If there is one thing that afflicts Democratic politicians, left-wing activists, and members of the Beltway press whose political views align with Democrats, it’s poor memory.
The Senate confirmation hearings for Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson, as such processes go, has primarily been a routine, if not dull, exercise. Sure, we’ve witnessed moments of political grandstanding by Republicans. After all, President Joe Biden nominated Jackson, which comes with that expectation. And when was the last time politicians didn’t grandstand during high-profile public hearings? It’s practically a job requirement.
Still, the way Democrats and many in the press have told it, you’d have thought Jackson was sitting under the hot lights in a windowless interrogation room at a police station.
Whatever one thinks of the questions Republicans have asked Jackson, they all have a common thread: The questions directly relate to her record and how those actions would shape her views as a member of the highest court in the land.
But to listen to Democrats and their allies in the press, the hearings were an outrage. Democratic Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse barked at the GOP for “truly poisonous, cynical behavior that trolled through the absolute bottom of what the Senate has done in dark times past.” Hawaii Sen. Mazie Hirono complained that Republicans asked “the same questions literally hour after hour after hour.”
The New York Times whined that Republicans questioning Jackson’s handing down of sentences that fell below federal sentencing guidelines for possession of child pornography was nothing more than a play to QAnon. Headline after headline spoke of the Republican “attacks” against Jackson, and naturally, the press also claimed GOP questioning contained elements of “racial overtones.”
Still, no one came to the table with hysterics and a more risible effort to make these tepid hearings into some vile farce than the Washington Post editorial board. In an editorial titled “Republicans boast they have not pulled a Kavanaugh. In fact, they’ve treated Jackson worse,” the board contorted itself in ways that would make circus show performers green with envy.
The board also resurrected the absurd “credibly accused” trope related to Justice Brett Kavanaugh and accusations made by Christine Blasey Ford. The allegations in question were only “credible” to those who wanted to believe her. For those looking at the charge objectively, it was not credible. Writing in Commentary, Noah Rothman reminded us:
<bsp-quote data-state="{"cms.site.owner":{"_ref":"00000161-3486-d333-a9e9-76c6fbf30000","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b93390000"},"cms.content.publishDate":1648227581502,"cms.content.publishUser":{"_ref":"00000172-ebac-d265-adff-fffc847c0001","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b933a0007"},"cms.content.updateDate":1648227581502,"cms.content.updateUser":{"_ref":"00000172-ebac-d265-adff-fffc847c0001","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b933a0007"},"quote":"She could not recall precisely when or where the alleged attack occurred. She said she had not named Kavanaugh as her attacker to anyone but her therapist. But when her therapist’s notes were provided to the Washington Post, they did not include the nominee’s name. Blasey Ford named three witnesses to the crime, one a "lifelong friend," none of whom could corroborate her story.
","_id":"0000017f-c1ae-d6f7-ab7f-d5ae17a30000","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b92f10002"}”>She <a href=”https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2018/10/03/christine-blasey-ford-changing-memories-not-credible-kavanaugh-column/1497661002/” target=”_blank” label=”could not recall” class=”rte2-style-brightspot-core-link-LinkRichTextElement” link-data=”{"cms.site.owner":{"_ref":"00000161-3486-d333-a9e9-76c6fbf30000","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b93390000"},"cms.content.publishDate":1648227553416,"cms.content.publishUser":{"_ref":"00000172-ebac-d265-adff-fffc847c0001","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b933a0007"},"cms.content.updateDate":1648227553416,"cms.content.updateUser":{"_ref":"00000172-ebac-d265-adff-fffc847c0001","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b933a0007"},"link":{"target":"NEW","attributes":[{"name":"label","value":"could not recall","_id":"0000017f-c204-d1b1-a5ff-ee6c728f0001","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b92e00006"},{"name":"class","value":"rte2-style-brightspot-core-link-LinkRichTextElement","_id":"0000017f-c204-d1b1-a5ff-ee6c728f0002","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b92e00006"}],"url":"https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2018/10/03/christine-blasey-ford-changing-memories-not-credible-kavanaugh-column/1497661002/","_id":"0000017f-c204-d1b1-a5ff-ee6c728f0003","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b92e10000"},"linkText":"could not recall","_id":"0000017f-c204-d1b1-a5ff-ee6c728f0000","_type":"00000163-0359-d703-a16f-3ff9c7b00000"}”>could not recall</a> precisely when or where the alleged attack occurred. She said she had not named Kavanaugh as her attacker to anyone but her therapist. But when her therapist’s notes were provided to the <i><a href=”https://www.washingtonpost.com/investigations/california-professor-writer-of-confidential-brett-kavanaugh-letter-speaks-out-about-her-allegation-of-sexual-assault/2018/09/16/46982194-b846-11e8-94eb-3bd52dfe917b_story.html?utm_term=.b99a1b6a7f9a” target=”_blank” label=”Washington Post” class=”rte2-style-brightspot-core-link-LinkRichTextElement” link-data=”{"cms.site.owner":{"_ref":"00000161-3486-d333-a9e9-76c6fbf30000","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b93390000"},"cms.content.publishDate":1648227565214,"cms.content.publishUser":{"_ref":"00000172-ebac-d265-adff-fffc847c0001","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b933a0007"},"cms.content.updateDate":1648227565214,"cms.content.updateUser":{"_ref":"00000172-ebac-d265-adff-fffc847c0001","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b933a0007"},"link":{"target":"NEW","attributes":[{"name":"label","value":"Washington Post","_id":"0000017f-c204-d274-a1ff-cb27ae8b0001","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b92e00006"},{"name":"class","value":"rte2-style-brightspot-core-link-LinkRichTextElement","_id":"0000017f-c204-d274-a1ff-cb27ae8b0002","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b92e00006"}],"url":"https://www.washingtonpost.com/investigations/california-professor-writer-of-confidential-brett-kavanaugh-letter-speaks-out-about-her-allegation-of-sexual-assault/2018/09/16/46982194-b846-11e8-94eb-3bd52dfe917b_story.html?utm_term=.b99a1b6a7f9a","_id":"0000017f-c204-d274-a1ff-cb27ae8b0003","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b92e10000"},"linkText":"Washington Post","_id":"0000017f-c204-d274-a1ff-cb27ae8b0000","_type":"00000163-0359-d703-a16f-3ff9c7b00000"}”>Washington Post</a></i>, they did not include the nominee’s name. Blasey Ford named three witnesses to the crime, one a “<a href=”https://www.cnn.com/2018/09/22/politics/kavanaugh-ford-accuser-nomination/index.html” target=”_blank” label=”lifelong friend” class=”rte2-style-brightspot-core-link-LinkRichTextElement” link-data=”{"cms.site.owner":{"_ref":"00000161-3486-d333-a9e9-76c6fbf30000","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b93390000"},"cms.content.publishDate":1648227572494,"cms.content.publishUser":{"_ref":"00000172-ebac-d265-adff-fffc847c0001","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b933a0007"},"cms.content.updateDate":1648227572494,"cms.content.updateUser":{"_ref":"00000172-ebac-d265-adff-fffc847c0001","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b933a0007"},"link":{"target":"NEW","attributes":[{"name":"label","value":"lifelong friend","_id":"0000017f-c204-d1b1-a5ff-ee6ccdee0001","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b92e00006"},{"name":"class","value":"rte2-style-brightspot-core-link-LinkRichTextElement","_id":"0000017f-c204-d1b1-a5ff-ee6ccdee0002","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b92e00006"}],"url":"https://www.cnn.com/2018/09/22/politics/kavanaugh-ford-accuser-nomination/index.html","_id":"0000017f-c204-d1b1-a5ff-ee6ccdee0003","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b92e10000"},"linkText":"lifelong friend","_id":"0000017f-c204-d1b1-a5ff-ee6ccdee0000","_type":"00000163-0359-d703-a16f-3ff9c7b00000"}”>lifelong friend</a>,” none of whom <a href=”https://www.businessinsider.com/leland-ingham-keyser-pj-smyth-who-christine-blasey-ford-says-was-at-party-kavanaugh-judge-2018-9″ target=”_blank” label=”could corroborate her story” class=”rte2-style-brightspot-core-link-LinkRichTextElement” link-data=”{"cms.site.owner":{"_ref":"00000161-3486-d333-a9e9-76c6fbf30000","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b93390000"},"cms.content.publishDate":1648227578487,"cms.content.publishUser":{"_ref":"00000172-ebac-d265-adff-fffc847c0001","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b933a0007"},"cms.content.updateDate":1648227578487,"cms.content.updateUser":{"_ref":"00000172-ebac-d265-adff-fffc847c0001","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b933a0007"},"link":{"target":"NEW","attributes":[{"name":"label","value":"could corroborate her story","_id":"0000017f-c204-d274-a1ff-cb27e6690001","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b92e00006"},{"name":"class","value":"rte2-style-brightspot-core-link-LinkRichTextElement","_id":"0000017f-c204-d274-a1ff-cb27e6690002","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b92e00006"}],"url":"https://www.businessinsider.com/leland-ingham-keyser-pj-smyth-who-christine-blasey-ford-says-was-at-party-kavanaugh-judge-2018-9","_id":"0000017f-c204-d274-a1ff-cb27e6690003","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b92e10000"},"linkText":"could corroborate her story","_id":"0000017f-c204-d274-a1ff-cb27e6690000","_type":"00000163-0359-d703-a16f-3ff9c7b00000"}”>could corroborate her story</a>.
Lest we forget, Democrats, aided by the press, of course, also went off the rails with Justice Amy Coney Barrett, questioning her fitness for the high court due to her religious beliefs. Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin asked Barrett during her circuit court nomination hearing if she were “Orthodox Catholic.” Durbin said it was fair when asked about it because she’s been “outspoken” about her faith. She’s “outspoken!” How terrible!
Hirono said she was unsure “whether [Barrett’s] closely held [religious] views can be separated from her ability to make objective, fair decisions.” Right. Because Barrett wouldn’t consider the Constitution the proper go-to for her decisions. She’d pick up a Bible instead.
That’s to say nothing of the media’s weird fixation on Barrett’s participation in the group “People of Praise.” Of course, people of religious faith join groups all the time. Still, they wrote of this particular one as if it was a cult, attempting to make it look as though Barrett was accepting of female subjugation in society. There were also the bizarre accusations that Barrett was trying to make up for her “whiteness” by adopting black children. Ibram X. Kendi, the author of the widely panned How To Be An Anti-Racist, called Barrett a “white colonizer” and leveled the preposterous charge that Barrett only did so to claim she couldn’t be racist.
It is the kind of treatment Republican judicial nominees go through by rote. Jackson faced questions about the sentences she gave to those guilty of possessing child pornography, and let’s be honest, no one stumbles upon that filth. Whitehouse asked Kavanaugh about “boofing” while Kavanaugh’s high school yearbook sat prominently in the background.
Credibly accused? All 10 Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee signed a letter written by Sen. Dianne Feinstein calling on then-President Donald Trump to pull Kavanaugh’s nomination after Julie Swetnick alleged Kavanaugh took part in gang rapes. Disgraced and convicted attorney Michael Avenatti, whom people such as Ana Navarro implored to run for president, represented Swetnick, whose allegations were bought hook, line, and sinker until NBC revealed Swetnick as a liar and someone with serious problems to work out.
So please, spare us the histrionics of the treatment of soon-to-be Associate Supreme Court Justice Kentaji Brown Jackson.
