Cory Booker (D) - Presidential Hopeful, Sexual Assault

[_EAllusion]

The solidarity fist has a lengthy history of symbolism that extends beyond "the far left" unless you are playing a game where you besmirch things like unions as radical leftist organizations. It shows up in center-left activism all over the map.

The women's March was an extremely broad-based protest in terms of whom attended through-out the US. If you think hundreds of people marching in tiny towns all over the country were all doing it in an act of radical socialist power, you're almost as looney as Ben Carson.

[_EAllusion]

Even a lot of people who are now calling themselves socialists are basically average FDR Democrats with social views updated for the 21st century. I find that obnoxious - Thanks Bernie! - but the idea of a socialist takeover in the more alarming sense of the Democrats is way, way premature.

[_ajax18]

, has therapy session records that support her claim of having been the victim of sexual assault, and there is no obvious reason to dismiss it.

If this was such a serious sexual assault, why weren't any charges brought against Kavanaugh before this? In fact, why is this the first time we're hearing about this? Isn't there a duty of the psychologist to report this?

[_honorentheos]

The threshold to be met was if it deserves a hearing and to be investigated before Kavanaugh is confirmed. You are attempting to prejudge the facts to get to a result. I'm not interested in playing along with that.

I suspect in the end there will not be satisfying closure for anyone. I suspect the hearings are understood to be a political necessity to Republicans because they can't be seen as dismissive of claims that have some substance to them even if you disagree as to the degree of substance involved. But as Mitch McConnell said, it will probably not affect Kavanaugh's confirmation unless something significant and new comes out. Mitch also seems to have prejudged the matter.

[_ajax18]

Why do we have a statute of limitations on bringing a 35 year old claim like this up in criminal court? Yes part of how I judge the claim has to do with the timing on when it is made. Why isn't that part of how you judge it as well?

[_honorentheos]

Why do we have a statute of limitations on bringing a 35 year old claim like this up in criminal court? Yes part of how I judge the claim has to do with the timing on when it is made. Why isn't that part of how you judge it as well?

First, it isn't a criminal court. It's a confirmation hearing to determine if Kavanaugh is fit to serve a lifetime appointment as one of nine Supreme Court justices. That's giving a person responsibilities almost unparalleled elsewhere in the republic as the President is term-limited and Congress has to stand for reelection on a regular basis. The question of character rather than criminality is at the heart of this.

As to the second part, we're talking about a serious accusation and a denial that it occurred. Kavanaugh has taken the position it never happened and he never did anything like the accusations describe.

That means either he is being falsely accused of very serious behavior or he is dismissive of having caused a woman harm that carried over decades of her life given the timeframe between when it supposedly occurred over 30 years ago and the fact she'd discussed it with a therapist around five years ago.

If the accusations were to be conclusively shown as a knowing false claim, I'd be supportive of there being consequences for Ford and those advising her. But if they are shown to be true, it would make it clear Kavanaugh thought it was best to lie and let his victim suffer. I don't know why that is such a strange thing to view as disqualifying a person from being a Supreme Court justice.

Gun to my head, I doubt there will be a conclusive outcome as far as Kavanaugh's potential guilt that shows he's knowingly lying or that Ford is knowingly lying. For now, it seems the right thing to do is support there being a hearing. Both sides are really benefited by doing so. If new evidence came out against Kavanaugh and it became political suicide to move forward with his confirmation, there is that list Trump bragged of having of over 30 names that would be just as likely to be a true conservative justice to dip back into for the social conservative right. If the hearing turns out to be largely inconclusive with people testifying under oath nothing happened except Ford's account, it won't satisfy the type of person who would see every assault claim treated like it was true and actionable regardless of the facts but it would probably have a positive effect on the views of anyone who might be on the fence about voting Republican this midterm. And it should help shore up the uncertainty around the success of the confirmation with both Senator Collins and Murkowski apparently on the fence right now. Having the confirmation vote proceed only to see him fail to get the necessary votes would be catastophic for Republican moral going into the election. No matter how many memes of Anderson Cooper in waist deep water get passed around...

[_Doctor CamNC4Me]

Pence is dead set on getting Kavanaugh into the position. This is happening. I have no idea how these activists think they can swing the vote. I will say that President Trump needs to shut the “F” up or he might lose a few Republicans, especially a couple of the female ones (probably Joni Ernst and Susan Collins if I had to guess). The flipside to this is the Democrats might energize the ever living “F” out of the GOP's base and motivate centrists to vote Republican if they keep this crap show going much longer, and it's not going to be good for them come November.

If I were on the committee, and I were a Republican, I certainly wouldn't let Ms. Ford go after Kavanaugh so she has time to adjust her approach. She would go first, and then Kavanaugh would offer his point of view. Period.

- Doc

[_honorentheos]

I don't think that this works out as a net positive for Republicans come the midterms. I think they can at best work to mitigate the negative through the attempt to show they took it seriously and not alienate their female Senators. Not to mention whatever affect it has on the current move away from the party by female voters. It's clearly motivating those opposed to Republicans, and the only thing that would take some of the wind out of their sails would be for Ford to be proven a liar.

Again, it seems premature to judge the outcome but it also seems absolutely necessary for all that it be investigated at least through a hearing where Ford, Kavanaugh and ideally Judge testify.

[_Doctor CamNC4Me]

Not to mention whatever affect it has on the current move away from the party by female voters.

...

Again, it seems premature to judge the outcome but it also seems absolutely necessary for all that it be investigated at least through a hearing where Ford, Kavanaugh and ideally Judge testify.

I think this country is so divided right now I don't really see female voters changing their position much come the November. I think this farce will probably motivate more Conservative female voters to get to the poll, though. I don't know. We'll see.

As to your other point, what do you think can be investigated, in practical and factual terms? I just don't think the GOP is going to let this drag out too much because they want Kavanaugh's ass in the seat, and if they do it before the end of the month all this nonsense will be forgotten by mid-October.

- Doc

[_honorentheos]

In practical terms, it puts everyone who testifies under oath. It's one thing to make a claim in a letter or to a reporter, it's another matter when to lie becomes a criminal offense itself.

As far as facts, who knows. But again, it's meaningful for the process to have all the parties show up, face the Senate and the public, answer questions put to them under oath, and let there be so-called law and order involved in the process.