Brett Kavanaugh and Clarence Thomas: A Tale of Two Universes

by Newt Gingrich: Tuesday’s spectacle in the Senate would have made no sense seen from the world we lived in just a few decades ago.

On the first day of the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing for Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh, 70 people were arrested for disrupting the proceedings. There were more than 40 interruptions by Democratic Senators during the first hour of the hearing.

Chairman Chuck Grassley, who has served 37 years in the Senate (as well as six years in the U.S. House and 16 years in the Iowa state House) calmly handled the disruptions. He is a remarkable man who goes home and works the farm every weekend. He also visits all 99 Iowa counties every year. Chairman Grassley is very comfortable with his role, and I expect he found the Democrats amusing and irritating – but not intimidating.

This opening day hostility is a remarkable contrast to the world of 27 years ago, when now-Justice Clarence Thomas was being considered. The Thomas hearings were among the most personal and painful of modern Senate hearings. His personal integrity was challenged in a series of very emotional sessions. Thomas ultimately rose to the occasion, and in a brilliant, powerful, compelling speech compared what was happening to him to a “high-tech lynching.” As an African American, he said he understood the viciousness being used against him. His personal testimony turned the tide and convinced the Senate to approve him. He went on to become one of the two conservative pillars of the Court, along with late Justice Antonin Scalia.

The amazing difference between 1991 and 2018 is that despite the viciousness, 11 Democrats voted to confirm Justice Thomas. He won confirmation by 52-48. Imagine how unlikely it is that Kavanaugh could get 11 Democrats to vote for his confirmation today.

In 1991, there was a sense that politics was operating within a broadly bipartisan universe. President George H.W. Bush was giving up his no tax increase pledge to get a budget deal with the Democrats. There was a general sense that everyone was operating within a center-left system.

In 2018, bipartisanship has separated, and we are now operating in two competing alternative universes. There is virtually no common ground.

Once you understand that this is a time in which people aren’t playing by the same rules, things become more understandable, and the hypocrisy becomes more obvious.

The Democrats who were causing chaos in the Judiciary Committee had already indicated they were going to oppose Kavanaugh’s nomination. In fact, some Democrats had indicated they would vote “no” before President Trump even sent a name up. The reason was simple. In their left-wing universe, anyone acceptable to Trump would be, by definition, unacceptable to them and their allies.

So, we had the spectacle of people complaining that they didn’t have enough time to read all of the material about the nominee, who they have already said they would vote against.

The ridiculousness of the Democrats’ demand for more material (and simultaneous cries that the process must be slowed) were thoroughly highlighted by both The Wall Street Journal and Investor’s Business Daily.

IBD pointed out that, “[i]t’s been 64 days since President Trump nominated Kavanaugh. The average time between nomination and the start of confirmation hearings for the past 10 Supreme Court justices: 41.6 days.”

As to the complaint that Senators did not have enough material to review, the WSJ asserted that “[t]he Senators are ignoring the 307 opinions he has written, and the 17,000 pages of material he provided in response to the committee’s questionnaire—the most extensive ever demanded of a nominee. The Senators have already received more than half a million pages about his time as a lawyer and judge—more documents than were provided for the past five Supreme Court nominees combined.”

So, as you watch this political theater being choreographed and performed by the Left, just remember that Justice Ruther Bader Ginsberg was approved by 96 to 3. Justice Stephen Breyer was approved 87-9. Justice Sonia Sotomayor was confirmed 68-31. And Justice Elena Kagan was approved 63-37.

The real test on confirming Kavanaugh will come when the Democratic Senators serving in states that Trump won in 2016 have to cast their votes.

It is clear that the voters of their states will prefer a “yes” vote, while their left-wing donor base and activists will hate a “yes” vote.

These are the Democrats who are caught between two alternative universes. The next few weeks will be fascinating as we get to watch them maneuver.
----------------------
Newt Gingrich is a former Georgia Congressman and Speaker of the U.S. House. He co-authored and was the chief architect of the "Contract with America" and a major leader in the Republican victory in the 1994 congressional elections. He is noted speaker and writer. The above commentary was shared via Gingrich Productions.

---

Tags: Newt Gingrich, commentary, Brett Kavanaugh, Clarence Thomas, Tale of Two Universes To share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service and "Like" Facebook Page - Thanks!