Posted on 07/13/2019 2:51:57 AM PDT by Kaslin
Pundits credit different events for turning the tide on now-Justice Brett Kavanaugh’s contentious Supreme Court confirmation. Some point to Kavanaugh’s impassioned testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee. Still others say it was Sen. Lindsey Graham’s (R-S.C.) fiery speech, in which he lambasted his Democratic judiciary committee colleagues for withholding the allegations against Kavanaugh and then leaking those allegations at the most politically opportune time for Senate liberals.
As Mollie Hemingway and Carrie Severino detail in their just released bestselling book, Justice on Trial, Democrats might have succeeded in derailing Kavanaugh’s nomination if it weren’t for the courageous women who bucked the progressive groupthink and stood true to their moral compass—namely Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), traditionally more moderate and left-of-center than her Republican peers, and registered Democrat Leland Keyser, a childhood friend of Kavanaugh accuser Professor Christine Blasey Ford.
“I think [Sen.] Collins … did more to expose the ugliness of the controversy around the Kavanaugh [nomination] process than any other senator,” then-Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) tweeted after Sen. Collins delivered a 43-minute statement explaining her rationale for voting to confirm to the Supreme Court now-Justice Kavanaugh. “I commend [Sen.] Collins for her thoughtfulness [and] am proud to have her support for such a well[-]qualified nominee.”
Sen. Collins’ speech covered a lot of ground and systematically addressed the allegations against the judicial nominee, his credentials and first-hand analysis of the longtime litigator and judge, including commentary from Lisa Blatt, an abortion proponent and former clerk to left-leaning Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
“Lisa Blatt, who has argued more cases before the Supreme Court than any other woman in history, testified, ‘By any objective measure, Judge Kavanaugh is clearly qualified to serve on the Supreme Court. His opinions are invariably thoughtful and fair,’” said Collins. “[Blatt] also observed that Judge Kavanaugh is remarkably committed to promoting women in the legal profession.”
Indeed, Kavanaugh is ahead of the times and his peers when it comes to putting women on his payroll. As Erin Hawley, associate professor of law at the University of Missouri and a former clerk to Chief Justice John Roberts, said in a Chicago Sun-Times column ahead of Kavanaugh’s confirmation, he “has hired more women as law clerks than men. Eighty-four percent of those women have gone on to clerk at the Supreme Court. And he is the only D.C. Circuit judge to have ever hired four women in the same year for a clerkship.&rdquo
It was Blasey Ford’s word against Kavanaugh’s, and our American tradition of “innocent until proven guilty” reigned victorious in the end thanks to Keyser’s statement—and thanks to Sen. Collins who, in good conscience, couldn’t torpedo the confirmation of a man with an otherwise outstanding reputation based on toothless allegations that a “reasonable prosecutor” wouldn’t even bring before the committee.
Likewise, as Justice on Trial reveals: despite being Ford's friend, despite her desire not to see Kavanaugh on the court, and despite being pressured to lie in order to sink his nomination, Keyser's integrity won out.
As Sen. Collins said, “That such an allegation can find its way into the Supreme Court confirmation process is a stark reminder about why the presumption of innocence is so ingrained in our American consciousness.”
The Kavanaugh spectacle was the defining moment for me. The allegations were clearly false, the hysteria was clearly unwarranted, the farce of US Senators examining HS yearbooks for clues was hilarious. It was suddenly apparent to me in a way that it was not before, that the democratic party (as an institution) had no scruples left to cast aside in their pursuit of power. Essentially, they conducted a trial against a citizen of this country because they do not like the way he thinks. That is not the America I served. Nor it is an America I want to live in. While I do not call myself a republican I will vote against any democrat claiming to represent me most likely until the day I die.
I agree.
What is not appropriate are the dozens of shrill Free Republic comments that refer to “Pedo Island” and the “Lolita Express.”
The new indictment makes no reference to the Island and alleges no criminal activity on the private plane.
There have also been dozens of Free Republic comments raging against former U.S. Attorney Alexander Acosta for the plea deal that Jeffrey Epstein got.
Acosta and his entire prosecution team - which included the woman who now has Acosta's old job - concluded there was insufficient evidence to prove any federal crime.
In addition, Pam Bondi, the former A.G. of Florida, supported Acosta's plea deal.
Bondi points out that a Florida state Grand Jury heard all the same evidence that Acosta had and returned just ONE criminal charge - which was the exact charge that Epstein pleaded guilty to.
Bottom Line - the entire government case depends on two types of witnesses.
First, Epstein's assistants, who can get reduced prison sentences by testifying against their old boss.
Second, the victims, who will score a major pay day if Epstein gets convicted.
It is shocking and demoralizing to me that so many Free Republic Conservatives believe this legal travesty is some kind of “justice.”
I still think OJ did it....
Having once dated a sociopath, and had my eyes open that 'some people just aren't the same species as me' in terms of how their minds work, I did a lot of reading on sociopaths.
Most of them fail miserably (and actually most aren't that extreme, many aren't intelligent enough to compensate for their recklessness with clever secret doors) ... but a certain few will go a long long long time with a crazy scheme. Lacking empathy and having no regard for risk, 98% of crash and burn. But a few will make it a long long long way.
So this whole blackmail thing seems to me to be gaining some rational traction.
So do I.
But I'm not inclined to surrender my own Constitutional rights because an occasional guilty man walks free.
By the way, Pam Bondi, former A.G. of Florida, supported the plea bargain. Bondi also pointed out that a state Grand Jury, which heard the same evidence that Acosta had, returned just one state criminal charge, which was the charge that Epstein eventually pleaded guilty to.
Also, the current U.S. Attorney in the Southern District of Florida is Ariana Fajardo Orshan.
She was part of Acosta's prosecution team against Epstein.
She endorsed the plea deal, she was appointed by Trump, and approved by the U.S. Senate.
Epstein already pleaded guilty for sex crimes against children.
Actually, he pleaded guilty to one Florida state crime of soliciting prostitution from a person under 18 years of age.
That plea deal has been publicly endorsed by former U.S. Attorney Alexander Acosta, by current Southern District of Florida U.S. Attorney Ariana Fajardo Orshan (who was part of the federal prosecution team), and by Pam Bondi, former A.G. of Florida.
Bondi has pointed out that a Florida Grand Jury heard the same evidence that Acosta heard, but they returned just one criminal charge against Epstein, the same charge that Epstein eventually pleaded guilty to.
Sex crimes against children.
Re: Sex crimes against children.
No.
One crime.
Against one person - who was at least 16 years old, which is the age of consent in Florida, but was younger than 18 years old, which means she was a minor, but not a child.
The penalty for soliciting sex from a child under 16 would have been much more severe.
I agree - but sometimes the law actually goes after the bad guys...I’m more prone to trust some of what they’re doing with Trump in the WH (especially post Mueller and with Barr as AG). Seems like the person I initially replied may be jumping the shark in saying that they’re trying to railroad the guy...more evidence around to cast aspersions on Epstein than there is to substantiate that screed.
I have already acknowledged that Epstein might be a complete scumbag.
But the Constitution says that even scumbags have inalienable rights.
When it becomes OK to deprive scumbags of their rights, Conservative activists will be next on the list.
BS. The fact that liberal women eagerly entertain and encourage such outrageous slander is why it is happening with ever accellerating intensity and audacity.
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