WaPo Releases Op-Ed Calling For Kavanaugh To Be Denied – GOP Tailspins

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While the GOP senators responsible for pushing Kavanaugh’s nomination for the Supreme Court through will remain unswayed, and the vast majority of them will vote to confirm him on Friday, the editorial board of The Washington Post called for the Senate to vote no on Trump’s Supreme Court nominee.

Before anyone thinks that of course The Washington Post is opposed to Kavanaugh, keep in mind that they did not even take these steps during the Clarence Thomas confirmation hearings after Anita Hill testified that he, too, is a sexual abuser.

‘We have not opposed a Supreme Court nominee, liberal or conservative, since Robert H. Bork in 1987. We believe presidents are entitled to significant deference if they nominate well-qualified people within the broad mainstream of judicial thought. When President Trump named Mr. Kavanaugh, he seemed to be such a person: an accomplished judge whom any conservative president might have picked. But given Republicans’ refusal to properly vet Mr. Kavanaugh, and given what we have learned about him during the process, we now believe it would be a serious blow to the court and the nation if he were confirmed.’

The editorial board said that a lifetime appointment for Kavanaugh at this point would taint the courts forever, and not because of the sexual assault allegations themselves.

‘We continue to believe that Ms. Ford is a credible witness with no motivation to lie. It is conceivable that she and Mr. Kavanaugh are both being truthful, in the sense that he has no memory of the event. It is also conceivable that Ms. Ford’s memory is at fault. We wish the FBI had been allowed to probe Mr. Kavanaugh’s credibility more fully. But our conclusion about Mr. Kavanaugh’s fitness does not rest on believing one side or the other.’

Instead of the accusations by Dr. Ford, it was his reaction to those accusations as well as his prior rulings and stated beliefs that should cause Americans concern, even those on the right side of the aisle in the U.S. Senate.

‘If Mr. Kavanaugh truly is, or believes himself to be, a victim of mistaken identity, his anger is understandable. But he went further in last Thursday’s hearing than expressing anger. He gratuitously indulged in hyperpartisan rhetoric against “the left,” describing his stormy confirmation as “a calculated and orchestrated political hit, fueled with apparent pent-up anger about President Trump and the 2016 election” and “revenge on behalf of the Clintons.” He provided neither evidence nor even a plausible explanation for this red-meat partisanship, but he poisoned any sense that he could serve as an impartial judge. Democrats or liberal activists would have no reason to trust in his good faith in any cases involving politics. Even beyond such cases, his judgment and temperament would be in doubt.’

So far, only four senators say they remain undecided: Jeff Flake (R-AZ), Susan Collins (R-ME), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), and Democrat Joe Manchin (R-WV). With a slim 51-49 majority, Republicans need all but two of their senators to vote yes on Kavanaugh’s confirmation if Manchin votes no.

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