Do you like beer
The Guardian Live is reporting from the Supreme Court hearing.
Senator Ted Cruz, a Republican from Texas and a presidential aspirant, is speaking now in remarks peppered with conservative talking points and grievances.
Cruz began by recounting the history of Supreme Court nominations and lamented how contentious they have become, though he notably left out the controversial and unprecedented decision by then-majority leader McConnell to deny Obama the opportunity to fill a supreme court vacancy, which infuriated Democrats and poisoned the already-poisoned well…
Echoing his Republican colleagues, he said the hearings would be different [from] the Kavanaugh hearings. “No one is going to inquire into your teenage dating habits. No one is going to ask you with mock severity, do you like beer.”
And why is that? Because she doesn’t have a history of sexual assault or of alcohol abuse. Kavanaugh has such a history. It matters.
That was a talking point for most of the gop Senators I listened too. Poor Lyndsey Graham had a sad because Biden didn’t nominate a woman from his state. A few of them were shocked! that there was “dark money” backing Jackson’s nomination. Mike Lee thinks the USA is GOAT of all civilizations. And poor Chuck Grassley could barely stay awake as he read from his notes about some obscure panel that Jackson was on during the Obama administration.
I imagine that the only way Jackson (or any SC nominee, really) can get through this ordeal is by silently repeating, “This is the last time I’ll ever have to do this.”
My recollection — and some brief googling confirms this — is that no one asked Kavanaugh (with or without “mock severity”) if he liked beer. He said that in response to a question about whether something in his yearbook was a reference to alcohol, and whether he drank alcohol in high school.
Now, you can make an argument that those are inappropriate questions, because it shouldn’t matter whether someone drank in high school or not. (Personally, I consider it a plus, and would be suspicious of those of you who didn’t… I’m kidding. Mostly.) But Kavanaugh’s particular circumstances put those questions in issue because (1) his teenage drinking is relevant to the question of whether he could accurately recall his encounter with Ford (or accurately deny such an encounter) at a party; and (2) he told repeated obvious lies about other things in his yearbook.
Attempted rape is a “dating habit”?
No one asked Kavanaugh whether he ‘liked beer.’ That line was his blatantly alcoholic rationalization when his reckless drinking behavior was brought up.
latsot, for some guys I’m pretty certain it is. Possibly unconsciously for some of them. I mean, there are still guys who seem to believe that if you get a girl drunk/stoned enough to have sex with it’s not rape.
JtD, that is exactly correct. yet more deflection by the icks.
Rob,
Oh, I have no doubt. I was just raising an eyebrow at Cruz saying it outright.
Jackson was asked by Marsha Blackburn to define “woman”, and Jackson said she couldn’t, she’s not a biologist. Under the circumstances, I think Jackson sidestepped the question more adroitly than many, but the line of questioning and what it says about the political nature of this simple concept is distressing.
The GOP’s questioning of her was just a performative CF from beginning to end. Attempted religious test, quoting her out of context to invert the position she was taking, describing her as ‘articulate’ (there’s a 90’s Chris Rock routine about that), Asking her the same question about Court stacking that Barrett was asked and getting the exact same answer but being shocked by it. On and On. I think it was Kevin Kruse described it as being one of the best qualified people in many years facing an interview from someone with the IQ of sunscreen*.
* 50+ for those not getting the joke.