By the looks of things now, it appears Brett Kavanaugh will likely be confirmed to the Supreme Court despite being accused of committing sexual assault back in high school.
Christine Blasey Ford upended Kavanaugh’s confirmation process by alleging that the Judge, as a high school student, forcibly came on to her at a party in high school. Ford’s story has discrepancies. (RELATED: There’s a Discrepancy in Kavanaugh Accuser’s Account of Sexual Assault.) And, despite agreeing to testify before Congress on the matter, she is now demanding an FBI investigation before she’ll go before the Senate Judiciary Committee. (RELATED: Kavanaugh Accuser Christine Blasey Ford Wants FBI Investigation, Won’t Testify Before Congress.)
With Ford refusing to testify, it now appears likely that she will be confirmed ultimately by Republicans. (RELATED: If Christine Blasey Ford Doesn’t Testify, Brett Kavanaugh Will Be Confirmed.)
Should Republicans stick to their guns and not wuss out per usual, they’ll have successfully countered the Democrats’ 11th-hour attempt to subvert Kavanaugh’s confirmation. But Democrats aren’t that stupid: They know that pushing Kavanaugh through will inflame the Democrat base. This is a win-win for them. Either they stop Kavanaugh, or they boost voter turnout in the midterms by spinning a narrative that the Republicans hate women, love rapists, and put an illegitimate nominee on the Supreme Court.
Normally, I’d say Republicans are no match when it comes to this kind of dirty politicking. But it looks like they have their own ‘October surprise’plan that could ultimately buttress their ranks against the coming “blue wave.”
Earlier this week, President Trump ordered the declassification of materials related to the FBI’s investigation of his campaign during the 2016 election, specifically texts and documents related to spying on Trump campaign officials like Carter Page. (RELATED: Here’s What You Need To Know About Trump’s Declassification Order.)
By unveiling things like FISA warrants FBI notes with Obama Department of Justice officials, Republicans are hoping that damning information will surface, implicating the Obama Administration.
Politico reports:
Democratic operatives are growing anxious that Republicans working to undermine the FBI’s Russia probe are teeing up a series of document dumps meant to gin up GOP voters ahead of the midterm elections.
….
But Democrats see a more sinister plan: to taint special counsel Robert Mueller’s ongoing Russia probe, while simultaneously motivating Trump’s political base on the precipice of an election in which Democrats are favored to make gains. To Democrats, the situation has eerie similarities to 2016, when WikiLeaks’ slow-drip daily release of internal Clinton campaign emails hobbled Hillary Clinton’s candidacy and offered regular fodder for Republicans.
“Oh, God,” said Jennifer Palmieri, former communications director for Clinton’s campaign. “Trump could be setting the stage for the same kind of manufactured October surprise designed to help boost his standing and undermine Mueller.”
Democrats fear Trump ‘October Surprise’ document dumphttps://t.co/KpjQlEIuTt
— POLITICO (@politico) September 20, 2018
Hey, you know what? If Democrats like Dianne Feinstein think it’s OK to strategically leak sexual assault allegations practically on the eve of a confirmation vote for a Supreme Court justice, why would they object to President Trump playing the same game?
Trump could have declassified this information long ago. But he’s doing it before the election, possibly to boost Republicans’ standing. Any FBI shenanigans uncovered will motivate Republicans to come out in support of Trump and his party. Voters will see the President fighting against a city that is secretly trying to destroy him. So they’ll send reinforcements.
If Democrats want to play this game, the President will jump in too. This is the world they created; President Trump is now fighting for his political life in it.
Regardless of the political implications, we should have as much information as possible regarding the FBI’s activities during the 2016 election, which, to this day, remain a mystery.
Let’s hope we get further to the truth with this declassification.
