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Alan Dershowitz On Mitchell Cross-Examination Of Ford: "She Was Totally And Completely Incompetent"
The Daily Caller ^ | 27 September 2018 | Katie Jerkovich

Posted on 09/28/2018 1:55:39 AM PDT by zeestephen

Alan Dershowitz did not hold back his thoughts when asked about Rachel Mitchell’s cross-examination during Christine Blasey Ford’s testimony Thursday on Capitol Hill.

(Excerpt) Read more at dailycaller.com ...


TOPICS: News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: christineford; dershowitz; kavanaugh; rachelmitchell
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To: Ann Archy

I certainly hope you are right, but after what he has allowed to happen to the judge, I will not hold my breath.


41 posted on 09/28/2018 3:13:51 AM PDT by Bob Celeste
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To: BeadCounter

As chair, he could have said to feinstein, “Sorry zanah, the hearings are over, no new false letters, let’s vote!” But instead he allowed the attacks to continue for another ten days.


42 posted on 09/28/2018 3:16:17 AM PDT by Bob Celeste
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To: zeestephen; Bell Bouy II; LS
Larry Schweikart explained it for us.
1) Don't freak out that the Rs did not destroy [Blasey Ford] in her testimony.

THAT WAS NOT THE GOAL. Michell was recommended by Flakey. He would not have done that if he wanted K torpedoed.

Mitchell's questions, therefore, were designed to generate a list of inconsistencies in a kind, gentle manner so no one could remotely say she was "bullied." Mitchell will give these to Judge K in questioning so HE can personally refute them.

2) REMEMBER WHO THE "JURY" IS: it's not the "American people." In this case, the jury is Jeff Flake, Susan Collins, and Lisa Murkowski. That's it. We need 2 of 3 and Pence breaks a tie.

ALL OF THIS was designed to provide cover through serious inconsistencies for Flakey, Tom Collins and MurCowSki.

2) If Mitchell had gone Full Sam Watterson on [Ford], it would have backfired especially with these three senators.

43 posted on 09/28/2018 3:17:51 AM PDT by Lazamataz (On future maps, I suggest we remove the word "California" and substitute "Open-Air Asylum".)
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To: ZULU

And he blew it big time, Grassley served the demon-rats well.


44 posted on 09/28/2018 3:18:49 AM PDT by Bob Celeste
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To: caww

And DiFi was unaware? I say LIAR!!!


45 posted on 09/28/2018 3:21:07 AM PDT by nfldgirl
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To: zeestephen
" Political Rule Number One... If the Hard Left is not assaulting you, that means they do not fear you. "

I preach much the same, Christian Rule Number One...

If satan and it's demons are not assaulting you, that means they do not fear you. If satan and it's forces on earth aka demon-rats, are leaving you alone, then you are not only not a threat to them, you are doing nothing to further the kingdom of Christ.

46 posted on 09/28/2018 3:22:45 AM PDT by Bob Celeste
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To: familyop

If collins votes no or anything but yes, her career is over, she, if she is stupid enough to run again, will be destroyed in the primary.


47 posted on 09/28/2018 3:26:38 AM PDT by Bob Celeste
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To: Ann Archy
Re: “Donald Trump did NOT hire her. Pay attention...”

I believe you.

My point is, why did Trump passively allow Grassley to hire Mitchell?

Kavanaugh is Trump's nominee.

Once again, Trump has made it crystal clear that he will not fight for a Conservative nominee. Yesterday, Trump actually said he might change his mind about Kavanaugh after he - Trump - listens to the testimony!

I will repeat myself - after watching the last two days, after watching Scott Pruitt go down the drain, no more Conservative judges or senior administrators are going to risk their reputations for Donald Trump in the future.

48 posted on 09/28/2018 3:31:54 AM PDT by zeestephen
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To: zeestephen

TRUMP HAS NO SWAY IN THIS!!!


49 posted on 09/28/2018 3:35:38 AM PDT by Ann Archy (Abortion....... The HUMAN Sacrifice to the god of Convenience.)
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To: zeestephen

You missed a great deal, then. Mitchell was eventually tossed aside by Graham. The second half of the hearing was astounding.


50 posted on 09/28/2018 3:36:14 AM PDT by miss marmelstein
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To: All

Why didnt she wear something that fit?

Everytime she gestured her arms hung out of her too short jacket sleeves......she looked like she was going to to wash dishes.


51 posted on 09/28/2018 3:38:43 AM PDT by Liz (Our side has 8 trillion bullets; the other side doesn't know which bathroom to use.)
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To: zeestephen

You honestly think that Trump hired Mitchell??? I believe he’s the one who got on the phone and told Grassley to get her off and let the senators question Kavanaugh.


52 posted on 09/28/2018 3:39:04 AM PDT by miss marmelstein
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To: zeestephen
And what does Trump have to do with that, he isn't controlling the Senate.

You Trump haters get me sick!

53 posted on 09/28/2018 3:40:20 AM PDT by fortheDeclaration
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To: Ann Archy

Re: “TRUMP HAS NO SWAY IN THIS!!!”

If true, that’s one more compelling reason why no Conservative will accept a nomination from Donald Trump in the future.


54 posted on 09/28/2018 3:41:27 AM PDT by zeestephen
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To: zeestephen

I thought she did a great job.

She brought out many inconsistencies and contradictions in Ford’s statements establishing a rather compelling conclusion that Ford had heavily embellished or fabricated her story. She showed many things Ford put as facts in her statements were in fact assumptions or unfounded assertions.

Without coming out and saying it (she couldn’t given the MSM and optics) she thoroughly discredited Ford’s account of the assault.


55 posted on 09/28/2018 3:47:28 AM PDT by Justa
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To: zeestephen
Rachel Mitchell was severely handicapped by the five minute rule, which prevented her from developing lines of questioning, and by the overall shortness of the proceeding. That said, the jury that counts is a small group of Senators who may be on the fence. These presumably are reasonably expert on the key substantive issues. Mitchell's first job was to avoid an ugly, painful cross-examination that would give the dems cheap political points and put added political pressure on Collins, Murkowski, etc. That created an inherent problem for an attorney trying to discredit a witness. Within those confines, Mitchell did a good job. She was polite, a gracious questioner. But she also highlighted the weak spots in Ford's story; she may not have driven the stake through the heart, because that would have been impolite and bad political optics, but for knowledgeable observers, the problems were apparent.

Dr. Ford, who early on said she was nobody's pawn, then went on to testify that she didn't know how her lawyers were being paid, and seemed surprised that learn that they were pro bono. She didn't know how her polygraph test was paid for, or how her Go Fund Me accounts were set up and operated. Apparently unnamed "friends" were doing all that, just as unnamed "friends" had guided her step by step through every stage of the process. Mitchell reduced the fear of flying to a shambles.

To me, the most devastating moment was when it became clear that Dr. Ford did not know that Grassley had offered to send staff out to California to interview Dr. Ford privately. When Mitchell began to explore the point, Ford's lawyer reacted instantly -- by far the most animated moment from Ford's attorneys all day -- to assert lawyer-client privilege. And then Ford went on to give a stumbling answer anyhow, saying (after hurried whispers) that she hadn't completely understood the Committee's offer.

This would have been an opportune moment for Grassley, in his folksy way, to suggest that maybe we need to put Ford's lawyers, Feinstein's staff lawyers, and maybe Democratic Senators under oath and find out who was withholding the Committee's offers from Dr. Ford. There is no point in proceeding in good faith through a person's attorneys if those attorneys are part of a conspiracy keeping their nominal client in the dark and using her as a pawn.Clearly she hadn't been told. Nobody's pawn indeed. This dovetails, by the way, with the view that she never intended to come forward publicly at all, and that her letter was leaked in violation of her wishes and presumably instructions. I think the wavering Senators must surely have noticed.

Ford was an effective witness but was shaky enough throughout to reinforce the theory that she's an emotional mess, that she might indeed have had some ugly incident in her past, but that she's playing fast and loose with reconstructed memories and hypothetical reconstruction of a narrative pieced together by her managers. Mitchell's questioning made it plain that those managers' fingerprints were all over Ford's behavior and testimony throughout this process. If a handful of Senators understands this, Kavanaugh will be confirmed.

And thank goodness for the Senator from South Carolina, who was superb.

56 posted on 09/28/2018 3:50:16 AM PDT by sphinx
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To: zeestephen

She had to walk a line, pointing out inconsistencies in Fords testimony as well as all the totally unsupported allegations, while not stampeding over Ford which would have heated feminists rage. Yes not great but good enough.


57 posted on 09/28/2018 3:55:18 AM PDT by Jimmy Valentine (DemocRATS - when they speak, they lie; when they are silent, they are stealing the American Dream)
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To: caww

She leaks ? They have products for that :

58 posted on 09/28/2018 3:56:33 AM PDT by csvset (illegitimi non carborundum)
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To: familyop

I think that after the DemocRAT monkey show yesterday Kavanaugh will be confirmed easily.


59 posted on 09/28/2018 3:59:34 AM PDT by Jimmy Valentine (DemocRATS - when they speak, they lie; when they are silent, they are stealing the American Dream)
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To: caww
Holy cow! That's a woman?

It's getting harder and harder to tell.

DiFi looked older than I've ever seen her. The walking poster senator for term limits!

60 posted on 09/28/2018 4:04:20 AM PDT by CAluvdubya (<---has now left CA for NV, where God/guns have not been outlawed! She's done and he's won!)
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