Kavanaugh's Watershed SCOTUS Testimony

As the Kavanaugh family walked into the hearing room for the SCOTUS hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee, the stakes could not have been higher, the challenge more daunting. Dr. Christine Blasey Ford had already presented her testimony and had been baptized as "credible" by the fawning press. She came across as a sincere person, with many people sympathizing with her situation of being "forced" into a public hearing when she'd have "preferred anonymity." There were glaring holes in her testimony and no corroboration, but Dr. Ford had a chance to tell her story, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief when she was treated in a civil, respectful, and dignified manner. The media's response was positive to the point that Fox's Chris Wallace commented that Judge Kavanaugh was in a deep hole and would have a hard time getting out. Fox commentator Judge Andrew Napolitano agreed and predicted that if Kavanaugh presented his testimony in a dispassionate way, he'd never be able to balance the scales so badly tipped against him.

In short, Judge Kavanaugh was in a fight for his professional life. He knew that the stakes were far more serious than a simple job interview; he seemingly was more concerned for his reputation and consumed with the need to restore his sterling personal character and unquestioned integrity. Since for his opponents, who had already pre-judged him, a cloud of doubt will always hang over him and his family, Kavanaugh had to totally convince fair-minded people of his innocence of the charges in order to restore their faith in his character and integrity. He began by assuring us that he alone wrote his testimony. His demeanor and his words reflected the seriousness of the moment and gripped the attention of the audience in the hearing room and those watching on television. Social media afterward were full of comments about people crying in reaction to his searing description of what it has been like for him, his wife, and his two daughters as they waited day after day for an opportunity to defend themselves against the torrent of public attacks. Judge Brett Kavanaugh's defense will go down in history as one of the most compelling and consequential speeches of our time. The emotional impact of his righteous indignation was raw and riveting. The pain on his and his family's faces was agony to watch. His passionate remarks put a human face on what has become so much a part of the Democratic Resistance's mode of operation that it has a name: "The Politics of Personal Destruction." The "Resistance" – consisting of a partnership among Democrats, Obama holdovers, and mainstream media and aided by the conservative NeverTrumps to oppose President Trump's 2016 win – has been ruinous for the nation. Its members have not only deepened the bitter divide festering among Americans from years of identity politics and President Obama's "transformations," but worked to thwart policy initiatives (often through Deep State intervention). More importantly, they actively work to humiliate and destroy the president and demean anyone who supports him. The Democratic Party has shown that it is willing to do anything to regain the power lost with Hillary's ignominious 2016 failure. The list of Democrats' underhanded and disgusting actions would fill a book. The list of their vicious and ugly tactics at the Kavanaugh hearings, as well as the weaknesses and problems associated with Dr. Ford's accusations and testimony, could also fill a book. But those are logical matters. On television, what has energized the GOP base is the emotional impact of the raw pain in Brett Kavanaugh's riveting testimony. The impact of his family's agony is seared into the minds of decent human beings. False allegations have destroyed many fine people. The #MeToo Movement has tried to convince the American public that every woman has to be believed. Brett Kavanaugh put a human face on the evil unleashed when we accept such patently false or unfounded stories and clichés. While Dr. Ford's unsubstantiated, uncorroborated emotional allegations created compelling television, the political dirty tricks quickly overshadowed the drama. The foundational policies of presumption of innocence and due process were thrown aside as Senator Hirono (D-Hawaii) declared Judge Kavanaugh undeserving of either inherent right because his ideology doesn't conform to hers. Texas senator Ted Cruz called the hearing "one of the most shameful chapters in the history of the United States Senate." Others described the hearing as a nasty, ugly, bitter, and a despicable disaster. Senator Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) described the toxic atmosphere as worse than the Robert Bork and Clarence Thomas hearings. There is no doubt that the nation's collective consciousness has been seared by the sheer spectacle of the hearing ­– including the appalling disruptions by screaming protesters, the prejudicial contextualization, and the toxic atmosphere created by Democrats, plus all the senatorial grandstanding by Senators Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Mazie Hirono, Kamala Harris (D-Calif.), and Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.). Senator Jeff Flake declared, "We have lit a match." The question is, he added, "Do we appreciate how close the powder keg is?" In short, we can only hope that the emotional response to Judge Kavanaugh's testimony marks the end of the politics of personal destruction, that we have reached a watershed moment – or even possibly a cultural tipping point. The GOP base is a powder keg that will explode if the GOP fails to deliver on the expectations the people expressed in 2016 by electing Trump.