September 27, 2018

“Is This Judicial Temperament?” Kavanaugh’s Fiery Opening Remarks Light Up the Internet

The Supreme Court nominee’s furious defiance drew a lot of criticism.

Saul Loeb/AP

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“You may defeat me in the final vote, but you will never get me to quit. Never.” 

His face red and voice rising to a shout, Judge Brett Kavanaugh delivered a blistering rebuttal to the accusations of sexual assault leveled against him by three women, including Christine Blasey Ford, a psychology professor who described the grim details of her alleged assault to the Senate Judiciary Committee over several hours Thursday morning.

On social media, political commentators reacted to Kavanaugh’s furious tone:

https://twitter.com/JessicaValenti/status/1045396142224224256

The fury of Kavanaugh’s opening remarks drew parallels to Justice Clarence Thomas, who famously compared sexual harassment allegations against him to a “high-tech lynching.” 

Kavanaugh went on to criticize Democratic senators like Cory Booker of New Jersey—whom he did not refer to by name—for calling his supporters complicit in “evil.” 

Kavanaugh attached a partisan motivation to the allegations, saying they were driven by animus against President Donald Trump and even constituted “revenge on behalf of the Clintons.”

Listen: Jamilah King hosts a special breaking news edition of the Mother Jones Podcast, with Supreme Court reporter Stephanie Mencimer and Washington DC Bureau Chief David Corn. Everything you need to know about the historic Kavanaugh hearings—and what comes next.

We want to hear from you: How are you reacting to the hearing? We may publish a selection of your responses in a follow-up story.

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We just wrapped up a shorter-than-normal, urgent-as-ever fundraising drive and we came up about $45,000 short of our $300,000 goal.

That means we're going to have upwards of $350,000, maybe more, to raise in online donations between now and June 30, when our fiscal year ends and we have to get to break-even. And even though there's zero cushion to miss the mark, we won't be all that in your face about our fundraising again until June.

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