I’ll admit upfront that I got ahead of myself yesterday along with so many tens of millions of other folks after Dr. Ford’s heroic testimony. Btw I feel qualified in calling her a hero because I’ve had the honor of not just meeting but even getting to know and working with genuine heroes who have literally risked life and limb (not only in the military) for our country. Dr. Christine Blasey Ford has through her service of stepping forward into the glare of an international spotlight to render a public service by spending hours reliving the worst experience of her life ranks with any hero I’ve know either personally, only met briefly or have admired from afar.
Given the reactions journalists were reporting not just on Capitol Hill but the White House during the recess between Dr. Ford’s and Kavanaugh’s appearance I allowed myself to jump ahead, thinking that if not before last night but certainly by today at the time I’m writing this Kavanaugh would have either withdrawn on his own or been forced to by the WH.
I was devastated as the day progressed and as I heard reports that Trump had rebounded and loved Kavanaugh’s rants that it wasn’t over, and worse than that odds were by early next week instead of Judge Kavanaugh it would be “Justice” Kavanaugh. First thing this morning I did what I could, stuff like organizing a list of points to use calling and writing my Senators, especially Tillis who sits on Judiciary as I’ve done every day recently. I don’t let believing I’m going to lose anyway stop me from keeping up the fight and so I try to land every blow I can just to make an opponent (like Tillis) fight me and take any punishment I can dish out until the very end. And since I believe both he and eventually Burr will vote to confirm I intend to regularly let them know that I’m not the only white guy in NC who will remember when their next election (and Tillis is up in 2020) comes around.
Anyway, much has been written here on Kos about Lindsay Graham’s conversion into not just a Trump Toady but a full throated supporter. I could write several diaries on it as there are multiple aspects to the conversion but while he has always been fiercely partisan sometimes and become significantly more so this year yesterday he did a full on dive into bat-shit-crazy mode. His remarks in the hall during the day were way the hell out there in and of themselves. And then there was his combination meltdown/explosion in the afternoon. It was like watching some horrible melding of Alex Jones & Rudy Giuliani. He violated as many (Senate) norms and customs in five minutes as Trump could do and that as you know is saying something. The difference is that Graham has spent most of his life following the rules and customs. Trump of course has never given a rat’s ass about such things. But Graham” Even when doing/saying something awful he still pretty much did so within the bounds of long-standing Senatorial courtesies. But not yesterday. Graham was still a steaming pile of bubbling shit when his committee adjourned yesterday. I imagine he got a nice phone call from Trump, and I wouldn’t be the least bit surprised if that chat didn’t include discussion of when Graham would replace Sessions.
So what the hell happened overnight and this morning?
It’s possible that Graham was embarrassed both for himself and the Senate at his tirade and what it unleashed. However I’m not sure that’s the entire story. Watching him after Grassley adjourned this afternoon being cordial, displaying an “oh well, what can we do?” attitude and even kind of joking about someone having to explain what’s just happened to Trump and he guessed it would have to be him was a pretty shocking (to me at least) 180 degree shift in attitude in less than 24 hours. One might also reasonably think that Graham is confident that even if there’s no floor vote on Kavanaugh until a week from now it’s no big deal, and worth it “for the good of the country and the reputation of the Supreme Court.”
Now, as I said I don’t want to get my hopes up but it might be more than that. Once he cooled down and took a look at what was being reported late last night and this morning he might have thought “uh oh.” Hearing that while Trump and many (including him) just loooooved how Kavanagh came out ranting and shouting real questions were being raised about both Kavanaugh’s naked partisanship but whether his judicial temperament would forever cloud him and the reputation of the Court. Much more so than Thomas, who it’s been noted would have been staunchly conservative but actually became a case of a Justice doing all he could to enact revenge for his confirmation process. Once Graham settled down and the adrenaline was gone I can see even him having some thoughts along the line of WTF have I just done — not just to myself but the Supreme Court? Graham doesn’t seem to have ever taken issue with all these Federalist Society types getting SCOTUS nominations and other federal judgeships but unless I’m wrong he’s never been a true Federalist Society devotee, or even a member.
But there was other stuff coming out. On the news it was being pointed out the issue that Graham’s rant was designed to stop their hired outside prosecutor narrowing down a possible, even likely date of the assault on Dr. Ford. Names, including one we’d never heard before had been named. That means even if the FBI never investigated journalists sure as hell would start digging. Tracing the house where the guys were going to meet & knock back some “skis” wouldn’t take too much and even if whomever lives there now won’t let any journalists in obtaining the floor plans wouldn’t be too tough for a determined journalist(s).
Then you have all these people Kavanaugh knew in college being talked about on TV or talking to journalists about how Kavanaugh was in fact a get falling-down drunk guy at Yale which gave lie to his testimony yesterday. And much as he might despise Michael Avenatti he knows Trump is afraid of the guy so he should be too. With tidbits coming out about a possible 60 Minutes interview Sunday night where Ms. Swetnick (who would be well prepared) appeared along with corroborating witnesse and/or evidence was something to worry about. Whether one admires or despises him the fact is Avenatti has an awfully good track record in delivering on what he’s promised. IOW even without the FBI doing even a few days of proper investigating plenty was going to come out — none of it good for Kavanaugh. Or anyone in the GOP defending him, or even voting for him. Hopefully others have been posing the question to their own GOP Senators that I’ve been posing to mine — Are you sure rape is the political hill you want to die on?
However that’s not all. Last night the ABA pulled back from Kavanaugh and called for an FBI investigation. So that fig leaf the GOP has made such a big deal about is now gone. Yale Law school has also done the same. But what really might matter the most is that the Jesuits who run the elite Georgetown Prep where Kavanaugh went to high school cut him loose. In their premier publication they didn’t merely call for an FBI investigation — they rescinded their endorsement of him! And their cutting him loose was clear an unequivocal. So Kavanaugh can’t hide behind that any more either. The very religious order he cites as giving him his core principles basically has stated on record “We failed with this guy. He’s not fit for such an important position.” That has to be cutting guy like Kavanaugh to his core.
I’d like to have been a fly on the wall when Kavanaugh learned about THAT. I also wonder if Graham checked in to see how he was doing, and realized maybe not well. Not well at all.
But my point is that while it’s possible, and even probably likely that Graham started playing nice all of a sudden this afternoon to, as Senator Flake said in the committee try to start healing the country it might well be more than that.
So much has been made here and everywhere about how the GOP has conducted itself in this process, and specifically since Dr. Ford’s allegation how hard they’ve fought to keep the FBI as far away as possible. Anyone with half a brain thinks its’ because the GOP (and Kavanaugh) has been deathly afraid of what FBI Special Agents who unlike Senate staffers have extraordinary training in conducting actual fact finding investigations would turn up.
After thinking a bit about Graham’s complete personality transplant between yesterday and today, I can’t help but wonder if Graham knows exactly what the FBI will learn and it won’t be good for Kavanaugh or the GOP. And that agreeing to a week’s delay will provide time for the WH to figure out a way to cut Kavanaugh loose and minimize losses in November — and to create an exit strategy that provides an at least semi-graceful exit for Kavanaugh.
Not that Kavanaugh deserves any such thing. He can rant, and whine & cry about the hell he’s been through this past couple of week’s and I could care less about the very real humiliation and emotional pain he’s going through because HIS is for all the wrong reasons. More (and most) important I don’t care about his personal hell of the past couple of weeks because the woman he tried to RAPE, and literally caused to fear for her life has been going through her own hell for the past 36 years! And she and her family have been going through the same public hell Kavanaugh and his family has been going through these past two weeks. In her case longer because reporters had started showing up at her home and work, which is why she went public in the first place — to take what control she could because she knew the day was coming (and soon) that she’d be outed whether she wanted it or not.
So I don’t give a flying fuck about Brett Kavanaugh and his feelings. He sure as hell doesn’t deserve a graceful exit from all this but for the sake of his wife and children (especially his kids) I can live with it. IF some of the discussion between Democrats and Republicans on the committee included Democrats promising to allow Kavanaugh a graceful exit (if only for his family’s sake) should the on the table again FBI investigation turn up what everyone (including the GOP believes it will I can see Graham all of a sudden wanting to seem conciliatory. To, to paraphrase Senator Flake take a step to heal their committee, the Senate and the country.
Again, none of us should go counting our chickens before they’ve hatched. As I said before mid afternoon yesterday it looked like Kavanaugh was toast. But by evening the stake had been pulled from the vampire’s heart and he was roaming free again. However, due to things I’ve cited in this diary various blows have been struck to drive the stake back in. And maybe, just maybe Graham knows that THIS time the vampire’s head will be cut off and the mouth filled with garlic — and that it might well be impossible to prevent.
Maybe, just maybe that’s why Graham’s short chat with reporters in the hall was so different than yesterday. Because he’s in salvage (himself, the GOP and Trump) mode. Maybe.