Kavanaugh and Forgiveness in Politics

I’ve been struggling with this whole Judge Kavanaugh thing.  Here’s what I’m getting at.  What if the allegations against him are one hundred percent true?  And what if he were to admit that and apologize for it?  What if he said something like the following?  “I did in fact make a terrible mistake back in high school.  I am deeply saddened by the pain I have caused this woman over the years.  I was young and dumb but there is still no excuse for what I did and I am truly sorry for it. It was a single moment in my life where I failed to show respect to a member of the opposite sex.  It was the only moment and it was under the influence of a good deal of alcohol.  My life besides that has been marked by nothing but the utmost respect and care for all women as is evidenced by the many who have come to my defense.”

If Judge Kavanaugh came out and said something like that would we forgive him?  Would you forgive him?  And what would that forgiveness look like?  Should he still be allowed to go forward and be confirmed?  If Kavanaugh has shown a pattern of disrespect for women and sexual abuse similar to the Bill Clintons and Donald Trumps of the world that would of course be a totally different story.  If there was a way to do it I think both of those men should have been disqualified from running for public office.  But a onetime offense 36 years ago in an otherwise moral and upright life seems to me to be entirely different.  If you know me and my writings, you know that I lean conservative.  But I think I can sincerely say that if it was Hillary Clinton who got elected and the exact same situation was taking place with a judge she nominated, I would say that judge would deserve to go forward with the confirmation process too.  For many ideological reasons I wouldn’t want to see that judge get confirmed, but would still think he should be able to go forward with the process.

I think if we are honest with ourselves, when it’s someone we disagree with politically we tend to be unforgiving and at times downright condemning, and when it’s someone we agree with politically we are far more forgiving and willing to find excuses for their behavior.  I know that is my inclination but I do my best to fight it.  It was Jesus who said we should forgive our brother 7 x 70.  I realize that doesn’t necessarily mean that the person being forgiven still shouldn’t have some consequences for their actions but in the particular case of Kavanaugh it would seem to me the insistence on punitive consequences is entirely political. 

For the record I am not even close to sold on Ford’s story and I’m disgusted with the timing of this on Feinstein’s part which is a political move for the sole purpose of delaying the confirmation.  But all that aside, my challenge in writing this post is to get us thinking about forgiveness and consequences in the political sphere.  I highly question the allegations against Kavanaugh, but given the scenario I’ve painted I am willing to forgive and forget.  Are you?