We at College Republicans are closely following the recent Senate Judiciary hearings. 

If you watched Dr. Ford’s testimony, you cannot help but feel for her and for countless women and men who have been victims of sexual harassment and assault. She deserves to be taken seriously. The mere fact that she was able to appear before the committee to testify on a confirmation that was supposed to happen weeks ago is proof of that. Her bravery in coming forward warrants respect. 

College Republicans support victims of sexual assault and harassment in coming forward to tell their stories. No one should be disregarded. That said, Republican leadership handled this the right way; by having another hearing for Dr. Ford and giving her the chance to say her piece. However, this was only after her anonymous allegation was attached to her by Senate Democrats. 

It needs to be understood that our problem is not with Dr. Ford. The victim of a sexual assault, alleged or otherwise, deserves to be heard and taken seriously. Our problem is with Senate Democrats who used this woman as a pawn in a game of 4D chess they are playing with their Republican counterparts. It lies with a media judging Justice Kavanaugh based on nothing but allegations and deeming him guilty, before his hearing on Thursday took place. Former classmates, friends, girlfriends, and clerks (both male and female) have come forward and gone on record disputing these allegations. This has not happened in most, if any, of the recent similar cases of powerful men assaulting women. 

Justice Kavanaugh has spent the past week and a half silently watching his name, his career, and his family being dragged through the mud. While his opening remarks at the hearing on Thursday were certainly colorful, I’m not sure anyone who had endured something like that would react much differently; nor should they. If you watched him, you saw a man essentially blindsided by these allegations. You saw a man who has sat before this committee before and been confirmed without any real controversy. This time, excerpts from his high school yearbook were used to destroy him and his character. 

 College Republicans want what everyone wants: a fair judiciary. We believe Justice Kavanaugh’s career qualifies him for this post. We hope the facts will be found, and justice served. In the meantime, we support the confirmation of Justice Kavanaugh.