One is the historical (beginning at least as long ago as the 1980s; for a summary of some of the most egregious see: http://video.foxnews.com/v/5839042505001/?#sp=show-clips) efforts by the Left to keep from the bench (both Supreme and Appellate Courts) judges appointed by non-Leftist administrations; judges that hold the view that a judge must focus on law, not policy, and should interpret and apply but not create law. This view, while consistent with the Constitution, contrasts with progressive views that would like to have more partisan judges willing to make, change, or ignore law when policy demands; that is, they seek activist judges.
The trouble with this is that the attempt to destroy via unsubstantiated accusations just because one doesn’t agree with the philosophy of the nominee is totally un-American. In this country we have elections and when a more conservative party wins, of course they will appoint more conservative jurists. The answer is not to smear these nominees with false and unfounded accusations, but simply to win the next election. And, in the meantime, to use the actual criteria (as laid out in our Constitution) for choosing a Justice.
The other practice is the use of identity politics to stir up hatred that can then be channeled against those standing in the way of progressive power as well as assist in the unfair and unfounded attacks against those with differing views. This method creates an identity group, finds affronts to members of that group, and then demands that any accusation of that group be believed without more. The Left uses these identity accusations to gin up a sort of mob-hatred against anything that might keep them from power. (An interesting piece on the underpinnings and beginnings of the hatred that goes hand in hand with identity politics is: https://outline.com/TXW6L8)\
There are historical parallels to this mob-like hysteria. Of course the Salem Witch Trials come to mind. But also, what about the lynchings of Blacks in the south? A white woman could claim a Black man sexually assaulted her and without more he would likely be lynched. More recently, the instigation of anti-white and/or anti-law enforcement hatred reached a peak during the Obama administration as many believed any Black person arrested or injured by law enforcement was wronged and the police became targets of both verbal and physical assaults including murder. Individual incidents and their facts become no longer relevant as an entire identity group is urged to rise up against another group. And now we have MeToo where “women must be believed.” That command goes directly against our Constitution.
America was founded as a democratic republic. It has stood as a shining light to other countries, especially those whose people live under dictatorial regimes with little if any freedom of thought or speech. One key underpinning of our democracy has been the principle that one is innocent until proven guilty.
That phrase, uttered often and easily, actually has great and deep significance. If one can be found guilty without proof or evidence, without any sort of due process, without an opportunity to face his or her accuser and tell his or her side, without the opportunity to cross-examine the accuser to pull out additional or questionable facts, without all the procedures that we equate with fairness and justice, then the many freedoms and rights that we hold dear fail and fall. And without those rights, our country as we know it must also fall.
Allowing one to be determined guilty on the mere accusation of another silences all our First Amendment rights. One cannot speak freely, hold religious beliefs, express those beliefs, associate with others if someone else who finds those words, beliefs, actions offensive can simply accuse with the result that the accused is in someway cast aside and silenced.
Yet isn’t that what we see happening now? The accusation against Brett Kavanaugh should not be used as a political tool to thwart the Constitution and our Democratic Republic form of government. If the accusation actually occurred, or even if Ms. Ford simply believes it occurred, her claim should receive the due process that our Constitution demands. That includes both due process for the accuser and due process for the accused. And, that is why this accusation belongs in a court of law where the goal is justice, achieved through due process, rather than a goal of revenge and political gain.
There is another concern with the use of these tactics (questionable accusations to derail nominations of otherwise qualified jurists and identity politics to foment mob hatred against those standing in the way of the fomenters’ power). As it becomes clear that those qualified individuals on the wrong side of the hatred will be vilified and destroyed, it becomes less and less likely that they will come forward to serve their country. How many people are willing to put themselves and their families through the ordeal that Judge Kavanaugh is currently enduring?
Without diverse voices and the freedom to express them we lose a key ingredient of our democracy and instead begin to approach the necessary environment for a thriving dictatorship. My two previous blog posts have discussed some of these points further. I encourage you to read them. Today I want to encourage everyone who cares about this country to open their eyes and see what is happening. If your political leanings are on the Left, please open your eyes and see what your group is doing to America. I realize that some on the Left no longer believe in America and seek to fundamentally change it. I argue that this is a huge mistake.
I urge people to review history. Countries which silence opposing viewpoints – by accusation and by intimidation – end up being a very unpleasant place for the majority of their people. It seems to me that the convergence of political hatred and quests for power with ignorance of the very nature of our country and its constitution along with a willingness to ignore what it stands for have reached a critical mass; this is the time to either take a stand and say STOP or to acquiesce in the movement of this country to a very different and far less free place. It is time to look beyond today and see the direction we are headed; if we allow this country to continue to veer Left to the point that it is no longer recognizable as the great country that it is, then it will be its own people that will have extinguished its shining light and they will have no one to blame but themselves.
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