I dedicate this column to my mother, who passed away last Thursday and cared deeply about protecting women from sexual abuse.
Senators Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) are the last check and balance against those who would abuse the responsibilities of the United States Senate on the fundamental matters of justice in America and equal rights under law for all Americans, including and especially women.
Before casting their vote on the confirmation of Judge Brett Kavanaugh to serve on the Supreme Court, Murkowski, Collins and Flake owe the women of America their answers to the following questions.
{mosads}Do you believe that President Trump or Senate Republican leaders ever sought the truth about the allegations of sexual abuse offered by three women who have come forward, knowing the vicious attacks against them that would inevitably follow?
Do you believe that the Senate Judiciary Committee conducted adequate hearings to seek the truth in good faith about the allegations of abuse, or do you believe the committee pushed through a committee vote to confirm Kavanaugh without a fair and reasonable search for that truth?
Do you believe that the Trump White House aggressively obstructed and impeded the FBI background check on Kavanaugh and aggressively prevented FBI interviews with key corroborating witnesses suggested by the women?
When a significant number of credible witnesses who came forward pleading to be interviewed by the FBI were treated disrespectfully and contemptuously and were refused the opportunity to present the facts and evidence, do you believe this constituted a search for truth?
Do you believe that Judge Kavanaugh told the truth during his confirmation testimony about his behavior when he was in prep school and college on matters related to the allegations of the women, or do you believe he testified falsely under oath?
If it is true that Kavanaugh was not interviewed during the FBI background check, why do you believe Kavanaugh or the White House prevented him from being questioned?
When Trump launched his mocking, ridiculing and insulting attack against Dr. Christine Blasey Ford, do you understand why this attack did so much damage to women across America making the hard decision of whether to come forward or remain silent after they have been assaulted?
Today, there are women across America who are making the agonizing decision about whether to come forward with their stories of being sexually assaulted.
How do you believe they will feel if the president, the Senate Judiciary Committee and the full Senate show the callous disregard of their rights by not conducting a fair and full investigation of their claims?
Do you believe FBI Director Christopher Wray should be called to testify about whether or not the FBI background check on Kavanaugh was obstructed by White House interference with the FBI? Why don’t you contact the FBI director privately and ask him this question before you cast your votes?
There are public reports that Wray is keeping contemporaneous notes about White House limits imposed against the FBI background check. If this is true, he should disclose any interference before the Senate votes, not after the vote.
Do you believe the inspector general of the Justice Department should be asked to investigate the possibility of White House obstruction of the FBI background check of Kavanaugh? If not, why?
Do you believe that Judge Kavanaugh, in his scorched-earth testimony before the Judiciary Committee demonstrated even a minimal sense of judicial temperament?
Do you understand why a long list of potential Supreme Court litigants will conclude they can never get a fair hearing before Justice Kavanaugh on the Supreme Court? Do you believe Judge Kavanaugh, if confirmed, should recuse himself from any case involving any party he attacked during his confirmation process?
Do you fully understand why many of the most vulnerable women America will find their lives profoundly affected and how, 100 years from now, the final verdict will be rendered by the high court of history, based on how you answer these questions and how you cast your vote?
Brent Budowsky was an aide to former Sen. Lloyd Bentsen (D-Texas) and former Rep. Bill Alexander (D-Ark.), who was chief deputy majority whip of the House of Representatives. He holds an LLM in international financial law from the London School of Economics.