Kavanaugh's Accuser Comes Out

With the Senate Judiciary Committee vote on Trump's U.S. Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh still slated for Thursday (at this writing), a new issue has been brought up.  Senator Dianne Feinstein, the ranking Democrat on the committee, three days ago came out with an anonymous accusation against Kavanaugh of a past attempted sexual assault that he was alleged to have committed against a girl while in high school.  Feinstein received a lot of criticism for not only having withheld the letter...which she had in possession since July...from the Judiciary Committee, which could have brought up the matter during the hearings, but also for not mentioning it during her own meeting with the nominee when he had earlier visited her in her Senate office.  Well, the accuser has come out publicly now, and it looks as if as she will be testifying under oath before the Committee as early as tomorrow about her experience with Kavanaugh.  All I know about what supposedly happened is that there was a party at a house back then and Kavanaugh, along with a male accomplice, is alleged to have forced the accuser into a back room before attempting a sexual battery against her.  I'm glad this woman decided not to remain anonymous but am concerned about how this will affect her life going forward. I'm hoping that a detailed testimony will direct this nomination process to a decisive vote. If what is being alleged is true, then Kavanaugh would have technically been a minor at the time, but this would not necessarily have exempted him from being charged as an adult.  I doubt that any conclusive proof one way or another can be offered...you either believe the accuser or Kavanaugh in the end.  What this does, though, is give the three Democratic senators running for reelection in pro-Trump states...Manchin (WV), Donnelly (IN), and Heitkamp (ND)...the political cover needed for "no" votes for final confirmation.  And it may (or may not) sway some Republican senators to oppose Kavanaugh as well: Maine's Republican senator Sue Collins last year urged Senate colleague Al Franken to resign over much less serious allegations.  If the nomination fails or is withdrawn, though, the Republicans have a problem: the midterm elections are less than two months away and there is a slight chance that the Democrats might wrest away control of the Senate, effective January 5th next year.  So with this scenario Trump wouldn't have much time to squeeze in a replacement nominee to his ideological liking.  It's all very interesting and I'm going to be watching to see how this all unfolds.  I'm compelled at this time to be angry at Feinstein for secretly holding this card against Kavanaugh, for I had come to like and respect him on a number of levels.  Oh well, I'm open to changing my mind and will strongly do so if the testimony leads me there...let's see what happens...