Soon after the public announcement was made that Judge Brett Kavanaugh was President Trump’s choice to fill the opening in the Supreme Court, Dr. Christine Blasey Ford, along with two others, stepped forward to say that Kavanaugh had sexually assaulted her back when they were in high school. This claim astonished Americans across the nation and a Senate hearing was immediately set to investigate if Kavanaugh is indeed the right fit to be a Supreme Court Justice. Both sides of the story were heard in emotional testimonies on September 27th, and on October 6th, Kavanaugh was officially voted into the Supreme Court. I could not disagree more with the decision.
In this classic case of “he said- she said,” it’s almost impossible for the council chosen to analyze Brett Kavanaugh’s case. The council had to declare whose side they believe, between two highly respected people. They had to declare whose side they believe regarding Ford’s accusation that Kavanaugh sexually assaulted her over 35 years ago.
Before any statements or hearings, Kavanaugh had a pretty good chance of getting the Supreme Court position, whether or not he was guilty, merely based on a lack of evidence. At that point, each side had their fair share of supporters and many people, including me, weren’t sure what to believe. Obviously, if Kavanaugh is guilty of sexual assault, even though it was in high school, it would show extreme flaws in his integrity and judgement, and would prove him to be unfit to be a part of the most influential branch of our government.
After watching the hearing, however, I realized that it doesn’t matter. It suddenly became irrelevant if Kavanaugh had done this horrible thing all those years ago because that was no longer needed to determine if he had the right character and demeanor to be a Supreme Court Justice, arguably the most important job in America. Kavanaugh quickly demonstrated his unsuitability to fill that opening through his inappropriate behavior, lack of professionalism and just plain rudeness. Understandably, he was in an extremely tense situation but that is no excuse for his behavior, especially considering that the life-long position he just got sworn into requires him to be able to stay calm and act rationally under pressure, among other traits that he failed to display at his hearing.
I was appalled by Kavanaugh’s conduct at the hearing, but even more astonished when I heard that he was awarded the opening in the Supreme Court. Personally, I think the council viewed Ford’s claim as the one deciding factor, and disregarded how Kavanaugh handled himself when it mattered most. It wouldn’t have been that hard to reject Kavanaugh and search for someone more qualified for the job, considering how much responsibility the holder of the position has, because there should be no doubts about the character of our Supreme Court Justices. We may never know the truth about Dr. Ford’s accusation, and frankly, no one is in the position to decide whose story is accurate, but either way, it’s an embarrassment for our nation to have Brett Kavanaugh as one of our Supreme Court Justices for the rest of his life.
By: Adira Kahn (12th Grade)