Kavanaugh nomination: a Republican victory?
The US Senate has voted by the slim margin of 50 to 48 votes to nominate Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court, whose judges are appointed for life. Whereas many commentators see the vote as a victory for the Republicans, others point out that it is by no means a defeat for the Democrats.
Sexism prevails
Trump has scored a significant victory, Le Temps laments:
“Contrary to the demands of his office, the president has not toned down his sexism in a bid to win the support of the US public as a whole. Instead, Donald Trump is increasingly attacking women who seek equality and defending white men, who he likes to cast as victims. And, unfortunately, this strategy is working. The controversial nomination of Brett Kavanaugh, who's reputed for his retrograde moral stance, is a victory for the president. On the eve of the midterm elections, this will allow him to score points with the hard core of his supporters and Evangelist voters.”
United against "witch-hunt"
The Republicans have hit back at the Democrats and the MeToo campaign by voting Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court, De Morgen believes:
“Opposition to the MeToo accusations, which in the view of conservatives are exaggerated, has become a totem pole around which the Republican Party is now uniting - more than it has at any time during the two years since Trump's election. ... It's not just men who have the feeling that this is a witch-hunt. Many women also feel that it's too easy for men to be falsely accused. ... The question now is what the polarised fanaticism will lead to. The Democratic wave that was expected to swash over the House of Representatives [in the mid-term elections] may be smaller than thought.”
Great publicity for the Democrats
A victory for the Republicans but not a defeat for the Democrats, the taz counters:
“The women in the Democratic Party have used this opportunity to raise their profile. ... Together with thousands of women who demonstrated across the country in protest at Kavanaugh's nomination, they have managed to lay bare the judge's flaws while exposing an old, white, male-dominated regime that wants nothing better than to batten down the future. A month before the midterm elections in which the political cards will be reshuffled at the levels of Congress and the governors and right down to the legislatures in most states, Trump has got the judge he wanted. But at the same time he's given the women of the Democratic Party the perfect stage for advancing their cause.”
It's everyone against everyone in the US
The debate surrounding Kavanaugh has exacerbated the divisions in US society, Phileleftheros writes:
“The rifts are deep and go beyond the two parties that have fought against each other in recent years without caring about the consequences. Men against women, whites against minorities, the old against the young, the rich against the poor. In the social networks and on the streets, the Americans are facing off. ... The two parties, and in particular the Republicans, are unwilling to take steps to reconcile and unite society. And why should they when they know full well that polarisation serves their interests? Political division is an instrument that gets people to go out and vote.”