Is Joe Donnelly Stupid or What?
An article in Politico today details the various excuses and misdirections coming from red state Senate Democrats as they try to navigate the tricky waters of really wanting to confirm Brett Kavanaugh while also not saying that because, for fuck’s sake, why are you a Democrat if you do?
Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia offered a particularly nothing statement, saying he hasn’t “closed any doors at all on Kavanaugh,” after two (and, since then, three) women accused him of sexual assault. (Kavanaugh has denied all the allegations and plans to do so again according to his prepared remarks for tomorrow.) But it was Sen. Joe Donnelly’s deliberations that caught my eye. According to Politico (all emphasis mine):
The two biggest wild cards remain Manchin and Sen. Joe Donnelly (D-Ind.). Both are paying close attention to how GOP Sens. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Susan Collins of Maine vote, according to one person familiar with their thinking. And the duo has made clear to fellow Democrats that they’re agonizing over the decision.
“They have let us know that their states are still with Kavanaugh,” said one Democratic senator, who said the press-shy Donnelly was particularly vocal about that on Tuesday at a party meeting.
Joel Elliott, Donnelly’s chief of staff, said “Kavanaugh has support in the state, as you would expect. He’s also strongly opposed by a lot of Hoosiers.”
I don’t know where they’re getting this idea. As Sean McElwee wrote in his survey of red state polling data on Kavanaugh for The Nation last week: