Nelson, Scott clash over Kavanaugh
TALLAHASSEE – The drama surrounding the nomination of Brett Kavanaugh to the U.S. Supreme Court reverberated Friday throughout the political world of Florida, where Democrats and Republicans are fighting fierce contests for U.S. Senate and Governor.
U.S. Senator Bill Nelson’s declaration that he would vote against confirming Kavanaugh was immediately met with condemnation by Gov. Rick Scott, his Republican opponent for re-election, who couched the decision as one made by Democratic leaders, not Nelson himself.
“This is not news. This was always the case,” Scott wrote on Twitter. “You were always going to do exactly what your party leaders told you to do. You decided no before you even knew who the nominee was. Your vote does not even belong to you – it belongs to (Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer).”
Thursday’s emotional testimony from Christine Blasey Ford, a California professor, that Kavanaugh sexually assaulted her in 1982, and Kavanaugh’s vigorous denial of the charges, has exacerbated partisan feelings and enraged members of both parties.
In a statement, Scott said he believed both Ford and Kavanaugh, but would still vote to confirm Kavanaugh if he were in the Senate.
“I found Dr. Ford’s testimony convincing, and my heart goes out to her. I also found Judge Kavanaugh’s testimony convincing, and he’s correct that his character has been smeared,” Scott said. “I don’t know what happened 36 years ago in suburban Maryland. The truth is that none of us really know. So, I have to go with what I do know – Judge Kavanaugh has been a fair and brilliant Judge, one of our nation’s very best. He should be confirmed to the U.S. Supreme Court.”
Democrats are incensed that Republicans could ignore Ford’s testimony and move ahead with confirming Kavanaugh.
Republicans feel aggrieved that Ford’s accusations emerged late in the confirmation process as a way to delay his nomination, and many doubt her testimony or that Kavanaugh was the assailant.
At stake is the balance of the Supreme Court. Kavanaugh was nominated to replace Justice Anthony Kennedy, a centrist jurist who for years was often the deciding factor in 5-4 decisions by a split court. Democrats fear a stalwart conservative judge could help overturn Roe v. Wade, the seminal 1973 decision that legalized abortion.