Andy Wright, Senior Fellow and Founding Editor of Just Security, investigations lawyer and law professor, noted that the burden is on the nominee to demonstrate fitness for a lifetime appointment, contrary to a criminal prosecution burden upon the accuser.
These 4 things can be true:
1) The Senate should give full airing of allegations & evidence #Kavanaugh committed sexual assault
2) The burden is on the nominee to demonstrate fitness for a lifetime appointment. This is not a criminal prosecution burden on the accuser.
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and 3) #Kavanaugh nevertheless has important reputational interests at stake beyond the acquisition of a SCOTUS seat.
4) Ford has them as well. I have written about such reputational interests in Congressional Due Process https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2660917 …
These 4 things can be true:
1) The Senate should give full airing of allegations & evidence #Kavanaugh committed sexual assault
2) The burden is on the nominee to demonstrate fitness for a lifetime appoinment. This is not a criminal prosecution burden on the accuser.
1 of 2
— Andy Wright (@AndyMcCanse) September 18, 2018
and
3) #Kavanaugh nevertheless has important reputational interests at stake beyond the acquisition of a SCOTUS seat.
4) Ford has them as well.
I have written about such reputational interests in Congressional Due Process https://t.co/tTVngmv1Wv
2 of 2
— Andy Wright (@AndyMcCanse) September 18, 2018
You can read Wright’s take on this here.
His overarching point is not just about the bit I pulled out, but rather the entire process. But going into this sham hearing during which Republicans are not even calling the witness to the alleged crime, it’s worth noting that contrary to what most Americans will be thinking when they watch it, the burden is not upon the accuser.
The burden here is upon Kavanaugh to prove his character worthy of a lifetime appointment to the highest court in the land.
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