# Can Democrats actually stop the nomination of Brett Kavanaugh? **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [September 4, 2018, 12:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-democrats-actually-stop-the-nomination-of-brett-kavanaugh/820733 "2018-09-04T12:49:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 170
**Author:** ![CoolHandCox](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/coolhandcox/32/16233_2.png) [@CoolHandCox](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CoolHandCox)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2018, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-democrats-actually-stop-the-nomination-of-brett-kavanaugh/820733/3381 "2018-09-25T16:10:50Z")
Looking around at the drinking ages. He went to high school in Maryland. Legal drinking age went to 21 in 1983, that would be Kavanaugh’s spring semester of his senior year in high school. > [@](#): > > What were the previous legal drinking ages in Maryland and when were they raised? > > 1972 - Raised to 21 years of age. > 1973 - Lowered to 18 years of age in Montgomery and Prince George’s County > 1974 - Lowered to 18 years of age for the entire state. > 1983 - Raised to 21 years of age. He went to college at Yale in Connecticut. Kavanaugh would have been underage while at Yale until he turned 21. > [@](#): > > 1982: Raised to 19 > 1983: Raised to 20 > 1985: Raised to 21 None of this means much, lots of people drink in high school/college when they are underage. Classic trap question, and I’m sure he’s prepped and has a solid answer. But if he doesn’t, and he lies about it…what else might he be lying about. ---
**Author:** ![HurricaneDitka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/96bed5/32.png) [@HurricaneDitka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HurricaneDitka)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2018, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-democrats-actually-stop-the-nomination-of-brett-kavanaugh/820733/3382 "2018-09-25T16:14:52Z")
> [@you\_with\_the\_face](#): > > Why do you believe him? Because I haven’t seen convincing evidence to contradict his claim. ---
**Author:** ![Lance\_Turbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lance_turbo/32/6156_2.png) [@Lance\_Turbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lance_Turbo)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2018, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-democrats-actually-stop-the-nomination-of-brett-kavanaugh/820733/3383 "2018-09-25T16:16:55Z")
> [@HurricaneDitka](#): > > Because I haven’t seen convincing evidence to contradict his claim. Yes you have. ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2018, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-democrats-actually-stop-the-nomination-of-brett-kavanaugh/820733/3384 "2018-09-25T16:24:30Z")
> [@CoolHandCox](#): > > Looking around at the drinking ages. > > He went to high school in Maryland. Legal drinking age went to 21 in 1983, that would be Kavanaugh’s spring semester of his senior year in high school. > He went to college at Yale in Connecticut. Kavanaugh would have been underage while at Yale until he turned 21. > > None of this means much, lots of people drink in high school/college when they are underage. Classic trap question, and I’m sure he’s prepped and has a solid answer. > But if he doesn’t, and he lies about it…what else might he be lying about. I grew up in Maryland, and am a few years older than Judge Kavanaugh. I have a vague recollection that when the passed the higher age, it didn’t jump from 18 to 21 at once, but wet up one year ever year (to grandfather in legal drinkers, like 19 year olds). ---
**Author:** ![HurricaneDitka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/96bed5/32.png) [@HurricaneDitka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HurricaneDitka)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2018, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-democrats-actually-stop-the-nomination-of-brett-kavanaugh/820733/3385 "2018-09-25T16:24:43Z")
> [@Lance\_Turbo](#): > > Yes you have. You’re in a poor position to judge what I’ve seen or not. Aside from that, why don’t you lay it out for me here? If you wanted to convince someone that Brett Kavanaugh was a blackout drunk, what’s your evidence? I’m certainly wiling to review it and consider what you have to say. ---
**Author:** ![HurricaneDitka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/96bed5/32.png) [@HurricaneDitka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HurricaneDitka)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2018, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-democrats-actually-stop-the-nomination-of-brett-kavanaugh/820733/3386 "2018-09-25T16:27:24Z")
> [@Lance\_Turbo](#): > > … There is a ton of evidence that Kavanaugh drank until he blacked out on numerous occasions. This evidence has been provided by a number of people including Kavanaugh himself. Cite? ---
**Author:** ![Lance\_Turbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lance_turbo/32/6156_2.png) [@Lance\_Turbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lance_Turbo)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2018, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-democrats-actually-stop-the-nomination-of-brett-kavanaugh/820733/3387 "2018-09-25T16:29:43Z")
> [@HurricaneDitka](#): > > You’re in a poor position to judge what I’ve seen or not. Aside from that, why don’t you lay it out for me here? If you wanted to convince someone that Brett Kavanaugh was a blackout drunk, what’s your evidence? I’m certainly wiling to review it and consider what you have to say. I am operating under the assumption that you have read the posts in this thread. ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2018, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-democrats-actually-stop-the-nomination-of-brett-kavanaugh/820733/3388 "2018-09-25T16:30:17Z")
What’s Kavanaugh going to do next – start taking out TV ads featuring singing jingles? This “interview” is nothing less than a shameless campaign ad that has got to be a first for a Supreme Court justice, finally obliterating completely any shred of pretext that it’s actually a judicial body and not a purely partisan extension of the politicians who appoint and confirm its members. And of course by airing it on Fox News, it’s clearly directed at the Republican base whose support he’s trying to drum up. And he’s describing a fictional high-school Kavanaugh – a pious churchgoing youth diametrically opposite to [the real-life jerk who actually existed](https://www.nytimes.com/2018/09/24/business/brett-kavanaugh-yearbook-renate.html). This lying asshole has no dignity, no integrity, and no shame. John Roberts, who’s been trying to cultivate a civilized and even mock-impartial image for the Court, must be appalled by it all. ---
**Author:** ![drad\_dog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/aeb1de/32.png) [@drad\_dog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drad_dog)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2018, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-democrats-actually-stop-the-nomination-of-brett-kavanaugh/820733/3389 "2018-09-25T16:31:00Z")
Is it just me, or does the statement about his virginity and how long he had it, make it much more believable that he could have attempted a rape in high school? Where is he going with that? ---
**Author:** ![HurricaneDitka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/96bed5/32.png) [@HurricaneDitka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HurricaneDitka)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2018, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-democrats-actually-stop-the-nomination-of-brett-kavanaugh/820733/3390 "2018-09-25T16:31:17Z")
> [@Lance\_Turbo](#): > > I am operating under the assumption that you have read the posts in this thread. That’s your first mistake. This thread is 3300+ posts long. I doubt I’ve managed to read every single one of them. ---
**Author:** ![Lance\_Turbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lance_turbo/32/6156_2.png) [@Lance\_Turbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lance_Turbo)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2018, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-democrats-actually-stop-the-nomination-of-brett-kavanaugh/820733/3391 "2018-09-25T16:32:30Z")
> [@HurricaneDitka](#): > > Cite? You’re the guy was not convinced that the Ferguson report showed racial profiling in spite of being shown a mountain of convincing evidence. Why don’t you tell me what kind of thing would convince you and we’ll take it from there? ---
**Author:** ![Lance\_Turbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lance_turbo/32/6156_2.png) [@Lance\_Turbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lance_Turbo)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2018, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-democrats-actually-stop-the-nomination-of-brett-kavanaugh/820733/3392 "2018-09-25T16:33:30Z")
> [@HurricaneDitka](#): > > That’s your first mistake. This thread is 3300+ posts long. I doubt I’ve managed to read every single one of them. I guess we’re done then. ---
**Author:** ![HurricaneDitka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/96bed5/32.png) [@HurricaneDitka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HurricaneDitka)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2018, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-democrats-actually-stop-the-nomination-of-brett-kavanaugh/820733/3393 "2018-09-25T16:36:19Z")
> [@Lance\_Turbo](#): > > I guess we’re done then. Well _that_ certainly wasn’t very convincing. ---
**Author:** ![you\_with\_the\_face](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/ecccb3/32.png) [@you\_with\_the\_face](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/you_with_the_face)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2018, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-democrats-actually-stop-the-nomination-of-brett-kavanaugh/820733/3394 "2018-09-25T16:36:45Z")
“Was there ever a time you drank so much that you couldn’t remember the night before?” He immediately says “No. That never happened.” I would find him more believable if he said something like “It was a long time ago and I was young, so I’m not going to say it was completely impossible. But I do know that I was usually careful with how much I drank. Getting drunk just to get drunk has always had very little appeal to me.” Just a flat out “no” just isn’t persuasive when dude named himself the treasurer of the so-called Keg City Club (100 Kegs or Bust). ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2018, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-democrats-actually-stop-the-nomination-of-brett-kavanaugh/820733/3395 "2018-09-25T16:39:47Z")
> [@you\_with\_the\_face](#): > > “Was there ever a time you drank so much that you couldn’t remember the night before?” > > He immediately says “No. That never happened.” > > I would find him more believable if he said something like “It was a long time ago and I was young, so I’m not going to say it was completely impossible. But I do know that I was usually careful with how much I drank. Getting drunk just to get drunk has always had very little appeal to me.” > > Just a flat out “no” just isn’t persuasive when dude named himself the treasurer of the so-called Keg City Club (100 Kegs or Bust). Among many other things, the dude isn’t very bright, or he wouldn’t have the beliefs he does, and the history he does that he’s now trying to deny. ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Economist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/c89c15/32.png) [@Evil\_Economist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Economist)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2018, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-democrats-actually-stop-the-nomination-of-brett-kavanaugh/820733/3396 "2018-09-25T16:41:51Z")
Has anyone posted his college roommate’s statement yet? If not, [here it is](https://www.axios.com/brett-kavanaugh-college-roommate-believes-allegations-add8ad85-cc53-4e42-88e3-6a36398d6bb0.html). Relevant exerpt: although Brett was normally reserved, he was a notably heavy drinker, even by the standards of the time, and that he became aggressive and belligerent when he was very drunk. I did not observe the specific incident in question, but I do remember Brett frequently drinking excessively and becoming incoherently drunk. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2018, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-democrats-actually-stop-the-nomination-of-brett-kavanaugh/820733/3397 "2018-09-25T16:48:08Z")
> [@HurricaneDitka](#): > > Cite? James Roche, Kavanaugh’s Yale roommate at the time of the alleged assault on Debbie Ramirez, is quoted, in the [New Yorker piece](https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/senate-democrats-investigate-a-new-allegation-of-sexual-misconduct-from-the-supreme-court-nominee-brett-kavanaughs-college-years-deborah-ramirez): > [@](#): > > He said that he never witnessed Kavanaugh engage in any sexual misconduct, but did recall him being “frequently, incoherently drunk.” Also, while not evidence of drinking _per se_, on [Kavanaugh’s own page in his high school yearbook](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/powerpost/paloma/daily-202/2018/09/25/daily-202-kavanaugh-s-memory-of-himself-in-high-school-is-very-different-than-his-portrayal-in-the-yearbook/5ba945d21b326b7c8a8d165d/?utm_term=.939e3fa976ee), which he apparently was personally responsible for writing, he named himself as “treasurer of the ‘100 Kegs or Bust’ club.” Regarding that club, Kavanaugh’s friend and classmate Mark Judge, wrote about “the pledge he and his friends … made to drink 100 kegs of beer before graduation.” Yes, it’s entirely possible that Kavanaugh, as well as Judge and his other friends, were, in fact, teetotalers while in high school, and they just like to talk about such things. But, given the nature of the allegation made by Dr. Ford, this certainly feels like something that should be dug into by the Senate committee. ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Economist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/c89c15/32.png) [@Evil\_Economist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Economist)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2018, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-democrats-actually-stop-the-nomination-of-brett-kavanaugh/820733/3398 "2018-09-25T16:52:06Z")
> [@Lance\_Turbo](#): > > You’re the guy was not convinced that the Ferguson report showed racial profiling in spite of being shown a mountain of convincing evidence. Yeah, that was from an argument I had with him. I was (at the time) astonished at how bad he was at understanding the simple written word. Although I was frustrated with his lack of understanding in that discussion, I’ve noticed since then that his ability to understand that the Ferguson report documented the existence racial profiling comes and goes depending on the specific argument he’s making. So I think that I did eventually convince him, he just occasionally forgets… ---
**Author:** ![drad\_dog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/aeb1de/32.png) [@drad\_dog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drad_dog)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2018, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-democrats-actually-stop-the-nomination-of-brett-kavanaugh/820733/3399 "2018-09-25T16:57:45Z")
I’d like to quote from “The Road to Unfreedom” by Timothy Snyder, both from page 255: “It did not escape the attention of the Kremlin that the Republican leaders of congress declared, almost a year early, that Barrack Obama no longer enjoyed the usual prerogatives of the president of the United States. At that moment Russia began its email hack of Democratic politicians and activists” “This level of partisanship, where the enemy is the opposing party, and the outside world is neglected, creates a vulnerability easily exploited by hostile actors in that outside world.” Some people have to look in the mirror, but they or we need to wipe it clear first. ---
**Author:** ![HurricaneDitka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/96bed5/32.png) [@HurricaneDitka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HurricaneDitka)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2018, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-democrats-actually-stop-the-nomination-of-brett-kavanaugh/820733/3400 "2018-09-25T16:58:40Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > James Roche, Kavanaugh’s Yale roommate at the time of the alleged assault on Debbie Ramirez, is quoted, in the [New Yorker piece](https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/senate-democrats-investigate-a-new-allegation-of-sexual-misconduct-from-the-supreme-court-nominee-brett-kavanaughs-college-years-deborah-ramirez): > > Also, while not evidence of drinking _per se_, on [Kavanaugh’s own page in his high school yearbook](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/powerpost/paloma/daily-202/2018/09/25/daily-202-kavanaugh-s-memory-of-himself-in-high-school-is-very-different-than-his-portrayal-in-the-yearbook/5ba945d21b326b7c8a8d165d/?utm_term=.939e3fa976ee), which he apparently was personally responsible for writing, he named himself as “treasurer of the ‘100 Kegs or Bust’ club.” Regarding that club, Kavanaugh’s friend and classmate Mark Judge, wrote about “the pledge he and his friends … made to drink 100 kegs of beer before graduation.” > > Yes, it’s entirely possible that Kavanaugh, as well as Judge and his other friends, were, in fact, teetotalers while in high school, and they just like to talk about such things. But, given the nature of the allegation made by Dr. Ford, this certainly feels like something that should be dug into by the Senate committee. There is, actually, a lot of evidence that he and his friends were _not_ teetotalers in high school. That’s not really the matter in doubt though. **you with the face** asked me if I believed his “No. That never happened” answer to the question “Was there ever a time you drank so much that you couldn’t remember the night before?” I’ve been around people who were drunk at parties. Some of them drank so much that they would stumble / fall over and I’d have no qualms describing their speech as “incoherent”. I’ve also been with some the next day who did not remember the previous night’s “festivities”. I don’t find it at all implausible that Kavanaugh got drunk, perhaps even quite drunk, but was still able to “remember the night before”. Do you? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-democrats-actually-stop-the-nomination-of-brett-kavanaugh/820733.md?page=169) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-democrats-actually-stop-the-nomination-of-brett-kavanaugh/820733.md?page=171)