The Joker is wild

September 18, 2019

      “Indelible in the hippocampus is the laughter.”  One year later, Dr. Christine Blasey Ford’s phrase is ringing in our ears, as we relive  the traumatic confirmation process that installed an intemperate liar (and likely sexual assaulter) on the Supreme Court.

      Courtesy of a botched book rollout by New York Times writers, Robin Pogrebin and Kate Kelly, we learned on Saturday that Dr. Ford and Kavanaugh’s second accuser, Yale classmate Debbie Ramirez, had given the FBI the names of 50 people who could corroborate their stories, but the FBI only interviewed nine, (Source:  “New reporting details how FBI limited investigation of Kavanaugh allegations,” by Jackie Calmes, The Los Angeles Times, 9/16/19).  The extent of the sham was hammered home by the news of a third credible accusation that Kavanaugh had drunkenly exposed himself to another classmate. His classmate, Max Stier, claimed to have witnessed the incident and contacted Senate Judiciary Committee Member, Chris Coons, who sent a letter detailing the allegation to FBI Director, Chris Wray, to no avail, (Source:  ibid).

       We are left to grapple with the distressing fact that, as Amanda Marcotte wrote, Republicans knew that the accusations against Kavanaugh were credible, they just didn’t care.  Worse still, as everyone from The New York Times, in its deleted tweet, describing Kavanaugh’s sexual misconduct as “harmless fun,” to Ted Cruz’s smirking appearance on “This Week with George Stephanopoulos” made clear, far too many people think that sexual assaults, particularly those perpetrated by privileged white men, are a joke, (Source:  “How Brett Kavanaugh Got The Last Laugh,” by Megan Garber, TheAtlantic.com, 9/17/19).

      We are awash in men who find humor, not only in mocking the marginalized; but in making a mockery of the very values that used to bind us as a nation:  respect for the truth and reverence for the principle that no person is above the law.  How else are we to view the startling sight of Sean Spicer in neon lime green Flamenco shirt, as if laughable fashion choices are adequate penance for his role as propagandist for an inveterate liar and would-be autocrat?  What are we to make of Cory Lewandowski’s pugnacious performance in yesterday’s Congressional hearings, where he refused to answer questions that were not already covered in the Mueller Report?   The episode played more like a scene from “Rhinoceros,” than a sober minded search for the truth, (Source:  “Lewandowski mocks Democrats, talks over lawmakers, promotes possible Senate bid,” by Rachael Bade, Colby Itkowitz and John Wagner, The Washington Post, 9/17/19).

       The amoral bullies running this country substitute cruel pranks for policy.  Every decision is motivated, less by an effort to achieve some discernible goal, than by how much anger and anguish it will provoke among progressives, or anyone moderately left of center.  Consider Trump’s announcement that his administration was rescinding the Clean Air Act waiver that allows California to set more stringent emission standards than the EPA. Trump revoked California’s waiver despite the fact that four major automakers asked him not to do so, (Source:  “The Fight Over California’s Emissions Rules Just Got Real,” by Aarian Marshall, Wired.com, 9/18/19).  In short, Trump’s rollback of the nearly 50 year old rule is a vindictive middle finger to the 57% of Americans (and 84% of Democrats and Democratically leaning independents), who are alarmed about climate change, (Source:  “U.S. concern about climate change is rising, but mainly among Democrats,” by Brian Kennedy and Meg Hefferon, Pew Research Center, 8/28/19).  Trump, a real-life Biff Tannen, was elected by a group of people desperate to get in on the joke.  Look around you. Ain’t a damn thing funny.

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