Ignoring the he-said-she-said aspect of this currently, I’m simply stunned at how ridiculously partisan Kavanaugh sounded during the hearing.
I would expect anyone being considered for the Supreme Court to be a little less partisan.
I agree. As others have noted, most justices have political leanings in terms of liberal/conservative, as most people do, but what is surprising (though I guess shouldn’t be these days) is how openly opinionated he is in terms of party politics, which the position is supposed to be divorced from.
Beyond that, what struck me most was his demeanor. Maybe I have a high bar, but I don’t think someone who can’t conduct themselves in a hearing without being overly emotional and confrontational in this way should be on the Supreme Court. I don’t buy that “if he’s innocent he’s emotional because his life is at stake” excuse either. Perhaps if this was the first time he had heard the accusations it’d be excusable. But at this point, none of the questions in the hearing should have been a surprise. If he’s not guilty as he says he is, but he can’t give a straight answer to a very simple question about whether he’d support an FBI investigation without becoming histrionic, then that’s a problem. Whether he’s just overacting or easily flustered, it’s not a good look for him or the Republicans supporting him.
Pretending we know how people should behave under stress is a bit silly. I see cops do this same thing when they question suspects; they insist someone is acting atypically when there really is no “typical”, then they hammer them until they’re exasperated and suggest maybe they’re exasperated because they’re hiding something. I’d like to see the average American throwing shade at this guy deal with this kind of scrutiny and pressure and stay cool.
I didn’t say anything about him being exasperated because he’s “hiding something,” that’s irrelevant to my point (I was specifically looking at it from the perspective that he potentially isn’t lying). It’s not about how “people” behave under stress, it’s how a potential Supreme Court justice should behave. For what is ostensibly a job interview, I’d say he acted extremely unprofessional - to say the least - whether he’s hiding something or not. He’s not an average Joe suddenly under a cop’s microscope. He’s a judge, he shouldn’t have a problem in this setting, and let’s not forget this wasn’t even a trial.
Who’s to say how I’d fare in the same situation, but then again I’m not the one up for one of the most important positions in the nation.