Of Outbursts, Free Speech, Mob Rule, and Democracy

Today, watching the Senate hearing on the confirmation of Judge Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court, we are witnessing a coordinated effort by the Democrats to disrupt the proceedings in a manner more fitting of a political rally than the civilized manner of our halls of government.  What’s going on?  We hear daily from the Democrats about how they long for a dignified statesman as president.  They are offended by his outbursts.  And yet they seem to be playing for the cameras – provide some self-righteous entertainment for the evening news – rather than having a dignified and honest hearing about a nominee for Justice to the Supreme Court.

As an aside, let me be clear that I am not opposed to political demonstrations.  For example, I have yelled “We don’t want your f**king war” about both Vietnam and Iraq.  But that was while marching on the streets, not in the Senate Chambers where rules of civility ensure everyone has the opportunity to present their views and have those view heard in an orderly fashion. 

To shout down those rules of civility is in essence a shouting down of our government.  It reflects both a misunderstanding of and a disrespect for our government.  I expect better of our elected senators.

But, then, these are the Democrats who weaponize anything in their war on Trump.  We recently saw that funerals are not off limits for use in their political attacks.  I look at social media posts from Democrats and their supporters.  Those posts, while complaining about the “base” words of the president, proceed to attack him with name calling like infantile schoolyard bullies (a typical example from today: “he is an idiot wrapped in a moron and smothered in imbecile sauce”).  Rarely, if ever, do the posts actually address an issue or if they do, they never have anything more substantive than the bumper sticker phrase supportive of the Democrat position.  Instead, it seems that it is all just about ad hominem name-calling against a president they don’t like, who they will do almost anything to unseat.

I now hear the speeches by the Democrats in the Kavanaugh hearing talking about Trump as an “Illegal co-conspirator” and other similar name calling that has nothing to do with the nominee supposedly under consideration.  The failure to produce 100% of documents is being used as more cover for their vicious attacks.  This failure to produce some sensitive documents is not new and sees precedent in the Obama administration’s nomination of Justice Kagan.  Yet, the Democrats are screaming Trump coverup.  These Democrats are more concerned with attacking Trump than in actually considering the nomination of Kavanaugh as a Supreme Court Justice.  Indeed, many have already announced their vote and have no intention of asking legitimate questions or listening to answers from the nominee.  They have also admitted a weekend meeting/teleconference to strategize their disruptions of the hearing.

Under cover of outrage (over what exactly is unclear) the Democrats justify such outbursts.   They claim these are “not normal times” though what is not normal is their laser focus on using any and everthing to stir up hatred for Trump.   They claim it is in the name of transparency, but that argument falls short.  “The Democratic goal here isn’t transparency. It’s to create enough of a public fuss that a Republican Senator or two gets the political jitters and helps to stall a confirmation vote past the election. The hope is that, as the fight drags on, something will turn up that causes skittish Republicans to vote no.”  (See https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-kavanaugh-document-fight-1534202892)

The Democrats tell the nominee he will be under a cloud unless he joins with them in trashing Trump and delaying the hearings.   (Actually, I suspect they see him as under a cloud simply because he was appointed by a President they dislike.)  This is a standard tactic of the Democrats these days.  They threaten those with whom they disagree, telling them they are anti-American, against the people, mis-informed, or just plain stupid in an effort to make them give up their own beliefs and values.  They try to shame those who do not support the anti-Trump agenda into denying their own values and beliefs.  That is, they attempt to silence the opposition by name calling and by disrespecting, demeaning, and disregarding their legitimate beliefs, and, if that doesn’t work they simply shout them down. 

The Democrats claim that this riotous behavior, including their disruptions of the hearings today, is a demonstration of democracy in action.  Well, it is, I suppose, proof that we are not living in a dictatorship (as they would have us believe we are under President Trump).  But, it is their actions, their disrespect for process and for listening to the diverse voices of others, that is more akin to a dictatorship.  The failure to follow the democratic rules that allow all voices to be heard, the shouting down of those with whom one disagrees is more a demonstration of desire for mob rule than for democratic process.    It is not what we expect to see in a functioning democracy.  It is not the behavior of those who truly understand, value, and respect our democratic form of government.