Democrats call for Kavanaugh's impeachment after sexual misconduct claims, ask why the FBI ignored to investigate the matter
Supreme Court Associate Justice Brett Kavanaugh has always been controversy’s favorite child. His nomination to the top position sparked debate in the past but it was President Donald Trump’s backing that helped him weather the storm. The 54-year-old judge, who took over the reins in October last year replacing 82-year-old Anthony Kennedy, has found yet another accusation of sexual misconduct being leveled against him and that too in the pre-election season. It also sees the Democratic Party using the allegations to corner the ruling Republicans. The president, as earlier, has thrown his weight behind Kavanaugh again and said the Justice Department should “rescue” him.
The latest allegation of sexual misconduct against the judge also dates back to his college years. It comes nearly a year after the earlier charges threatened Kavanaugh’s confirmation. He is yet to respond to the latest accusation though he denied all charges that came up against him during the confirmation process.
As many as five Democratic presidential candidates demanded Kavanaugh’s impeachment in the wake of the latest allegation of sexual indecency. The likes of Elizabeth Warren, Julian Castro, Cory Booker, Kamala Harris and Pete Buttigieg agreed that Kavanaugh should be removed from the apex court after the series of accusations came up against him for over a year now. Kavanaugh, who was the judge of the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit before the current stint, was also accused of lying under oath during his Senate confirmation hearings.
In a tweet, Warren said Kavanaugh’s nomination was rammed through the Senate last year without the accusations getting thoroughly examined. She said confirmation doesn’t mean exoneration and said “like the man who appointed him,” Kavanaugh should also be impeached.
Harris and Castro, on the other hand, hit out at the judge alleging he had lied under oath during the Senate confirmation hearings. “Brett Kavanaugh lied to the U.S. Senate and most importantly to the American people. He was put on the Court through a sham process and his place on the Court is an insult to the pursuit of truth and justice,” Harris tweeted, saying the former must be impeached. Castro echoed Harris’s thought and added that the Congress should review the justice department’s failure to correctly probe the matter.
Reacting strongly over the incident, Buttigieg told CBS News on Sunday, September 15, that "it's appalling to learn that the GOP curtailed the FBI investigation" and "[t]he American people deserve to know who was involved ... and we must get answers fast as to why witnesses with key information were not interviewed."
Former vice president and current presidential candidate Joe Biden also sought an investigation into Kavanaugh and on whether he spoke the truth in his testimony to the Senate. "We need to get to the bottom of whether the Trump Administration and Senate Republicans pressured the FBI to ignore evidence or prevented them from following up on leads relating to Justice Kavanaugh's background investigation," Biden was quoted as saying in a statement obtained by CBS News. The veteran leader also praised the women who have come forward with accusations and felt that they deserved to be treated with dignity and should also be heard.
The latest buzz over Kavanaugh’s alleged sexual misconduct started on Saturday, September 14, when a report in the New York Times said that one of Kavanaugh’s Yale classmates saw him with his pants down at a drinking party. Worse, his friends allegedly pushed his penis into a female student’s hands. The report alleged that the classmate told the senators and FBI about it but no step was initiated.
Such accusations against Kavanaugh have not been leveled for the first time. Another of his classmate at Yale, Deborah Ramirez, also said that Kavanaugh had pulled down his pants at another similar party and even thrust his penis at her, leaving the woman shocked. The report also added that Ramirez’s story had found support with seven people confirming that they heard about the incident long before Kavanaugh became a federal judge.
Christine Blasey-Ford, a professor of psychology, was the first one to bring a public accusation against Kavanaugh last year. She said that when she studied with him in the high school, he held her down on a bed, groped her and tried to pull off her clothes and also covered her mouth when she tried to scream. Kavanaugh was reportedly under the influence of alcohol at the time though Kavanaugh said the alleged incident had never happened. Trump took the judge's side and mocked Ford on that occasion.
This time, in a series of tweets, Trump advised Kavanaugh to sue people for libel.
The impeachment of a Supreme Court judge would be similar to that of the president with the House voting on the removal process and the Senate deciding on the removal. Kavanaugh might face impeachment in the Democrat-dominated House but it is unlikely that the Republican-led Senate will take the drastic step.