Frenier: Derailing the Kavanaugh nomination damages the country

By Carol Frenier

The move by Sen. Diane Feinstein, D-Calif., to derail the Kavanaugh nomination with a last-minute accusation of sexual assault does damage to our society in many ways.

First of all, the accusation, coming as it does at the 11th hour, assaults our sense of fair play and actually hurts women in the long run. People recognize a power play when they see one. Using sexual assault accusations, timed perfectly to derail a scheduled committee vote, increases the chances that women’s testimony about sexual assault in the future will not be take seriously. Crying wolf for political purposes is going to get old very fast with the general public. Either that or no one is going to be safe from a last-minute, unprovable accusation. There is good reason for these words in a traditional marriage ceremony: “Speak now or forever hold your peace.”

White House

President Bush, on June 1, 2006, attends the swearing-in ceremony for Brett Kavanaugh to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.

Secondly, Democrats need to consider the almost certain payback they will face next time a president in their party has an opportunity to make a Supreme Court appointment. Conservatives will adapt the same extreme strategy to derail a nominee that does not meet their political standards.

As this payback process escalates within the two parties, the whole county loses. The criteria for Supreme Court justices should be judicial skill, not political beliefs. As such, we do not get to vote directly for justices. As Sen. Ben Sasse, R-Neb., so eloquently pointed out during the confirmation hearings, debating and voting on policy belong in the legislative branch. Congress has often abdicated its legislative responsibilities, resulting in the Supreme Court hearing and deciding public policy issues best left to the legislative branches. This has led to a dangerous insistence by both parties that Supreme Court nominees have the “right” political philosophy.

Last but not least, consider this: Judge Kavanaugh is a person. Being a conservative white male does not change that. He is a fellow human being with a career, a reputation and a family — and the right to due process in a court of law, not a public show trial. He has worked hard his whole life. He is loved by family and friends. This hurts. If you have ever been attacked in the public light, you know this.

If his nomination is derailed on one person’s unprovable testimony raising doubt about his character, his reputation will be forever tarnished — even if he is later exonerated. In the future, who in their right mind would allow themselves to be nominated for the Supreme Court — or any other high government position — under these circumstances?

I am well aware that these times are hard for Democrats nationally. In Vermont, these times are hard for Republicans, too. In both cases, these are the times when our civic manners count most.

Carol Frenier is a business owner living in Chelsea, Vermont, and the chair of the Orange County Republican Committee.

Image courtesy of White House

5 thoughts on “Frenier: Derailing the Kavanaugh nomination damages the country

  1. Fully agree. One of the reasons Republicans lose elections is their general adherence to civility and decency. The democrats operate under no such moral constraints as we are seeing at this moment with the Feinstein hoax, and as we have seen since the moment Donald Trump won the Republican nomination. These democrats sincerely believe the ends justify the means, and they feel their disregard for our Constitutionally guaranteed rights is acceptable because only they know what is right for the country. Ironically, almost all ills our society faces can be traced to left wing ideology and initiatives. The silence of Vermont’s three Congressional occupants is deafening in these matters. Why? Because they put party above all else.

  2. Carol Frenier writes; Conservatives will adapt the same extreme strategy to derail a nominee that does not meet their political standards
    `

    “Secondly, Democrats need to consider the almost certain payback they will face next time a president in their party has an opportunity to make a Supreme Court appointment. Conservatives will adapt the same extreme strategy to derail a nominee ……….”

    I fully agree with her premise and conclusions, but…. It is hard to imagine that Republicans would have the gall to superivse a year long series of weekly attacks from nowhere – as the Democrats have done on every situation. Just leak out trash, Weekly – then never follow up on it, because they have another in their basket of Red Herring to throw out tomorrow.

    Doug Richmond

  3. Sen. Diane Feinswine will stoop to any low to further the Marxist agenda as her Sixty Minutes interview quote, “If I could have gotten 51 votes in the Senate of the United States for an outright ban on firearms,picking up every one of them . . . Mr. and Mrs. America, turn ’em all in, I would have done it. I could not do that. The votes weren’t here.”

    The U S Constitution which she has sworn a oath to uphold didn’t prevent her just the lack of votes in the senate

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ffI-tWh37UY

    The senators word is worth nothing and anything she may do is planed to subvert the Constitution.

  4. This just goes to show just how far the DemocRATS will go and it’s doesn’t matter who
    gets in the way of their agenda to StopTrump.

    They Hate Trump and anything he does even if what he does is good for the country. I hope the American people see this charade, Feinstein pulled the last card the Dems
    had to play, this will slow the process for a week or two but the nominee will be confirmed
    and should be. The DemocRATS loose again.

    All these “Holier than thou ” hypocrites in DC, this includes our “Buffoons” that try to show
    how relevant they think they are. I agree with the above “TERM LIMITS” for all.

    Hey Pat & Bernie, what are the skeletons in your closets?? I bet we can dig up a few.

  5. It is unbelievable as to how far these liberals will go to crush anything that President Trump does. They are nothing but a bunch of low lives. These people are supposed to be public servants. What a joke.They are so nasty and this crap will never stop until we have term limits.
    We need to take the power away from these career politicians. it’s way past time to vote them all out and that includes all of Vermont’s legislatures both house and senate.

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