Disingenuous

Don’t you love the word, “disingenuous?” Well, yes, except when it is applied to treatment directed at me. (Don’t know what it means? Go ahead, check it out. I’ll wait.) An intriguing example of disingenuous actions is playing out in the confirmation of Judge Kavanaugh.

“GOP accused of rushing the confirmation.” That was the headline in the Tennessean. (9/19) The terrible charge of sexual harassment was hurled into the arena. Now, in a normal setting, this would be a cause to stop and consider the nuances carefully. But this is far from a normal setting.

We must consider that it would be desirable to complete the confirmation before the first of October, so the new judge could sit on the Supreme Court for the entire term. A last minute challenge could, logically, derail that time frame. However, a second, salient, and to many minds, damning, consideration is that this “last minute challenge” has been known and nursed since July. Over a month has passed since the Democratic leaders became aware of it.

And here is where, disingenuous becomes a critical component of the deliberations. If the opposition were solely interested in a thorough vetting and investigation of the allegation, why was it not presented on “day one?” If their reason was to investigate and confirm the validity of the charges, the supporting evidence should accompany the charge. And the existence of the “problem” should have been exposed when it was initially discovered.

The call for a “thorough FBI investigation” at this late date, considering that this question could have been researched and answered easily within the elapsed time, reveals this tactic as not a “search for truth,” but a stall and delay maneuver. In short, it is disingenuous. But, the facts must be aired.

And, according to the preliminary reports that I have seen, about 20 minutes of testimony will thoroughly answer this allegation. There seems to be an abundance of credible evidence and motivation to identify this as an obvious attempt to derail the nomination, as opposed to exposing the truth. A few minutes of exculpatory exposition and this whole fiasco will be relegated to the trash bin of history, assuming that what I have read so far is accurate.

But why wait until Monday? If the researchers that I read have already turned up controverting and clarifying information, just report that, and get on with the process.

But, but but! Didn’t the Republicans extend the process for Judge Merritt? Absolutely. And they were perfectly within their rights and responsibilities. The election validated their decision. And they were forthright in their statements that the nomination would be deferred until a new President was selected. They did not stall, then at the last minute, before a vote, hurl a supposed damning accusation at the nominee. But that is for another day.

Expose the facts, flush out the disingenuity, and confirm the Judge.