The real reason Dianne Feinstein handled the Brett Kavanaugh rape allegation the way she did
Even as Donald Trump’s Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh finds himself smack in the middle of rape allegations, some observers are asking questions about how Democratic Senator Dianne Feinstein handled the matter. But I don’t think it’s that difficult to figure out, and if I’m right about why Feinstein did what she did, then it’s downright brilliant.
We now know that back in July, shortly after Donald Trump nominated Kavanaugh, his unnamed accuser wrote a letter to a Democratic Congresswoman in California, who then turned it over to Dianne Feinstein, who represents the state of California. Feinstein then apparently sat on the letter from July until now, even as Kavanaugh’s vetting process and confirmation hearings played out. Days ago she told some of her Democratic colleagues about it, and they advised her to give the letter to the FBI. So let’s talk about why she would do this.
Let’s say that Feinstein had given the letter to the FBI, or made it public, all the way back in July. There’s a good chance that would have prompted the Republican leadership to force Trump to dump Kavanaugh in favor of a less scandalous nominee. That replacement nominee would likely have ended up being confirmed to the Supreme Court before the midterm elections.
As it stands, by sitting on the letter until now, Feinstein has created a situation where Kavanaugh’s nomination may collapse, and if it does, the GOP probably won’t have time to rush-confirm a replacement nominee before the midterms. So if Kavanaugh falls through, and the Democrats take control of the Senate, it’ll mean they can keep that seat empty until after the next presidential election.
If this was Dianne Feinstein’s reasoning for sitting on the letter until now, it’ll cause some people to raise questions about whether it was ethical on her part. But keep in mind that the unnamed woman wrote her letter specifically in response to Brett Kavanaugh being nominated to the Supreme Court, so it’s fair to assume that her goal was to derail the nomination. In such case, Feinstein would be honoring her wishes by sitting on the letter and then busting it out at just the right time.
Also keep in mind that Donald Trump, who is under criminal investigation for conspiring with a foreign enemy to rig the election in his favor, is clearly trying to put Kavanaugh on the Supreme Court in the hope of keeping himself out of prison. Trump is attempting to obstruct justice with this nomination, which is a felony on his part. No one could reasonably argue that Dianne Feinstein is the one who’s playing dirty here. We may never know for sure why Feinstein handled this the way she did. But if this was her reasoning, then it’s brilliant, and it may ultimately help bring an end to Trump’s crime spree.
