There has never been a time when Republicans should be more in fear of the “Blue Wave” that November could promise for Democrats in Congress, especially after a rare moment of candor from Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell in an interview just before his quorum confirmed the most controversial Supreme Court Justice in American history.
Many pundits have made hay with speculation about what investigations might take place, what unredacted reports might see the light of day, and what cases might be reopened, should the Democrats win back control of the House of Representatives. Most of that chatter has focused on the ongoing Mueller investigation, and more importantly how House Republicans have worked hard to slow it, stop it, and impede it in every way possible.
But the last few days have brought discussion of what it would take to bring Justice Brett Kavanaugh up on perjury charges and possibly impeach him from the Supreme Court. It’s a risky proposition: Only one SCOTUS judge has ever been impeached, and like Bill Clinton, he was not convicted by the Senate and got to keep his job.
But the man who just called Kavanaugh’s confirmation his “proudest moment” as a Senator, Kentucky’s Mitch McConnell, may actually have unwittingly helped a future Congress with that task.
In the interview he gave to Bloomberg News, McConnell told reporters that it was Senate Republicans, not the White House, that set the terms of the FBI probe which marked the final chapter in the sham nomination and confirmation process that Kavanaugh underwent.
The White House took grief for setting the scope, but we gave them the scope.”
McConnell’s use of “we” certainly indicates at least an effort on the part of the actual Republican Party to define the FBI investigation, which would be even more improper than if the White House had simply abdicated its duty to the 11 Republicans on the Judiciary Committee — of whom Mitch is not one.
The Chairman of the Judiciary, aging farmer Chuck Grassley, had previously told the press that his committee had not restricted the breadth of the FBI probe. If McConnell did restrict it according to political purposes, he would be guilty of at least obstruction of justice — which would certainly bolster the case of any House investigation seeking to invalidate the legitimacy of the Kavanaugh confirmation or remove him.
McConnell left little doubt that politics were at play. When asked why the FBI hadn’t interviewed Kavanaugh or the victim herself, Mitch was plain-spoken:
We just heard testimony, hours and hours of testimony. Nobody thought there was a need to do the same thing all over again.”
That’s not actually your call, Senator.
Featured image via screen capture
