He Said – She said. Why Believe Her?

Heehee.

It’s so funny watching Republicans trying so hard of be respectful of Christine Blasey Ford as they subtly work to undermine her credibility.  The Judicial Committee wanted to hear her but only on their terms.

They want Americans to believe that their attitudes had changed since the days of Anita Hill, when the Senate went on to approve the nomination of Justice Clarence Thomas who is a virtual mute on the Court   – happy to just cast his vote for virtually any right wing position.  He asks no questions, writes no memorable decisions  –  he just votes “right”, which is exactly what those who nominated him expected in return for a life time job.  Definitely not Thurgood Marshall.

While the Republicans play nice while rushing to get a vote on Kavanaugh before the mid-term elections, it is becoming more difficult as President Trump ripped away the mask of civility revealing the truth beneath.

“I have no doubt that, if the attack on Dr. Ford was as bad as she says, charges would have been immediately filed with Local Law Enforcement Authorities by either her or her loving parents. I ask that she bring those filings forward so that we can learn date, time, and place!”

“Judge Kavanaugh is an outstanding person. I am with him all the way,” said Mr Trump. “These are unsubstantiated statements.”

“For people to come out of the woodwork from 36 years ago, and 30 years ago and never mention it – all of a sudden it happens, In my opinion it’s totally political. It’s totally political.”

This is the response we have come to expect from this president when accusations of sexual assault or harassment surface. It is how Mr. Trump has responded to the 15-plus women who have accused him of sexual misconduct. It is how he has responded to the women (and men) who have accused other officials within his party.

Outside of Mr. Trump’s bubble, however, it is widely recognized as no longer acceptable to respond to a woman’s claims of sexual assault by calling her a liar. Doing so carries real political risks in the age of #MeToo. Which is why so many Republicans have been working themselves into a lather to discredit Dr. Blasey .

They are straining to be less offensive than the snickering boys-will-be-boys excuses emanating from certain musty corners. Or the related contention that this was a case of teenage horseplay gone awry — an innocent misunderstanding, if you will. The most head-smacking defense thus far may have come from Franklin Graham, the evangelical leader turned Trump lackey, who spun the alleged attack as a portrait in chivalry: “Well, there wasn’t a crime committed. These are two teenagers and it’s obvious that she said no and he respected it and walked away.”

Nice.

What all of these approaches have in common is that they are part of a desperate effort to distract from Republicans’ unwillingness to initiate a proper effort to get at the truth of what happened. It is a sorry abdication of duty damaging to all involved.

Dr. Blasey Ford  on Sunday September 16^th revealed herself to be the woman accusing Kavanaugh of what amounts to attempted rape, 35 years ago at a High School party.  Both were in their teens. Ford alleges that Kavanaugh and his friend Mark Judge, both stumbling drunk, maneuvered her into a bedroom at the house where the party occurred. Kavanaugh then threw her on the bed, groped her and attempted to remove her clothes and bathing suit underneath. When she tried to scream, he covered her mouth and nose so completely that she was afraid he might inadvertently kill her. The assault was interrupted after Judge fell on top of them and Ford broke away, locking herself in a bathroom for a few minutes until she fled the scene.

Mark Judge says he doesn’t remember a thing.  Smart move.

In the last few days a second accuser has come forward claiming that Kavanaugh exposed himself and pushed his penis into her face and forcing her to touch it during a drunken  party at Yale.  Over the weekend persistent rumors have arisen of Kavanaugh’s frat boy behavior; that he spoke openly with Yale friends of  “training for date rape” with booze and drugs.

Judge Kavanaugh is a son of privilege, attending Georgetown Prep – an all boys school which  Justice Neil Gorsuch also attended.  You know any public high schools that might have given the nation two Supreme Court Justices sitting on the bench at the same time? He was captain of the basketball team and a wide receiver on the football team.

Then he went off to Yale where he became a a frat boy at Delta, Kappa Epsilon.  He stayed on for Yale Law School.

Privilege?  You betcha.

The odious Mitch McConnell just took the Senate floor and characterized the entire affair as a “smear” orchestrated by the “far left.”  He further went on to state that both Dr. Blasey and Judge Kavanaugh “will be heard” this week in a public forum “under penalty of felony” and then there will be an “up or down vote” in the Senate.

After all, it’s just a “He said – she said.”

Why the hell should we believe her?

Any of you know former frat boys of privilege?  I did.

Was I drenched in hormones in  my teens?  Sure was.

Did I pin a drunken girl down on a bed and try to rip off her clothes?  Did I ever take my pants down and shove my boner in a drunken girls face?

Nah.  Never.  And I’ll bet you didn’t either.

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