EDITORIAL: Country is heading toward ‘an ugly new place’

It’s tempting to suggest the embarrassing production on display in a U.S. Senate hearing room Thursday represents rock bottom in terms of American politics and decency. But that would be both optimistic and presumptuous. Instead, there appears to be no end to this frenetically careening downward spiral.

As could be expected, the Brett Kavanaugh spectacle was more a shameless political exercise than a true search for the facts. Christine Blasey Ford, who has accused the Supreme Court nominee of sexually attacking her almost four decades ago when the two were teenagers, appeared credible and sincere. But there remains no corroboration, and the gaps in her memory are troubling. Judge Kavanaugh offered indignation, anger and emotion when he faced the committee. He “emphatically” denied he did any such thing.

“I’m innocent of this charge,” he said, bluntly blasting Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee for trying to destroy his life and career based on uncorroborated allegations from decades ago that surfaced in the 11th hour.

The Senate, he said, has “replaced advise and consent with search and destroy.”

Whatever the fate of the Kavanaugh nomination, Democrats will eventually regret where they chose to take their rabid opposition to President Donald Trump’s second high court nominee. Having weaponized the #MeToo movement to provide a shield for their own political assaults on Judge Kavanaugh, surely they recognize the guilty-until-proven-innocent standard they are now preening to espouse will, at some point, be turned against them. High school drinking habits? Yearbook notations from the early 1980s? Really?

What man or woman deserves to be subjected to such nonsense?

Apparently, however, Senate Democrats are more than willing to defenestrate fairness and due process if it suits their short-term agenda.

“This new standard for court nominees (and surely others in and outside politics),” writes Wall Street Journal columnist Daniel Henninger, “would be that judgment can be rendered in the absence of substantive argument or any legal standard relating to corroboration, cross-examination or presumption of innocence.”

And when charges that can’t be proven carry the day, the social media hordes and progressive mobs will enjoy a target-rich environment, indeed.

“This is the most unethical sham since I’ve been in politics,” Sen. Lindsey Graham thundered at Democrats during the hearing. “And if you really wanted to know the truth, you sure as hell wouldn’t have done what you’ve done to this guy … You’re looking for a fair process? You came to the wrong town, at the wrong time, my friend.”

Judge Kavanaugh on Thursday warned that his experience indicates the country is heading toward “an ugly new place.” In fact, it’s already there.