I’m just fascinated, I must confess, by the Republicans who think that Brett Kavanuagh was the victim of some kind of character assassination. And that picking a new justice to succeed Ruth Bader Ginsberg is some kind of “payback.”

Seriously?

First of all, let me point out that Kavanaugh was confirmed.

Secondly, let me point out that there were three women who accused Kavanugh of sexual impropriety: Christine Blasey-Ford, Deborah Ramirez, and Julie Swetnick.[1]

Now, when confronted with Blasey-Ford’s allegations, Kavanaugh went to the “mistaken identity” defense, which is highly unlikely. As someone who has done investigations professionally, let me explain why.

Imagine a scenario in which as a high school boy, you were kicked in the balls so hard by someone you considered a friend that you had to be brought to the hospital to have your balls examined. In that scenario:

• You might not remember exactly what led up to your friend kicking you in the balls;
• You might not remember who brought you to the hospital;
• You might not remember exactly how you and your friend resolved (or failed to resolve) your conflict;
• But, you’d sure as hell remember who kicked you in the balls.

If Brett Kavanaugh had come before the committee and said that he didn’t remember his interaction with Blasey-Ford the same way, that the times were different, that she might have misinterpreted his actions, or even that he was too drunk to remember clearly, I might have accepted that (grudgingly, I confess) as an explanation.

But again, he went with the “mistaken identity” defense. In the most histrionic performance ever witnessed at a confirmation hearing.[2]

Kavanaugh claimed that he believed that Blasey-Ford had indeed been sexually assaulted, but by someone else.

So, Democrats didn’t engage in some kind of character assassination. They followed up on a credible allegation of sexual wrongdoing that, if you look at the weight of the evidence, is quite likely to have been true. And Kavanaugh was confirmed anyway.

But we’re now living in a permanent kind of “opposite day,” where Republicans just turn upside-down what should be obvious to everyone else. Their pretension that the rule that McConnell set up for the Merrick Garland nomination suddenly shouldn’t apply now is hypocrisy at its finest, and even they know it to be true.

[1] Swetnick’s allegations were the last credible, and should maybe just count as half an allegation – since she eventually conceded that she didn’t actually witness some of the “spiked drink” allegations that she had made.

[2] It was more histrionic that Clarence Thomas’ a “high tech lynching” of an “uppity” black man performance.