As we begin Day 3 of confirmation hearings for SCOTUS nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson, it is clear that questioning in the Judiciary Committee by either party has little to do with interrogating a nominee’s record or judicial philosophy. But they are a test of her/his judicial temperament. Jackson has the patience of Job.
Even as I type this, Sen. John Cornyn, Republican of Texas, is whining that Democrats are choosing to use their time to editorialize on and debunk the wild allegations/suggestions made by Republicans speaking just before them. Republicans are using their time to pander to QAnon and to attempt to generate sound bites for Fox News. That’s the choice they’ve made.
Paul Waldman summarizes the GOP’s performance as “yet another forum for Republicans to claim victim status” (Washington Post):
As conservatives have learned well in recent years, in the right circumstances, adopting the stance of victimhood can be thrilling, particularly if you don’t have to suffer any actual victimization along the way. You can take the normal unpleasantness that comes with politics — having people disagree with you, or watching as a figure you admire gets criticized in ways you consider unfair — and turn it into something noble, profound, even epic.
Are people calling me a jerk for something repugnant I said? I’m not a jerk, I’m a victim of cancel culture, persecuted for my devotion to free expression! Are people opposing my legislation to ban books and target the families of transgender kids? I’m a victim of the woke mob! Proclaim yourself a victim and not only do you become the hero of the story, you can claim moral absolution for your own grimy choices.
It has been quite a circus by Republicans led by Sen. Lindsey Graham who assured Americans it would not be.
Ted Cruz makes “oleaginous” seem oleaginous. When the Texas senator brought out posters from children’s picture books during his questioning, I swore he was about to launch into another dramatic reading, à la “Green Eggs and Ham.“
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