What Bothers Me About Kavanaugh
Commenters are arguing about fine details. Part of it is politics. When the Republicans “plow this through”, the Democrats will tag onto the Republicans all of the perceived sins of Kavanaugh, and an incredibly large number of Republican “plowing” political maneuvers to avoid a detailed and fair analysis of his history and character. But really, it is his legal stances and attitudes that will matter case after case, and year after year.
Kavanaugh’s history in the Bush Administration, which is largely sequestered, and his enthusiasm with the Bill Clinton witch hunt and impeachment, show that he was very anti-Democrat. His outburst in his response to the Dr. Blasey accusations, of a Democratic conspiracy theory, and his “what goes around, comes around” public threat of retaliation on Democrats for the rest of his judicial career, takes away all cover of a fair judge of the constitutionality of laws and rules.
Roughly half our laws are passed by both parties, or, from the old days, in compromises. Rules are made by federal agencies in conformity to their charters, as Congress cannot respond and investigate all of the situations that 4 million federal employees can do. These are directed by both Democratic and Republican administrations. You cannot be fair and deliberate as required if you are hyper-partisan, much less, if you are also revengeful.
My main concern is human rights. My retired “occupational” concern is avoiding climate change, and saving the environment. Those also involve human rights.
Kavanaugh’s high school and undergraduate behavior is not just serious sexual assaults, but a very deprecating attitude towards women. This was enhanced by his need to get thoroughly drunk before approaching women. When drunk he was very belligerent. Allowing himself to get drunk where he would be a threat to women again shows his deprecation toward women. We see this starting in 1982, and even continuing until a 1998 assault. He is large and was an athlete, and you can see he was totally intimidating.
I can’t help but thinking that his four years in an all-boys school kept him from normal interactions with girls, and learning respect for girls of his own age. Trump also spent his high school in an all-boys military academy. Then your only interactions with girls is at drunken school-to-school mixers, where sex is the agenda. Nobody has mentioned this, and nobody has tried to probe what was his mental state or needs that he had to drink and get drunk, apparently on most weekends.
Trump apparently accepts the 1998 incident as true, and evidence of a drunken Kavanaugh. He said today the question is whether Kavanaugh has been sober enough over his last 20 years, which would be an odd number to think of, otherwise. The questioned was never raised, but it was obvious from Kavanaugh’s continuing beer commercial, that he never joined Alcoholics Anonymous, or apparently sought any treatment for his problem. Apparently nobody ever told him that there are non-alcoholic beers, which have the same flavor. Nobody has really speculated that he had done some drinking before his speech, but it is on my mind.
It was apparent in his belligerent answers to questions in the investigation hearing, especially with women Senators, that he has not changed his basic attitude of disrespect for women.
Trump also has this disrespect for women, for which we have a confession ten years ago on the Access Hollywood tape. He showed it in every way when he ran against Secretary and Senator Hillary Clinton. He shows it with his embarrassment and interruptions of women reporters. He showed it in his affairs. Then there are the 20 plus cases of sexual related assaults. While Trump’s misogyny will start to depart when he leaves office, it will remain for three decades in the rulings of Justice Kavanaugh.
Our society has moved on from the days that the Constitution was drafted. Most of Kavanaugh’s stances are individually unpopular with the public. This goes for Roe v Wade. Since 95% of women use contraception, Kavanaugh’s belief that contraception is an act of abortion is really unpopular. On the mission of the EPA to protect the public and the environment, Kavanaugh has shown that he is only worried about costs to the polluting industries, not protection of the public’s health, or of the planet. He will rule to remove California’s and other States Right to tackle climate actions on its own. He will continue the Republican attacks on voters rights, on unions, and on affirmative action. He would be a disaster, and a constant bad aftertaste of the Trump Presidency.
