Disorder in the court

Disorder+in+the+court

Sara Berge, Senior Staff Writer

A routine confirmation hearing has turned into the latest controversy in the #MeToo era.
Supreme court nominee Brett Kavanaugh has been faced with several allegations of sexual assault. A total of three accusers have surfaced against Kavanaugh.
First, Dr. Christine Blasey Ford believed that Kavanaugh and his friend assaulted her at a high school party in 1982. Dr. Ford wrote a letter describing her assault to senator Dianne Feinstein, which was taken to the public through The Washington Post.
The second accuser, named Deborah Ramirez, came forward in an article in The New Yorker. Ramirez alleged Kavanaugh exposed himself at a party at his college. The final accuser Julie Swetnick claimed Kavanaugh targeted girls and “spiked” their punch. Swetnick has now backed down on her accusation, saying she had seen Kavanaugh around the punch bowl handling drinks but not actually tampering with it.
Kavanaugh denied all of the allegations, citing an intensive set of calendars where he logged his day.
Support for Kavanaugh has been mixed. He was originally supported by the American Bar Association, but their support has now been reconsidered.
Republicans hold a slim majority in the senate, but three republicans have remained undecided. According to the Courier Journal, Indiana Democrat Joe Donnelly has recently announced his opposal to the nomination, stating that sexual assault has no place in society. This decision will be a major factor in Indiana’s upcoming election.
During Kavanaugh’s hearing, Dr. Ford was questioned about the alleged incident. Dr. Ford went into detail of the night. Kavanaugh doubled down on his denial but admitted to drinking underage and partying. Kavanaugh denied drinking heavily and claimed senator Feinstein did not question him about Dr. Ford’s assault during the summer.
In spite of the current movements to protect victims of assault, politics moves forward. On Saturday October 6,the senate voted for Kavanaugh’s confirmation with a vote of 50-48.