Prof. Christine Ford, who has accused Judge Kavanaugh of drunkenly assaulting her when he was in Georgetown Prep, has had to move her family because of death threats, most likely from Trumpanzees.
Meanwhile, President* "Grab Them by the Pussy" Trump finds it hard to believe that his nominee could have done things as crass a Trump bragged about.
I've been fortunate in my life not to be sexually assaulted. But I can tell you that my friends who were (and who were conscious at the time) never forget.
Trump may think it's hard to believe. I find it hard to believe that somebody with an established career and a family life would risk blowing all that up with a trumped-up allegation. The letter of support that Kavanaugh got from other women is meaningless, for reasons that should be evident to anyone with a functioning cortex.
I'm pretty sure that you can red all sorts of vile smears and teenaged innuendo. I haven't gone looking for it, because, well, there are enough people as it is who are deserving of having their testicles stomped.
We Also Learned About Assumptions Today!
32 minutes ago
16 comments:
"I've been fortunate in my life not to be sexually assaulted. But I can tell you that my friends who were (and who were conscious at the time) never forget."
And yet Professor Ford cannot remember whose party it was, where it was , or even what year it was. This stinks to high heaven.
sv
**sound of crickets**
Yet y'all said about others who were accused...."That many women don't lie" or words to that effect.....
So which is it?
All those accusers of other men were all lying, or all THESE women are all lying?
And then, of course, there is her timing and lack of credibility because of it. Where has she been for 30+ years? Odd how thee DNC types had this information months ago yet kept mum until now, innit? And odd how she doesn't want to be questioned "Until the FBI does an investigation"...which looks like a last ditch stalling tactic until the mid-term elections to me.
I really don't know the answer. But I am doubtful of her story because of the lack of details (one would think she would remember where and when she was "attacked" for the rest of her life...) and the fact that she (apparently) didn't mention it to anyone at the time...and the timing. For all I know, she is telling the truth. Or not. Likely, we will never know.
This seems, however, much like Anita Hill's attack....fishy and scummy....an, oddly, it is a tactic that the Left seems to use as a weapon of last resort each time there is someone they want to keep out of a position like this. Funny how that seems to coincidentally happen....
Here's an article about false accusations of rape by a woman who studied them and came up with some compelling reasons to believe Dr. Ford's accusation after it was published (the article is from 2017):
https://qz.com/980766/the-truth-about-false-rape-accusations/
Turns out the sort of "accusations for political gain" Dr. Ford is being accused of are rare to non-existent.
They'll get their right wing justice. But why are they so dead set on this one? Remember when Miers had to withdraw? That's how we got Alito. This is all about Fergus getting the justice he wants to rule on his case on the bench in time to vote in his favor.
And Grassley can go fuck himself with "the FBI doesn't do things like that" because they sure did in '91 when the last molester they confirmed was assassinating a woman's character to get her out of the way of his ambitions, so Dr. Ford's request is entirely reasonable.
They'll probably confirm him anyway, with a quickness, because that's how they roll and they're terrified of what will happen when they lose control of congress. If they weren't gonna confirm him the more easily provable perjury would have been enough, but they obviously don't care who he is or what he's done as long as he promises to keep fucking the country up after demographics squeeze them out of electability.
-Doug in Oakland
It's my understanding that the "last molester" was accused of conduct that would constitute a federal offense sufficiently recent to prosecute. The FBI, from time to time, investigates such conduct.
Dr. Ford has alleged conduct that would constitute a state offense. One too old to prosecute. It would be investigated by state and local law enforcement...30 years ago. Now, it's a dead charge. The criminal consequences of the allegations have been cleared by time. Civil liability, ditto. The only issue is whether the the nominee engaged in conduct such that he should not be confirmed. Strictly speaking, she's not interesting in the capacity of "victim" but rather as "witness." This is a Senate call, not an FBI call, as the Chairman correctly stated. The manner in which they proceed is governed by the Constitution and the Senate, not by the FBI, not by Trump, and not by Dr. Ford.
Dr. Ford sat quietly while Judge Kavanaugh was being questioned, missing a regularly scheduled chance to have the issue heard. That's dilatory. Now she refuses to testify unless the FBI first investigates. She's willing to be heard, but only on conditions extraneous to the hearing itself. Why? It's not like the substance of her testimony is supposed to be dependent on their investigation. Why not articulate the reason the FBI must go first? If she's told "no", she's just going to drop it? What if they subpoena her? Procedurally, she's behaving badly. The cause is not facially apparent: reluctance to testify could be because she's averse to re-living her trauma in front of an audience, at least part of which will be hostile, or because she's afraid of being caught in a lie. Either would explain the conduct, and so the procedural misconduct doesn't give a basis to render a conclusion as to the merits of the allegations.
These attempts to prejudge the matter, either way, are foolishness. It is prejudice, in the simplest meaning of the word, to decide the merits out the gate. Get the parties under oath, and start asking questions. If a party won't come testify, either take an adverse presumption or subpoena them and force them to show using contempt powers.
Bradley, if it had been me, I don't know if I would have come forward. Accusations like those of Dr. Ford were not taken seriously in times past. The girl was almost always blamed.
I don't think things have changed that much. Judging by the Right's reaction, things haven't changed nearly enough.
I don't fault the accuser (maybe a tiny bit), but DiFi for sitting on this for months.
I too blamed "Di Fi" for holding this till the almost end. Then again, just maybe she was protecting the victim? Look at the shit storm that is flying already, and try to feel a little more compassion for the victim. She has hardly begun to feel the wrath of the "rethugs".
two sides to every story
w3ski
We haven't produced any Truman's or Ike's or even a credible Kennedy in who knows how long. We have some outspoken up and coming leaders but they don't get enough National Recognition so far.
There aren't many known Warriors anymore, we have wimpy leaders. We have too few heroic, upstanding citizens anymore.
Unless we could get down to Heroic Soldiers?
I mean really, give me a choice of some outstanding citizen, not just another "rich man", that isn't enough.
We should had ought to learn from "this" mistake.
w3ski
Dr. Ford asked Di Fi to protect her anonymity, and only came forward after her information was leaked to a pair of news services.
The fact that her life has been upended by people who support Kavanaugh's confirmation vindicates her initial concern, and illustrates part of why sexual assault often goes unreported.
The stats in the article I linked to tell the story much better than I can in a comment.
-Doug in Oakland
Your "article" doesn't really say all that much, and provides nothing but opinion as there only ONE study cited in the article that was done here in the us...and only two studies cited at all, the other from Britain.
Gotta do better than that if you are gonna use it to keep a man from being seated as a Supreme Court Justice when his behavior for his entire life since the alleged incident has been pretty exemplary, doncha think? Maybe an article that was more than a half assed opinion piece?
My God, look at all the right wing defenders of an attempted rape that was merely innocent rape, and besides it happened a long time ago, and besides it didn't happen, and besides even if it was an attempted rape and did happen and wasn't so innocent, she should have spoken up sooner, and besides, yama yada blahblahblah.
Something on the Republican side of the room here is giving off the raw stench of fear. I always assumes when you get that kind of panicky reaction that there's even more than meets the eye. I hope the FBI puts on its hazmat suits and goes after the story. Although admittedly, I probably hope futilely.
Yours crankily,
The New York Crank
Ooh! Ooh! Now do Keith Ellison!
Perjury before the senate is exemplary? I didn't know that.
-Doug in Oakland
Lawrence O'Donnell
Verified account @Lawrence
Sep 19
Lying under oath to a Republican controlled senate is only investigated as a crime if the senate wants it to be investigated.
Lying to an FBI agent is a crime that the FBI can pursue even if the Republican senate doesn’t want them to.
Kavanaugh can’t risk talking to the FBI.
652 replies 12,731 retweets 32,860 likes
-Doug in Oakland
Since the rethugs are hiding several hundred thousand documents from Kavanaugh's time in the W White House where there's good reason to suspect it's because of his membership in the "Torture and rendition legal team", I've been against him being on SCOTUS from the beginning of this clusterf**k.
It appears he lied to the Judiciary Committee 4 times in his previous confirmation hearings for the lower court. Was investigated for possible impeachment then, but IOKIYAR.
Of the short list candidates, he's the only one that appears to believe the President is above the Law. No wonder President* Orange Gibbon picked him.
McConnell told the White House that it would be easier to get other short list candidates confirmed.
The sexual assault charge is just icing on this crap cake of a nomination.
And if he is confirmed, if the Blue Wave does show up, the D's can start investigations leading to impeachment proceedings in 2019. For Kavanaugh and Trump.
Jack the Cold Warrior
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