Washington • For all intents and purposes, Thursday’s Senate Judiciary Committee hearing was over as soon as Christine Blasey Ford began to read her opening statement.
Of course she was credible. She’s a Ph.D. psychologist in the midst of a distinguished career, for heaven’s sake. Her voice was both strong and vulnerable as she recounted the details of the sexual assault she says she suffered at the clumsy, drunken hands of Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh. She didn’t sound like a partisan Democrat. She sounded like a determined survivor.
She also sounded like an expert witness. At one point, the Republicans' hired-gun interrogator, Arizona prosecutor Rachel Mitchell, was asking questions that seemed designed to suggest that perhaps other events in her life were responsible for symptoms of anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder that Ford reported suffering. Ford began her response by noting research that suggests "the etiology of anxiety and PTSD is multi-factorial." Mitchell, who is not a Ph.D. psychologist, wisely decided not to pursue the point further.
But why was Mitchell even there? Because the lily-livered Republican members of the committee — all of them aging white males — were afraid to question Ford directly, knowing the optics would be awful. If dirty work was necessary, much better to get a woman to do it.
The new paradigm for the #MeToo era is "believe the woman." It was bizarre that Senate Republicans hardly spoke with the woman.
As a result, the dynamic of the hearing was overwhelmingly in Ford's favor. First a Democratic senator would ask a sympathetic question and end by saluting Ford's courage. Then Mitchell would ask a question about some detail of Ford's recollection of the attack or the way in which her allegations came to light — but Mitchell wisely declined to adopt a confrontational tone. Instead, she tried to gently impeach Ford's story around the edges, in a way that was just tough enough to be offensive but not effective.
If anyone understands why Mitchell spent so much time questioning Ford about the circumstances of the polygraph test she took — where and when it was done, whether her lawyers paid for it — please let me know. It is perfectly normal that attorneys would pay for a polygraph (and later include the cost in their bills). And the salient fact, which Mitchell avoided for some reason, is that she passed it.
Ford said she was "100 percent" certain that the young man who attacked her that night was Kavanaugh. Her testimony made clear that this was not some sort of recent recollection; she has been sure of what was done to her, and who did it, all along.
All of this was predictable. Even President Trump seems to have seen it coming. At his news conference Wednesday, Trump acknowledged that the many "false" allegations of sexual misconduct against him played a role in making him sympathetic to Kavanaugh. But he also said more than once that he wanted to watch the hearing and that it was possible Ford's testimony would change his mind.
Trump even postponed his scheduled meeting with Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein so as not to steal attention from the hearing. True-believer Trumpists should not worry that the president is in danger of becoming "woke." More likely, he simply had a professional entertainer's sense that Ford's testimony would be compelling television.
Trump and the Republicans had a readily available off-ramp that they should have taken. They could have had the FBI reopen its background investigation of Kavanaugh, looking at not only Ford’s allegations but also those of Deborah Ramirez and Julie Swetnick. FBI investigators could have potentially interviewed witnesses including Mark Judge, the Kavanaugh friend who Ford says was present during the assault — and who would be aware that lying to the FBI is a crime. Senators would have had a baseline of facts and official statements that they could use to make an informed decision.
They could still have that baseline. In response to questioning from Mitchell, Ford said she would be happy to cooperate with the FBI. Perhaps Trump and the Republicans will finally take her up on that offer.
Kavanaugh strongly denies any impropriety. But at this point, he is the one who most needs a pause and an FBI probe.
Ford has made a believable allegation. She answered every question forthrightly, acknowledging what she could not recall and standing firm on what she will never forget. After the hearing, Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., dismissed Ford as "a nice lady." Seriously, how low can they go?
Eugene Robinson
Eugene Robinson’s email address is eugenerobinson@washpost.com.
