Murphy, Peter (2022) Kavanaugh’s Trial by Ordeal. In: Fenwick, Peter, (ed.) The Fortunate : Ten Great Writers Highlight How We Created Free and Affluent Societies. Connor Court, Redland Bay, QLD, Australia, pp. 139-156.

PDF (Published Version) - Published Version Restricted to Repository staff only

Abstract

[Extract] The smearing of US Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh was hardball politics at its most disingenuous. The stakes were unambiguous. The Democrats and their supporters wanted to delay and derail his nomination. The tactic was to wait till the end of the regular nomination hearing and then leak an accusation that the judge was guilty of sexual misconduct. Base politics for sure, but Democrats had tried twice before to derail a Supreme Court nomination with confected allegations. So the ploy was not surprising. Republicans kept their nerve. They patiently navigated three weeks of brutal character assassination of a major public figure with a spotless track record. In the course of those days the Democrats attempted to turn the supplementary Senate Judiciary Committee hearing into a show trial. As that unfolded, the very nature of 'Brett Kavanaugh' changed. He was transformed from a nominee for America's highest court into a symbol of America's political division.

Item ID:	78035
Item Type:	Book Chapter (Research - B1)
ISBN:	9781922815118
Copyright Information:	Copyright © Peter Fenwick. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photo copying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system, without prior permission in writing from the publisher.
Date Deposited:	16 May 2023 04:27
FoR Codes:	44 HUMAN SOCIETY > 4408 Political science > 440811 Political theory and political philosophy @ 50% 44 HUMAN SOCIETY > 4410 Sociology > 441005 Social theory @ 50%
SEO Codes:	28 EXPANDING KNOWLEDGE > 2801 Expanding knowledge > 280123 Expanding knowledge in human society @ 100%
Downloads:	Total: 3
	More Statistics