Brett Kavanaugh’s Senate confirmation hearing has descended into chaos

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The Republicans aren’t going to do anything about Donald Trump right now because he keeps nominating men like Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court. Kavanaugh is a doughy misogynist, and for most Republicans, it’s like looking into a mirror. They identify with his privilege, his mediocrity, his hatred of women. Kavanaugh’s Senate confirmation hearing started yesterday. I didn’t watch any of it (because tennis). But I kept up with the drama online. There were protesters:

There was a Republican operative flashing a “White Power” signal behind Kavanaugh mid-hearing too. Her name is Zina Bash and she’s been working behind-the-scenes to prepare Kavanagh for the hearing. Before that, she helped Stephen Miller craft the “immigration policy” that threw thousands of children into cages on the border.

And finally, during a break in the hearing, a man named Fred Guttenberg tried to introduce himself to Kavanagh. Guttenberg is the father of one of the students murdered at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. Kavanagh glanced at Guttenberg and turned his back on him. Possibly because the NRA has already spent millions of dollars waging a campaign to put Kavanagh on the bench.

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125 Responses to “Brett Kavanaugh’s Senate confirmation hearing has descended into chaos”

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  1. Belluga says:

    The Dems need to block him as hard as the Goppers blocked Garland. This is disgraceful.

    • Sarah says:

      Given that the Dems do not have a majority like the Rethugs had during the Garland debacle, I don’t see how they’re going to block any of this.

    • Cate says:

      We the people need to do our part too. If you haven’t already, start calling GOP members of the judiciary committee (Hatch, Grassley, Graham, Cruz, Cornyn, Tillie, Flake….) and tell them you are opposed want a delay. If their phone lines are jammed up, they *might* reconsider what they are doing.

  2. Rapunzel says:

    Ugh. There were so many liberal folks on Twitter (mostly white men) trying to make it seem like Bash didn’t flash the white power sign, and that liberals shouldn’t engage in these pizzagate style conspiracy theories. This was not a pizzagate level conspiracy theory. She clearly put her hand like that intentionally. Nobody sits like that naturally.

    • KNy says:

      OMG I know! Who makes that sign naturally with their fingers? Like, who? Everyone needs to be called out. This is so infuriating.

      • Onerous says:

        Exactly this! It’s so OBVIOUS when they do it because it’s in no way a natural position for anyone’s fingers! Ridiculous!

      • Jan90067 says:

        If you guys aren’t aware of @slpg_giants look them up. They call out this kind of thing; they made me aware of her. I can’t believe her grandparents, as Millers, were Holocaust survivors, yet they participate in all this racism and hate.

        Here is their info: Sleeping Giants
        Social media activism organization
        Sleeping Giants is a social media activism organization aiming to persuade companies to remove ads from conservative news outlets that promote “bigotry, sexism, and racism”. The campaign started in November 2016, shortly after Donald Trump’s victory in the United States presidential election, with the launch of a Twitter account aiming to boycott Breitbart News. The first tweet targeted personal finance company SoFi. Most tweets on the account are messages to companies advertising on Breitbart – of these, most are not from the account itself, but are retweets of the messages of independent volunteers.

    • Belluga says:

      Exactly! If it was a screenshot of a split second while she was moving her hand, that would be entirely different. She put her hand like that and held it there.

    • Swack says:

      The “it’s the way she sits” excuse blew me away. But if you watch when Trump speaks, many times his hand has the same gesture. Does he know what he is doing – who knows.

    • boredblond says:

      The fact that she works on policy with a p.o.s. like miller is proof enough of her bigotry..I just have no idea how these people live with themselves.

    • Lightpurple says:

      Zina Bash is married to John Bash, US attorney for the Western District of Texas. John Bash decided to defend his wife yesterday afternoon but he decided to use his official Twitter account to do so, a flagrant and unethical use of the power of his office and the federal regulations that govern usage of official accounts and federally-owned IT devices for federal employees. He should be disciplined by the Department of Justice. Let Sessions know you want him punished.

      • Digital Unicorn says:

        She’s referred to as an heiress, of what? It is her or her husband that has the money?

    • Kitten says:

      YES! I literally came here to say this exactly! I was beefing with so many libs on Twitter yesterday about this. I mean COME ON. Try posing with your fingers on your arm like that. It is NOT natural nor is it easy. It’s not like her fingers were just casually splayed on the opposite arm–they were in a circle shape and HELD THERE. If she were moving them I would give her the benefit of the doubt and say maybe she was picking a scab.

      Also, has anyone seen the longer clip where she gets a text message and stares at her phone THEN makes that symbol? She got a signal from someone. I think someone saw that the camera was on her and told her to signal the white nationalists.

      Also, liberals are like “she can’t be racist-she’s Hispanic!”
      :/
      *eyeroll*

      • Betsy says:

        In a sense, she is trying to pick a scab.

        These people are just NARSTY.

      • Frida_K says:

        And look at her eyes. She starts looking from side to side as though she’s quite excited about all of this and indeed hoping to stir the pot.

        It’s pathetic, actually. These people are pathetic. She looks like a halibut with her tiny eyes and her pursed smirking mouth. She’s not the hottie provocateur that she fancies herself to be by a long shot.

        And no, she didn’t manage to distract from what matters. I’m still wondering who paid Kavanaugh’s huge credit card bills, for example, and why his records are not being freely shared with the senate and the American people. That’s where my mind goes after I finish rolling my eyes at this pathetic woman and her childish display.

      • C says:

        Who do you guys keep referring to as “libs” and “liberals”? I’ve never heard them used to describe what you’re describing.

      • Kitten says:

        Exactly–it’s not *just* the hand gesture, it’s her entire body language. There is no way that this wasn’t intentional. No way.

        Also ITA that we can walk and chew gum at the same time. This incident shouldn’t be ignored, but we need to get our head back in the game because November is Coming.

        OT but I voted for Ayanna Presley yesterday and I’m very excited to be part of that upset. Although I do like Capuano very much, it is time to get more women of color who have experience and progressive platforms in positions of power on the state and local level.

        @ C – Huh?? It’s short for liberals. Obviously.

      • Louisa says:

        And Stephen Miller is Jewish. It means nothing.

      • pixiestyx says:

        As she’s making the sign she’s blinking like crazy and as soon as she stops blinking returns to normal.

      • Jovi says:

        @Kitten EXACTLY. I could see maybe if she was scratching her arm or something, but she ain’t. She positioned her hand in that way. What a tool.

      • tealily says:

        And she’s smirking like a 12-year-old in the back of the classroom. I cannot handle the level of smugness these people carry. They are all the kids I hated at school.

      • Stumpycorgi says:

        The white supremacists absolutely interpret this shit as Trump signaling his allegiance to them. I guarantee they do not see this hand gesture as anything but a victory.

        “[A]s Sarah Posner and David Neiwert reported at Mother Jones, what the media largely treated as gaffes — Trump retweeting white nationalists, Trump describing Mexican immigrants as “rapists” and criminals — were, to white supremacists, real signals approving their racist causes. One white supremacist wrote, “Our Glorious Leader and ULTIMATE SAVIOR has gone full-wink-wink-wink to his most aggressive supporters.”

        https://www.vox.com/identities/2017/9/15/16313800/trump-jemele-hill-espn-white-supremacist

        FULL WINK-WINK-WINK.

        There are no words sufficient to express my rage.

      • eliseridge says:

        pixiestyx: I completely agree! When I watched it, the huge giveaway I saw was her insane blinking.

    • Esmom says:

      Yeah, she was so blatant and smug I could hardly believe what I was seeing. And so many people defending her. I started to feel like I was taking crazy pills, and that’s saying something in this era of madness.

      • Kitten says:

        You and I and most people in this forum are not conspiracy-theory types. Before this incident I had no idea who this woman was and would have given her the same benefit of the doubt that I would give anyone. But I watched the clip several times–especially the longer versions–and with added context, it becomes even MORE obvious.

      • adastraperaspera says:

        I gave her the benefit of the doubt first, too. Then I saw she works for the Miller. It’s just so obvious on the video what she is doing. Though so subtle, It’s one of the most sickening and depraved things I’ve seen from this bunch. To do something so horribly racist, on national television, while you are sitting behind a Supreme Court nominee. Nothing matters to them but raw power. They are complete nihilists.

      • Esmom says:

        Yeah, that’s what I said on Twitter, that I am not a conspiracy theorist at all but there was no other explanation for this. I did see the longer clip, where someone seemed to give her the idea or her marching orders to take advantage of her visibility. It was surreal to watch it unfold. No one, literally no one, casually holds their arm like that, which is what her husband tried to argue.

        The one thing that seems like a stretch (but anything is possible, of course) is people were saying that Kavanaugh subtly smiled in acknowledgement when she did it…but unless he also is watching a monitor I don’t know how that would have been possible.

        I said somewhere else on this thread that this hearing is just such a farce. As if the GOP would ever consider anything a Dem would say. It’s scary and depressing af.

        The thing I didn’t catch was the transition between her and Condoleeza Rice. I wonder who decided to yank her and replace her with Condi?

      • Nic919 says:

        I wanted to give the benefit of the doubt as well, but then when I learned she worked with Stephen Miller, well then her being a Jew is not a defence because he is a horrible racist. And her dad is a loon as well. Frankly the more I found out about her the less I believed it was a coincidence.

        When your defence is that you can’t be a racist due to your heritage and you can’t point to any actions that refute the allegations of being a racist that says a lot.

    • Veronica S. says:

      At this point, you’re just looking to fool to attempt to even pretend these people aren’t fascists. They know what they want. They know what they’re about. And they are fully on board with manipulating the idiot in the White House to push their nationalist, white supremacist agenda. Liberals need to stop pretending this country isn’t in dire straits.

    • Darla says:

      When you watch the video of this, she clearly gets a text message, reads it, rearranges her hand to make that signal, and then looks at the camera to see it. I do not know if it was her boss, Stephen Miller who texted her, or what, but she did it. And yeah I saw all of those white males on twitter yesterday. They make me sick.

    • Stumpycorgi says:

      There is no reason for debate here. That gesture was a white supremacist signal. White supremecists have been interpreting much subtler gestures as messages of support from Trump, their “Savior,” for YEARS. It’s not a mystery. They don’t try to hide it. Google it.

    • Ernestine says:

      As per the comments below, she works with Stephen Miller. That’s proof enough. Also, I positioned my fingers in the exact position she had hers placed, and it was uncomfortable. That is not natural placement.

  3. BlueSky says:

    This is a nightmare I can’t wake up from.

    • Esmom says:

      Seriously. I felt like I could barely wrap my head around yesterday’s events. I think my brain is starting to shut down.

  4. IlsaLund says:

    And sadly, Kavanaugh will most likely still be confirmed and join the other mediocre men who sit on the Supreme Court. The destruction of the United States continues and it’s being destroyed from within.

  5. grabbyhands says:

    Absolutely none of this is a surprise and none of it is going to to stop him from being appointed.

    • Esmom says:

      Yeah, I couldn’t help but think this whole hearing is nothing but a farce, and I’m not talking about the protesters.

  6. sensible says:

    You have some sick mofo’s over there. I just think flashing that sign is really foul and what makes me so annoyed and angry about my country too; is the amount of women that enable the white/brown/black patriarchal system. Internalised misogyny is real, so very real.

  7. Maya says:

    Question: can Supreme Court justices ever be fired/removed from their seat? If so how?

    • CER says:

      They can be impeached.

      • brightdark says:

        The house can impeach on a majority vote but then it goes to the senate for a ‘trial’. To throw them out you need a 2/3’s vote of all the senators. I don’t think you’ll get that.

    • StartupSpouse says:

      I think the Dems would need to take back Congress – both the House and the Senate. But they could investigate whether he lied in previous Congressional testimony. That could be grounds for impeachment, I think.

      They should be laying the groundwork for that in this hearing, IMO. The demographic shifts in the US are firmly against the GOP and it’s not unforeseeable that – barring cyberattacks on our elections – the Dems could be back in power in the near future.

      • Jan90067 says:

        WHEN the Dems get back control, they need to release the 1M docs that Kavanaugh and the Republithugs are hiding. Those alone would contain enough for impeachment for lying I would imagine.

  8. Digital Unicorn says:

    The smugness that emanates from him, esp at the hearing, shows that he knows he’s in regardless of what the Dems and the people say. Trump, GOP and Russia have his back.

    He is white male privilege personified. The behaviour of his ‘assistant’ proves that he is just like Trump and the rest of GOP.

    The way he turned his back on Fred Guttenberg was disgusting – shame shame shame.

    • Kitten says:

      He couldn’t even be bothered to shake his hand. The excuses from the right are preposterous: “Security intervened!!” Except we can see the full clip for ourselves and we know that he had a good 10 seconds where Fred stood with his hand outstretched and Kavanaugh just glared at him. But let me guess: we shouldn’t believe what we see because the truth is not the truth. Sigh. This country is so f*cked.

    • Esmom says:

      Yeah, the way he turned his back showed just a complete lack of humanity. Perfect for the Trump era, I guess. I feel sick.

    • Jan90067 says:

      Not just “couldn’t be bothered”, but he told security to THROW HIM OUT!! Couple this with the fact that the NRA funneled $1M to him… I just want to smash something!!!!

  9. RBC says:

    There is something very shady about this whole affair. The previous justice just happened to announce his retirement months before the midterms, rumours of some family members being tied to Russia/45 mess, thousands of documents relating to Kavanaugh not being released due to “security reasons” and this rush to get him confirmed.
    Something big is headed towards the courts in the very near future

    • Digital Unicorn says:

      Yes, Trumps impeachment or indictment. I follow Hillary Clinton and she’s been posting lots of facts about Kavanaugh. Below are a few:

      – In 2016, Kavanaugh held that corporations have the right to punish workers for displaying pro-union signs in their cars.
      – In 2014, he dissented in a case where the Occupational Safety and Health Administration held SeaWorld accountable for the death of a trainer.
      – Kavanaugh has also claimed that the president can simply decide not to implement the Affordable Care Act, leaving millions of Americans in the lurch.

      • notasugarhere says:

        He tried to force an immigrant teen to give birth and block her access to a legal abortion.

        He also ruled the government should be allowed to force medical procedures on people with mental disabilities without asking their input.

      • Nic919 says:

        He was part of the Terry Schiavo debacle back when he worked for Bush. If this guy was as decent as he claims to be then he would produce all his documents for review. But he is playing partisan games just like the other craven GOP out there.

      • Tiffany :) says:

        He was a part of the Terri Schiavo debacle?

    • whatWHAT? says:

      “Something big is headed towards the courts in the very near future”

      yes, whether or not a sitting president can be indicted. the connection is not hard to make.

      • Sarah says:

        That’s the specific reason why the carpool dad was chosen. The fact that is a virulent misogynist and a proponent of white supremacy is the cherry at the top of the cake.

    • Original T.C. says:

      Yes, the GOP know they are going to be slaughtered in the Midterm elections and that Trump might be impeached. This is their *BEST* opportunity to defeat Roe vs.Wade with a candidate pre-screened by the federalist foundation. That’s why this guy’s opening statement was all about “I love women, I have daughters, I worship my Mom and wife…did I mention that I coach my daughter’s sports team and my Mom was a teacher for poor Black students…” Ladies go get your IUD’s today.

      For Trump, it’s his get out of jail ticket.

      http://www.latimes.com/projects/la-na-abortion-laws-roe-wade/#

      • FLORC says:

        It’s not discussed yet, but it will be is R v. W is overturned. It’s not just access to women’s health. Also, access to STD/STI protection and medication. Put simply. Women’s health will be put on the back burner and anything you contact is a scarlett letter of sorts.
        I’m livid.

      • neocleo says:

        It goes beyond Roe v. Wade. This choad believes that a sitting president is above the law and cannot be held accountable for his crimes. He will help to derail the Mueller investigation and put it to an end. The GOP is in this SOOOO deep in corruption along with Trump. They are frantic to cover their tracks and retain power. This country is truly hosed. I’m hoping for some relief from the coming election but I still feel terrified of our government. I hope Mr. Mueller has something powerful up his sleeves.

      • Original T.C. says:

        Correction: Federalist Society
        I was too pissed off in the morning to double check my post, sorry.

        PS: I don’t know which Senator grilled K. On the Federalist Society and those unknown people funding commercials for his nomination. but awesome job!! This guy is already bought and paid for with dark money from corporate interests and the Evangelicals.

    • StartupSpouse says:

      Seth Abramson did a thread on his Twitter account about the back office deal between Kennedy and Trump. Kennedy’s son works at Deutsche Bank and was responsible for loaning Trump millions when other banks wouldn’t go near him. Shady for sure.

    • Jan90067 says:

      Kennedy’s son has ties to Dump and the Russians. Check this out. HOW can this NOT be challenged???

      https://www.businessinsider.com/anthony-kennedy-son-loaned-president-trump-over-a-billion-dollars-2018-6

  10. SM says:

    Shouldn’t there be a rule that when there is an ongoing investigation into abuse of power and law, the person should not be appointing someone preceding over the law of the land?

    • raptor says:

      Clinton appointed Breyer while he was being investigated for the Whitewater scandal, so unfortunately, there’s precedent. It was obviously a different type of scandal and much lower-stakes, but innocent until proven guilty, I guess.

    • brightdark says:

      It would have to be a constitutional amendment and I don’t see that happening.

  11. Giddy says:

    Trumpy Dumpy went judge shopping and found one who truly believes that a President is above the law. That he can’t be subpoenaed, questioned, or charged. It became obvious that Kavanope had written those opinions about the Presidency in an effort to try out for the SC. It worked, and he in all probability he will get his lifetime appointment.

    • Sarah says:

      Well, Kavanaugh believes the president is above the law … when the president is a Rethug. Pretty sure he, olike so many of the other mediocre white dudes in this Congress, had a different opinion when they were trying to impeach Bill Clinton for lying about a blowjob.

      • Jan90067 says:

        Not only this, but he pushed for more salacious questioning of Clinton: https://chicago.suntimes.com/news/brett-kavanaugh-bill-clinton-monica-lewinsky-sex-questions-ken-starr/

      • Lightpurple says:

        @jan, I had some imbecile on Twitter arguing at me for hours that if Kavanaugh’s questions had been allowed “during the trial,” Clinton would have been removed from office and given a lengthy prison sentence. The imbecile couldn’t even explain in what “trial” these questions would be asked. And he persisted after I told him that ejaculating in a private bathroom wasn’t a crime. If it were, I’m pretty sure the nation would be bankrupt in less than a week.

      • Jan90067 says:

        Lightpurple, the jails would be filled to capacity on one DAY (have you ever worked in an office with GenXers and Millenials)?? lol. Seriously… I just want all these pieces of human excrement OUT OF MY SEXUAL ORGANS, IN ANY AND EVERY WAY POSSIBLE!! Let these repressed homophobes and Christian Taliban wreck havoc on their own, if they so choose, but stay the hell away from me and mine!

  12. Sarah says:

    The whole thing is a joke and a sham. The entire democratic delegation should walk out in disgust.
    God, everytime I think about the staggering numbers of judges appointed by Sweet Potato Saddam, I want to cry and smack down all these smug, ignorant “they are both the same” voters.

    • adastraperaspera says:

      I wish no Democrat would have shown up. I know they’re trying to play by the rules and have their words and questions written down in the historical record–to show that he’s a corrupt candidate with no business being nominated. But it’s not working. It’s just making the public think that Senate confirmation hearings are always a Jerry Springer show (which they aren’t).

    • Kitten says:

      “The entire democratic delegation should walk out in disgust.”

      ..and then what?

      They would walk out and leave the Republicans there to expedite Kavanaugh’s confirmation process, entirely unhindered. The Dems need to stay and make this confirmation as painful as they possibly can. That’s really the only way that they can fight back at this point.

      • whatWHAT? says:

        yeah, they have to keep making the GOP explain, on the record, WHY they’re trying to thwart standard operating procedure and WHY they don’t want to give people time to view Kavanope’s records, etc.

      • Sarah says:

        The Dems’ presence is giving legitimacy to a process that isn’t legitimate in any way, shape or form. Their presence, their asking hard-hitting questions is not enough, though I know they are really trying. It makes it looks the carpool dad’ nomination process is just business as usual when it’s very much not the case.

  13. Lightpurple says:

    I’ve been casting the movie version of this in my mind. Val Kilmer for Kavanaugh. Paul Giamatti for Fred Guttenberg. Taraji for Kamala Harris.

    What really bothered me yesterday was that several of the Senators (Graham, Hatch, others) made speeches about how if you want to appoint a Supreme, you have to win an election, totally pretending that, using that logic, Merrick Garland should be sitting on the Supreme Court right now and that they themselves behaved very badly.

  14. Badrockandroll says:

    Like many of you, I watched Rachel Maddow on Monday night, when her show was focussed entirely on Kavanaugh. The bulk of the show centred on his recent attempt to corner a 17 year old pregnant immigration detainee into not having an abortion by stalling her beyond the legal 20 week period. There was a little bit though about his life as Secretary for Bush, prior to his current appointment. In his Senate confirmation hearing for that appointment, he said that he was not involved in policy making. It later turned out that he was involved in developing detention and use of “enhanced questioning” policies, and that he has not been taken to task either for his lie to Senate, or the fact that he has ruled on cases involving those policies (he should have recused himself). How is that not immediate disqualification?
    And the papers that the White House is refusing to release at the very least deal with past perjury, and at most, may well disclose more.
    Although numbers seem to be against anything but confirmation, I still hope that the Dems can unravel and disclose this mess, and that there are three brave Republicans who vote against this amoral man.

    • Lady D says:

      Three? Well aint that depressing news. I thought decency only needed one R. vote. To find 3 Republicans with a conscience and the ability to put country first…… Maybe, maybe, maybe Sen. McCain’s funeral reminded a few of what patriotism really means. They can’t all be corrupt, can they? I mean wouldn’t it be impossible for every one of them to be a traitor to their vows and country?

      • Badrockandroll says:

        They need three Repubs to roll, and they need all the Dems, even the red state ones, to stand firm. And they need to get a better sound system! The Old folks clearly can’t hear or see the electronic evidence.
        At one point it seemed to me that Leahy was accusing Kavanaugh of stealing his emails. Clearly Chairman Old Mumbly Guy couldn’t hear/understand this, and I’m not too sure if I understood it, because they all have that old phlegmy voice, as they meander from point to point, any questions that they might have obscured in their grandstanding.
        So if this hearing has done anything for me personally, it has sealed my opinion firmly in favour of both term and age limits.

  15. manda says:

    I just can’t believe we are in a place where it is ok to treat the parents of murdered children that way. So disrespectful. I’m so angry that there is nothing I can do to stop this

  16. Betsy says:

    Apart from the fact that I think Kavanaugh was paid off and will be a wholly owned subsidiary of Russia or whatever right wing nutbag is in love with him, apart from his horrible politics, apart from the fact he’s the ringer for any votes that rise to the SC about Trump, he looks to me like a creepy sexual assaulter. I know rapists are our friends and neighbors and don’t look like anything special, but this guy looks like he has some serious, possibly criminal, kinks.

  17. StellainNH says:

    People have to make their voices heard about this jerk. There are still senators on the fence about this. The following is an article that list them. If you are passionate about voting against Kavenaugh, please make some calls today.

    https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-court-kavanaugh-senators-factbox/factbox-handful-of-u-s-senators-hold-keys-to-kavanaugh-supreme-court-bid-idUSKBN1K614P

  18. Veronica S. says:

    I was following this hearing on CNN yesterday, and all I could say to myself watching it was, “Holy shit, this is actually happening. My generation is really about to see the SC take us back fifty years.”

    Clinton warned us. American didn’t want to listen.

  19. Jerusha says:

    Not only did he not shake Mr. Guttenberg’s hand, see the look of utter contempt on his face as he turns away. This, after his cheesy smile to the panel. Really shows his true nature.
    Also, Kavanaugh was $200,000+ In debt for baseball tickets he had bought over the years. It was mysteriously paid off in 2017 even though he didn’t suddenly win the lottery or have a rich aunt die.

    • Sarah says:

      Media couldn’t shut up about Stacey Abrams being in debt but they have nothing to sya about this mediocre white dude being $200,000 in debt for baseball tickets!! MSM are being annoying at this point.

  20. Sash says:

    He’s going to be confirmed, there’s nothing that will stop it. I’ve never felt so despondent

    • Sarah says:

      I legit feel like crying. Women, POC, LGBTQ folks, we all fucked for several decades if he is confirmed. He is a Christian taliban.

    • Louisa says:

      I was in a bad way yesterday. Does it even matter what happens in the midterms now once he is confirmed?

      • Dara says:

        Of course it matters!! It matters more than ever!!

        Elections decide which people will actually write the laws. The upcoming mid-terms will determine if the Democrats are the ones writing those laws for the next few years or if it will be the Republicans. Would you rather have shitty laws written by Republicans be rubber-stamped by the national disgrace sitting in the Oval Office, or would you rather have laws written by Democrats that are veto-proof because Democrats have a majority in Congress? Reversing the Republican majority is the only way to end this nightmare.

      • Jerusha says:

        Yes, it matters! A Blue Wave needs to stop Moron-in-Chief’s idiotic Space Force among other things.

      • isabelle says:

        YES!!!!! how do you think we got here because people sat on their Asse*s and didn’t vote in the last midterms. Get off your cynical as* and VOTE.

    • Giddy says:

      What are the Republicans planning to say about their relationship with their Democratic counterparts? As soon as they finish getting their SC and federal judges lined up are they going to want to then have pleasant and respectful relationships with their colleagues? Because right now they are putting on a master class in hypocrisy. They are polite to the Democrats right up to the time the hearings start, and then the knives come out. What do they think will happen when the Democrats have a majority? Do they not care because they will have the judges? Their dirty tricks squad is working overtime. I can just see an a$$hole like Steven Miller laughing about dumping those thousands of documents on the Demos the night before the hearings. I feel ill watching the bastards work.

  21. Louisa says:

    When I saw him dismiss Fred Guttenberg with such contempt, I almost wept. What kind of souless monster do you have to be to treat a grieving father that way.
    I just can’t believe this is happening.

  22. why? says:

    BK is truly an evil man. That look he gave Fed was truly scary. The worst thing about what BK did to Fred was the damage control. The WH blamed BK’s security(even though the video contradicts their narrative) and then claimed that BK had no idea who Fred was(even though BK later identified Fred to his security by the bracelets he wore in honor of his daughter), the bots viciously attacked Fred using the same talking points that the WH released, and then BK ordered his security to remove Fred from the hearing.

    The Democrats are their own worst enemies. They need to stop playing nice with the republicans. BK is going to get confirmed and the Dotard is going to get renominated for another term because the Democrats are playing by Pelosi and Schumer’s civility playbook. Pelosi and Schumer used this same civility playbook when they went to the Dotard to get a deal on DACA and the Dotard played them. If the Democrats stood up and protested with the protesters yesterday, would they have been kicked out of the hearing? What would have happened if the Democrats read the documents that the republicans dumped on them the previous night instead of talking about how they think the confirmation should have been postponed? Why are the Democrats allowing Chuck G to get away with so many things? He and Lindsay G recommended that Christopher Steele be charged for writing the dossier. Why haven’t any of the Democrats gone after Chuck for this? Now is not the time to play nice. This morning Feinstein was apologizing to BK. Shouldn’t her apology have gone to Fred? To the American people? To all of the people who have hurt by the Dotard’s policies? To the people of Flint and Puerto Rico? To the kids being taking from their parents, abused in the detention centers, and 1-4 yo defending themselves in court? This hearing is a sham.

  23. Digital Unicorn says:

    Am watching the live feed of the 2nd day and Senator Feinstein has him squirming over Roe Vs Wade and his views on a sitting President being above the law.

    He’s not really answering the questions. Feinstein said he’s leaning to fillibust.

    Plus the Zina witch is back sitting behind him.

    • Jerusha says:

      Lindsey Graham is pontificating right now. All I can say is Fvck Lindsey Graham.

    • Jan90067 says:

      All he is saying is that he “can’t respond to a hypothetical question”. Isn’t that what the hell he is SUPPOSED to be doing? JFC WTF IS GOING ON??? HOW is this happening!?

    • Original T.C. says:

      Unfortunately Senator Feinstein did let him filibuster and take up most of her time. She should have questioned back: so you believe in the Nixon verdict ONLY for that particular case? It’s essentially what he was saying but going around it. He took over her questioning and appeared to be lecturing her. She of course thanked him. Term limits people, Feinstein is so far removed from the average Democrat she’s essentially Republican. This is what happens when you are in the Senate too long.

  24. Pandy says:

    There’s such a thing as a white power hand signal??? What????? Not sure I buy this … but then again there are fraternity handshakes so ….

  25. Mar says:

    I’ll be honest- I feel like I’m in the twilight zone every time I read about politics. It’s like we have a civil war between normal people and elitists.
    These “ conservative “ racist rich a- holes are something else. Please save America- somebody please.

  26. Philo says:

    I don’t think that’s a white power sign. But it sure as hell was done with deliberation and intent – so it means something to someone. Why doesn’t someone ask her? If she lies and says that it’s use how her hand was…. well, then you know she’s full of bs.
    Edit: didn’t see her straight fingers underneath. Well, that changes things. Why would a woman with this sort of background do this?
    Edit2! My husband took one look at it and said, ‘that’s the sign for wanker’.
    Plot thickens.

  27. Pabena6 says:

    Okay, I need some education/explanation. I don’t myself use the “okay” symbol very often (if I were to need that kind of gesture, I’d probably use a thumbs up), but is that the same as the white power symbol? Is there a way to make sure that, if you do use it, it means “okay”? I know Twitter is arguing that she wasn’t using that symbol, or that she meant okay, and I’m not seeing enough difference to know how you tell. Beyond the fact that all of these people are ROUSes, of course.

  28. Incredulous says:

    Yeah, people are trying to co-opt the OK sign to mean WP, white power. Frankly, if the tangerine jackboots want to waste their time on that and grumbling that the new Ryan Gosling movie isn’t nationalistic, I mean dog-whistle fascist enough, let them. Get registered, get everyone you know registered, get out and vote.

    These are the self-inflicted death-throes of the Republican party and they will thrash around more and harder before it ends, remember that.

  29. isabelle says:

    Its not a coincidence it was during Feinsteins’s questions. They blame Jews for everything including their small penises, gay frogs and white perfect women being bred out of existence. Although this chica isn’t compltely white, does she know that yet, or the person texting her. Dark eyes and Dark eyes isn’t white national pure my loathsome darling.

  30. JCH says:

    The human in me hopes Zina’s gesture didn’t mean anything, however, I know that family and it wouldn’t surprise me. The Gelman’s are from McAllen, Texas and they are uber crazy republicans w/ deep pockets. Her dad hates the environment, and made a movie about it, he also is like starting his own church (according to the McAllen gossip). It saddens me to hear she helped shape 45’s immigration plan, because she is from a border town, her mother is Mexican and I’m pretty sure her dad’s family left Europe to escape the holocaust…

    https://www.themonitor.com/news/local/article_995d6fb8-3b76-11e7-b07f-9b43b8c5e026.html

  31. why? says:

    Someone in the WH wrote an op-ed about how unhinged the Dotard is and how they are the adult in the WH trying to save this country from the Dotard. Could NYT’s source be John Kelly because how many times did he leak that he was the adult in the WH?

    The Dotard is acting like this country is Russia. He is demanding that NYT turn over their source because he says that they committed treason. The Dotard is a hypocrite, how can he keep slamming anonymous sources when he called the press using the names John Miller and John Barron(the name he gave his son)?

    The press is wasting too much time talking about who the source is and less time on BK hearing.

    • Joy says:

      I’m going with either Don McGahn or Mike Pence as the source for this piece.

    • Original T.C. says:

      I think it’s Kellyanne, someone you would never suspect. It’s a super serious article. The GOP has their tax cuts and Conservative dominated Supreme Court so they are done with Trump and are throwing him under the bus.

    • why? says:

      The press is reading all this incorrectly. The person didn’t leak this to warn us about the Dotard, the person leaked to protect himself, like he is trying to prove to Mueller that he had no hand in any of the decisions that the Dotard made. What the press should be asking is if Mueller has interviewed, requested to interview, or subpoenaed John Kelly.

      The highlights:

      The op-ed was leaked to Ashley Parker and Philip Rucker. I have suspected that John Kelly is Ashley’s source because of her “adult in the WH” stories. Ashley write a story about how the adults in the WH have tried to stop the Dotard from doing something stupid and then a few days later, stories emerge about how Kelly stood up to the Dotard.

      The anonymous source uses talking points we have all heard before: adult in the WH, stays in the WH because they are trying to protect us from the Dotard(we also heard this from Mattis and McMaster)

      Speaks positively about John McCain. Remember the stories about how Kelly went off on the Dotard about the flags and McCain?

      The story feels more like the person is leaking to protect himself(demonstrating all the ways he has tried to stop or oppose the Dotard), not warn us about the Dotard.

    • Himmiefan says:

      There are others who feel they have to stay to try to keep him from doing something really dangerous.