In 1991, during the administration of George H. W. Bush, the Senate Committee on the Judiciary was, as it is today, engaged in confirmation hearings for a nominee to our Supreme Court. That nominee, Clarence Thomas, had been, like the current candidate Brett Kavanaugh, accused of sexual harassment and assault. As unnerving, members of the 1991 Committee remain members of today's.
In 1991, all members were white males; today's Committee is more varied. Its 21 members include people of color (Corey Booker, D-NJ, Maizie Hirono, D-HA, and Kamala Harris, D-CA) and women (the aforementioned Hirono and Harris, as well as Diane Feinstein, D-CA and Amy Klobuchar, D MI). Note too that the Committee's Republican, controlling, majority includes two members of the 1991 group - Orrin Hatch of Utah and Chuck Grassley of Iowa.
During the 1991 hearings, Hatch suggested that Anita Hill, who accused nominee Thomas of sexually abusive behavior, drew her charges from the book The Exorcist. On Tuesday, Sept. 18th, 2018, Senator Hatch implied that Dr. Christine Blasey Ford, the accuser of Brett Kavanaugh, was mentally or emotionally disturbed; Hatch said "She's confused." Senator Grassley has, on several occasions in the past few days accused Dr. Ford of delaying tactics, and has used language a schoolyard bully might be comfortable with.
Hatch and Grassley are avatars of misogynistic politics, but their party's leader outdoes them. Donald Trump asked why Christine Blasey, at the age of 15, hadn't reported the attack on her when it happened "if it was as bad as she said".
Grassley, Hatch, and Trump might want to check this.
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