Friday 28 September 2018

Trump is going to win the Supreme Court battle

Listening to the Republican and Democratic members of the Senate Judiciary Committee it's difficult to understand how an issue like sexual assault can be treated from such totally different viewpoints. The Democrats passionate for Christina Blasey Ford's position as the innocent and suffering victim and the Republicans determined to put her words to one side and to pursue with no more delay confirmation of Trump's nomination of Judge Brett Kavanaugh to the US Supreme Court. What is odd in this whole thing is that the FBI who have to carry out background checks on all people offered key administration posts dredged up not a whisper of sexual misconduct against Kavanaugh. Now, ok, they didn't know about Christine Ford because she had kept her accusations against the judge to herself, her husband and her therapist. Her name only came out because someone who saw a confidential letter from her detailing her allegations leaked it. But did the FBI actually delve back to Kavanaugh's high school days or did they just start at, say, his time at Yale University, or perhaps even later? How comprehensive were they? Four women, one anonymous, have made accusations against Kavanaugh about bad or outrageous behaviour when he was younger. But if the FBI picked up on this, did they ignore it as youthful indiscretions? Did they, I wonder, ever have a chat with Mark Judge, the good friend of Kavanaugh who was allegedly "a witness" to the claimed sexual assault against Christine Ford? This man Judge could have been summoned to give evidence to the Judiciary Committee but after he had apparently said he had no recollection of any such incident, the Republicans on the committee ruled against him appearing before them. We can assume, however, that Judge would have maintained his position that he knows nothing. What about the Democratic members' appeal for the confirmation hearing to be delayed to allow a full investigation by the FBI? That would surely have been the fairest way forward. But somehow I doubt whether the mighty FBI would have got any further than anyone else. Professor Ford, convincing though her evidence was, could not remember where or exactly when the alleged incident took place. It would be difficult for the FBI to know where to start. Ok they would interview Mark Judge but if he stuck with his story that he has no recollection of any such assault, the FBI would have no one else to go to to try and corroborate Ford's accusation. I feel desperately sorry for her. By coming forward she was never going to win because whichever way the nomination went she would have been blamed.

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