by Lloyd Billingsley
Kavanaugh’s accuser wants an FBI investigation; here’s what Republicans need to do next.
On Tuesday Brett Kavanaugh accuser Christine Blasey Ford made it known she would only testify if the FBI investigates first. Hillary Clinton, Chuck Schumer and other Democrats echoed this demand, but former U.S. Attorney Joseph diGenova wasn’t going for it.
“This is utter nonsense,” diGenova told Tucker Carlson of Fox News. Blasey Ford “really doesn’t want to testify. Because when she does, she is going to look like the loon she is. She may very well believe everything she’s saying, and that is one of the signs of lunacy, believing something that isn’t real.” And her lawyer was “even loonier.”
As the former U.S. Attorney explained, the accusation is a nonfederal matter, an alleged assault unconfirmed even by the witness herself. She failed to report it to anyone and was not sure when it happened or where it happened, or who else was there. So the FBI could not investigate “because there is nothing to investigate.”
On Wednesday, Blasey Ford’s attorney Lisa Banks said there are “multiple witnesses” who should testify and Ford wants a “full non-partisan investigation.” But as law professor Jonathan Turley pointed out Wednesday, “conditioning testimony on a criminal investigation by a federal agency is well beyond the province of any witness.”
Kavanaugh has endured six FBI background checks and the Bureau was on record that it would do nothing with the 36-year-old accusation. So it was all, as diGenova said, “clearly a desire to delay proceedings.” Carlson wondered why any Republicans would go along with that and asked diGenova how he would advise them.
“Have a vote on Thursday,” he said. “Like you promised you would.” Would this happen, Carlson wondered? “God no,” diGenova said. “They are scared of their own shadow.”
Top Republicans have indicated they would move forward with a vote if Ford chose not to testify. Sen. Bob Corker, no friend of the President, tweeted, “If we don’t hear from both sides on Monday, let’s vote.” Trump critic Sen. Jeff Flake said if the accuser does now show up, “I think we'll have to move to the markup.” That may indicated more support for a vote from Republicans solidly behind the president, but questions remain.
If the accuser declines to testify, it remains unclear whether Republicans such as Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski would urge a vote. Both have been heavily targeted by the Progressive Change Campaign Committee, which demands that they “publicly oppose Kavanaugh,” a man “hostile to women on all levels.”
Those puzzled by the accusations against Kavanaugh might dial back to 1991 and have a look at the confirmation hearings for Clarence Thomas. The “Saturday Night Live” sketch, with Kevin Nealon as Sen. Joe Biden and Al Franken as Sen. Paul Simon, is also worth attention. For their part, the current proceedings truly defy satire.
Kavanaugh has testified at length but nobody has heard a word from this accuser. She speaks through attorney Debra Katz, a Democrat activist. When Paula Jones accused Bill Clinton of sexual misconduct, Katz defended Clinton, not the woman.
As Katz brokers the story, Kavanaugh intended to rape Blasey Ford, who feared he might kill her. As with a bad movie, you can see the screenplay and hear the story conference. Not a single fact has been established, and it’s all accusation.
Diane Feinstein failed to bring up Blasey Ford’s letter despite many chances to do so. The California Democrat doesn’t know if everything is true, but still finds Ford to be credible. So does Hillary Clinton, who on Tuesday called for an FBI investigation, and told reporters that Dr. Ford “be given the courtesy of having some facts laid out.” According to Charles Schumer, “an immediate FBI investigation is not only consistent with precedent, it is also quite clearly the right thing to do.”
For Sen. Mazie Hirono, the problem was not Brett Kavanaugh but “the men in this country.” The Hawaii Democrat told the men to “Just shut up and step up. Do the right thing for a change.” Women like Dr. Ford “need to be believed” and “enlightened men” were to decry “the victimization and the smearing of someone like Dr. Ford.” So Ford is being smeared, not Kavanaugh.
Only a certified loon could accept a decades-old unprovable accusation as cause to delay a vote and, in effect, reverse the 2016 election. Only somebody scared of their own shadow would fail to urge a vote at the earliest time.
Kavanaugh deserves swift confirmation but that will not put an end to baseless allegations. Consider this Monday tweet from ABC News chief political analyst Matthew Dowd.
“It was despicable and outrageous what happened to Anita Hill more than 25 years ago, and a sexual predator was given a lifetime seat on the SC. Let’s hope history doesn’t repeat itself in 2018.” With Democrats and their media allies, the high-tech lynching season never ends.
Source: https://www.frontpagemag.com/fpm/271376/kavanaugh-and-doing-right-thing-lloyd-billingsley
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