UPDATED: Why Kavananaugh Now?
Sheer malice might be one reason, but some commenters believe there's more to it. A specific objective. For example, commenter Unknown writes:
They know RBG is dying and want [Kavanaugh's] seat.
And commenter Tom S. writes:
What I see is a movement to delegitimize his vote on the Court there by providing an excuse for nullifying SCOTUS rulings they disagree with, much like the Sanctuary movement among the States does to the Executive. Seemingly a dangerous move unless the end goal is dysfunctional chaos and the collapse of our system of Gov't. At the least they hope to cow Kavanaugh into recusing himself from any "Womyn's issues", at the most they will be happy with "burn it down and we'll fight to see who rules at the other end."
I've long been of the view that much of the political theater on the Left that we've been witnessing since the Mueller Dossier was released is triggered by the knowledge of what is coming--just how bad the information re the Russia Hoax that will be released really is--and thus is motivated by the desire to 1) distract the public from the coming Russia Hoax trainwreck, or 2) use a flurry of wild allegations to support a claim that it's all just politics as usual, and both parties are equally bad.
This morning we see multiple Dem presidential aspirants calling for Kavanaugh's impeachment, and New York Magazine already has an article out on this angle: Kavanaugh’s Impeachment May Have Just Become a 2020 Issue . In other words, having lost this fight badly in the court of public opinion already, Dems want a do-over of the Kavanaugh fight as the centerpiece of the 2020 campaign. Presumably to hold on to wavering "suburban" women.
So far it's not going well. Nevertheless I'll repeat: Kavanaugh should have sought vindication in court. Not to have done so reveals a dangerous naivete that GOPers should long ago have gotten over.
UPDATE: I want to highly recommend Margot Cleveland's article today--Lindsey Graham, Start Fighting For Justice For Brett Kavanaugh: Yes, Brett Kavanaugh was confirmed. But that isn’t justice. Justice requires consequences for those who tarnished the man and lied to Senate Judiciary investigators and committee members .
Cleveland takes out after Graham and all the other "pantywaist politicians who refused to punctuate their conclusion that Ford had lied about Kavanaugh with a perjury investigation." She's absolutely right about the damage to our political process that is done when witnesses are allowed to lie with impunity during the confirmation process. Senators who fail to defend nominees in this basic way. I still believe, however, that Kavanaugh himself has a duty to defend himself in the face of such a defamatory attack that goes far beyond difference of opinion.