I've been following this thread closely but haven't posted.
FWIW, I've voted Democrat in 2 of 3 presidential cycles (including the most recent), have voted Democrat in my local congressional race for six election cycles in a row, and generally consider myself very socially liberal.
All that said, the way Democrats handled this Kavenaugh allegation was the most disgusting political stuff I've ever seen in my lifetime. We went so low that we forget Booker and Harris embarrassing the Senate with their initial questioning. Then D's completely botched Ford's confidentiality, and in every step of the process regarding the allegation, their goal was delay and embarrassing the nominee into withdrawing, not fairness.
As a public defender, and as someone who also volunteers for legal aid, the left's presumption of *guilt* disgusted me and had me fearing for my clients. If this allegation -- with absolutely no corroboration -- was enough to sink someone, God help my clients of color, no money, etc.
And don't give me "this was a job interview" bullshit. That was an obvious ploy to shift blame from their own shady behavior. No job interviewer in their right mind goes into whether "Devil's Triangle" means a threesome or a drinking game. And the intent of this was obvious -- they couldn't prove "A" (sexual assault), so they tried to prove "B" (drinking), and if they proved B, then they could prove A. It's a lazy lawyer tactic that would be an embarrassment in a personal injury trial, let alone in a Senate Judiciary hearing.
The entire thing was a sham and an embarrassment to the country. I initially didn't like the Kavenaugh nomination because I would have preferred someone more moderate. When the allegations first came out, I thought they should withdraw him. But as it got worse and worse, I thought fuck it, for the first time ever, I was happy that Trump was president, that he was willing to say "fuck you" and stick up for the presumption of innocence and due process. Those are hills worth dying on.
And worst of all, as is being clearly demonstrated by the recent discussion in this thread regarding the Senate, the Democrats conduct has been so outrageous that questioning the legitimacy of our institutions is somehow considered mainstream among the intellectual left.
I've read countless articles questioning the legitimacy of the Supreme Court. I've seen thought pieces about how undemocratic the Senate is. I've read about how anything Trump has done is illegitimate. And throughout this entire ordeal, I've seen Democrats stomp on the presumption of innocence and due process. Wait a minute -- weren't we pissed at Trump for stomping on democratic norms? And now Democrats are going to act like this?
Do we seriously have to go over the purpose of the Senate? Are us Democrats too stupid and naive to forget hat small liberal states like Vermont, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New Hampshire, Hawaii, Oregon, etc. all get two votes as well? Do we really want federal legislation being passed based almost entirely on interests of California, Texas, New York, and Florida?
Sorry, but I'm done with Democrats for a long, long time. This was disgusting and embarrassing.
I'm voting Republican this November. My mom, who has voted Democrat in every presidential election since 1976, is doing the same. I will probably never vote for Trump, but if Democrats pull something like this again, I just might.
I am just so utterly disgusted.