a concrete roof that could survive future storms costs about $15,000.
Meanwhile, the island is still dotted with at least 60,000 blue tarps as temporary roofs covering damaged homes . . . one year later. It's true that part of the problem is the low rate of homeowners who had insurance, plus a general lack of infrastructure and excessive bureaucracy in the local government. And, yes, President Trump, it is an island surrounded by lots and lots of water, which makes getting in supplies and workers a little more difficult.
But let's be honest, even if our president won't be: Puerto Ricans are treated as second class citizens, even though they are entitled to all the rights as any other U.S. citizens. Would these conditions be acceptable in Texas -- or, this year, in North Carolina?
Ralph
PS: I just read in the New York Times that, due to the tariffs imposed by President Trump, construction costs to rebuild in North and South Carolina following Hurricane Florence's devastation will be 20 to 30 percent higher than last year. Much of that is from the tariff on Canadian wood prices, which are up by 40 percent. Presumably, the same will be true for the continued rebuilding costs in Puerto Rico.
Now remember that Puerto Rico is a territory of the United States; it's people are citizens of the United States -- and as such entitled to the full services of agencies such as FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency). President Trump claims his administration should get an A+ for its performance in assisting Puerto Rico's recovery. According to most of the residents this is a bad joke.
In many ways, FEMA did a lot. But there was so much to be done . . . and so much still left to be done. According to the New York Times, $1.6 billion was allocated to funding for direct emergency home repairs; and another $1.4 billion was made available in the form of grants to make home repairs and pay for temporary lodging. And that's only looking at individual residences. There's also the whole infrastructure, including a totally destroyed electric grid.
But of the 1.1 million people who requested FEMA help for housing repair, about 58% were denied. Inability to produce a deed was a common cause of denial. The median grant that was given, $1,800, compared with about $9,127 given out to the victims of the Hurricane Harvey in Texas.
Again, from the Times, "A new roof of cheap corrugated zinc typically starts at about $5,ooo [in Puerto Rico] and might blow off again in the next hurricane; a concrete roof that could survive future storms costs about $15,000.
Meanwhile, the island is still dotted with at least 60,000 blue tarps as temporary roofs covering damaged homes . . . one year later. It's true that part of the problem is the low rate of homeowners who had insurance, plus a general lack of infrastructure and excessive bureaucracy in the local government. And, yes, President Trump, it is an island surrounded by lots and lots of water, which makes getting in supplies and workers a little more difficult.
But let's be honest, even if our president won't be: Puerto Ricans are treated as second class citizens, even though they are entitled to all the rights as any other U.S. citizens. Would these conditions be acceptable in Texas -- or, this year, in North Carolina?
Ralph
PS: I just read in the New York Times that, due to the tariffs imposed by President Trump, construction costs to rebuild in North and South Carolina following Hurricane Florence's devastation will be 20 to 30 percent higher than last year. Much of that is from the tariff on Canadian wood prices, which are up by 40 percent. Presumably, the same will be true for the continued rebuilding costs in Puerto Rico.
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