During the presidential election many voters chose to ignore Donald Trump’s many shortcomings (which I will refrain from enumerating) because he was seen as the means to their end of changing the composition of the Supreme Court. The goal was to transform the Supreme Court and thereby remove constitutional protection for abortion and reverse decisions on numerous other social issues such as same sex marriage.
With the appointment of Brett Kavanaugh, these changes may come to pass.
I think that a Republican President could have done better than Brett Kavanaugh.
In his typical style, Donald Trump has left chaos in his wake.
DAHLIA LITHWICK wrote in Slate on Brett Kavanaugh’s Nomination:
Donald Trump is running the table. He has managed, with his Brett Kavanaugh nomination circus, to undermine the FBI, the judicial branch, the media, and the legal academy. He’s done all that while being openly malevolent and revanchist about the dignity of sexual assault survivors in America. Everything the man touches turns to garbage and it’s surely just a happy accident that the institutions—like courts and federal law enforcement—that have been arrayed against him will all come out of this Supreme Court nightmare both tarnished and diminished.
This is the “bad news” that has been ongoing since Trump assumed office.
Yet Brett Kavanaugh makes it all seem worse.
Kavanaugh’s bellicose, entitled, and nakedly partisan response to the charges of sexual assault against, him have not only revealed a judicial temperament ill-suited for the nation’s highest court, but exposed a partisan outlook that seems immune from deliberation.
Kavanaugh’s appointment is a testament to the craven nature of Senate Republicans. It is an affront to victims of sexual violence. It cracks the veneer on a broken political system.
I do not apologize for my anger and disgust about this most recent affront to my values. I struggle to find any kind of silver lining.
I am uncertain if Brett Kavanaugh’s conformation will have a positive impact on the upcoming mid-term elections. Partisan rancor remains at a fever pitch. Both sides are energized.
Kavanaugh’s confirmation has caused me to question my faith in democracy and my belief that increased voter participation, on whatever side, is a good thing.
Despite my misgivings and frustrations, I remain engaged in the political process.
There are candidates who share my commitment to supporting human worth and dignity and who believe that the government is there to promote basic human equality.
The recent setbacks in progress toward a more egalitarian society do not belie the over-reaching arc toward justice.
These are indeed tough times. I am going to go out and find friends to be with in silent solidarity as a balm to my wounded spirit. It is through others that I will restore my hope in the potential for human goodness.
