Out of the woods?
Fresh information brings Brett Kavanaugh’s confirmation under scrutiny
By: Nolan Cleary
Staff Writer
New evidence has exposed potential holes in Associate Justice of the Supreme Court Brett’s Kavanaugh’s testimony, causing Democrats to examine his confirmation once again.
According to Deborah Ramirez, the FBI was provided with a list of 25 people with possible corroborating evidence. Some of those on the list allegedly contacted the FBI, but did not receive a response and the FBI allegedly did not investigate those on the list.
Another woman has also accused Kavanaugh of sexual misconduct in high school. This has led many Democratic candidates seeking the presidency, including Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren, California Senator Kamala Harris and former U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, Julián Castro, to call for the impeachment of Kavanaugh.
Patrick Eagan-Brown, a liberal arts major, said impeaching Kavanaugh is the right thing to do.
”Me personally, I always want to believe the outcry of a victim, but at the same time if something were to come out that would discredit her, I would take that into consideration as well.” Brown explained. “[Ford]’s testimony has not been discredited.”
According to accounting major Rachel Bitoulis, the Democratic calls for impeachment of Kavanaugh are strange.
“Why would you impeach someone for allegations? You should impeach them for their actions.” Bitoulis said.
This comes as Kavanaugh gears up for his first term on the United States Supreme Court.
In 2018, Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court Anthony Kennedy announced his retirement. Despite being a conservative justice appointed by President Ronald Regan in 1988, Kennedy gained a reputation of being a more moderate justice.
On multiple occasions Kennedy voted to prevent the overturning of Roe v. Wade, which required that every state allow legal abortion up to a certain point in a woman’s pregnancy.
Kennedy was also the deciding vote on the Obergefell v. Hodges case, which gave gay couples the right to marry under the Constitution.
Kavanaugh, who had previously worked for President George W. Bush, was then nominated by President Donald Trump.
Some liberal activists expressed concern over the potentially conservative record of Kavanaugh.
In addition to this, Christine Blasey Ford, Deborah Ramirez and Julie Swetnick accused Kavanaugh of sexual assault. Kavanaugh has denied all allegations.
“[For Christine Blasey Ford] I feel like stuff in high school shouldn’t be brought back to where we are now,” said Shemar McDonald, an individual studies major.
McDonald also said he believes that previous allegations from the past shouldn’t prevent someone from ending up on the Supreme Court.
Taliq Ramos-Moore, a mechanical engineering major, said he believes Ford’s testimony.
“I believe he may have sexually assaulted [Ford] because when you drink some, [sic] things do happen at college parties.” said ls-Moore.
He continued to say the reason Ford may have waited this long to come out could be because she feels more comfortable now.
“I think women overtime feel more comfortable to come out about certain things,” he said.
In 2018, President Trump refused to choose a new nominee for the Supreme Court. Kavanaugh was ultimately called to testify in front of the U.S. Senate, while Ford was invited to testify in front of Congress.
Kavanaugh’s confirmation sparked controversy throughout the country, with some protestors trying to disrupt his swearing-in.
According to Bitoulis, Ford’s lack of medical documentation of the incident makes her testimony less truthful.
“If she was physically assaulted and she presented medical records, and it showed her with some form of injury or some form of laceration, it could’ve proven truthful,” Bitoulis said.
According to Bitoulis, there is an improbability of Ford telling the truth.
“[Ford] is just trying to get under Trump’s skin because she probably hates him.” Bitoulis said.
When Kavanaugh was being confirmed, Republican Senators Susan Collin (R-ME), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) and Jeff Flake (R-AZ) were unsure as to how they would vote.
Speculation also arose as to whether Democratic Senators like Joe Manchin (D-WV), Doug Jones (D-AL), Claire McCaskill (D-MO), Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND), Bill Nelson (D-FL), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Jon Tester (D-MN) and Joe Donnelly (D-IN) could vote. These Senators represented states that Trump won by landslide margins.
However, most Republicans announced they would vote in favor of Kavanaugh’s confirmation while most Democrats were united in their opposition to him. The vote came down to three Senators, two Republicans, Murkowski and Collins, and one Democrat, Manchin.
Murkowski confirmed she would vote against Kavanaugh’s nomination.
On the other hand, Manchin broke from the Democratic pack and confirmed he would vote in favor of Kavanaugh’s nomination.
The vote came down to one more Senator, Republican Susan Collins. Collins made the decision to vote in favor of Kavanaugh’s nomination, thus making him a Supreme Court Justice.
There were political consequences for these Senators. In 2018, Missouri Senator Claire McCaskill, Indiana Senator Joe Donnelly, Florida Senator Bill Nelson and North Dakota Senator Heidi Heitkamp–all Democratic Senators in states Trump easily carried–were voted out of office.
Meanwhile, Dean Heller, a Republican Senator from Nevada, a state carried by Hillary Clinton in 2016, lost re-election last year.
Joe Manchin, the sole Democratic Senator who voted in favor of Kavanaugh’s nomination, won re-election despite being from West Virginia, a state Donald Trump carried by 42 points.
Many political experts predict Kavanaugh’s confirmation many have an effect of further Senate races as well. In 2020, a Presidential election year, Democratic Alabama Senator Doug Jones, a state Donald Trump carried by 28 points in 2016, is expected to face a challenge to defend his seat.
Meanwhile, Collins, the Republican Senator who controversially cast the deciding vote to confirm Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court will also be up for re-election next year.
Democrats are already heavily targeting her seat. Collins is running for Maine, a state Hillary Clinton carried in 2016.
Robert Whitaker, a political science professor at Hudson Valley Community College, said Kavanaugh’s voting record could determine the fate of Jones and Collins during next year’s election seasons.
“I think [results] depend on what the court rules and where Kavanaugh comes down on some key issues prior to the next election,” Whitaker explained. “[Collins]’s opponent, up there, Sara Gideon, has made the [Kavanaugh] vote a key issue of her campaign.”
With the Supreme Court potentially going in a more conservative direction, some fear or hope that abortion and gay rights could be at risk.
Follow up on the 2020 Presidential election poll
Out of the 100 Hudson Valley Community College students polled, 17% support Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, 12% support President Donald Trump, 7% support former U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, 6% said support businessman Andrew Yang, 5% support Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren, 3% support South Bend, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigeg and 1% support California Senator Kamala Harris. Of those polled, 4% said they planned to support someone else, while 45% said they’re still unsure.
Write up:
Of the 100 students at Hudson Valley Community College that were polled, the number one most common answer was “Unsure” with 45% saying they still don’t know who’s candidacy they plan to support. The most popular candidate remains Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders at 17%, though it’s drastically reduced from the 42% he received in polling back in January. Current U.S. President Donald Trump received 12% of the vote, coming in second, making him the only Republican candidate to receive support from Hudson Valley students. 7% support former U.S. Vice President Joe Biden while 6% support businessman Andrew Yang, that’s a jump from the 3% he received in the May 2 issue of the Hudsonian. Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren saw the most gains, receiving 5% of the vote. Back in May, 0% of students supported the 70 year old Democratic contender. California Senator Kamala Harris received 1% of the vote, down drastically from her 6% margin in the May issue poll. Minnesota Senator Amy Klobachar, who got 3% back in May, is now at 0%. No other candidates seeking the presidency received any support from students.