Citizen Cartwright

Kavanaugh-Ford hearing: What happened at a high school party as refracted through the prism of political gridlock

Christine Blasey Ford said on Thursday she was 100 percent certain it was Brett Kavanaugh who sexually assaulted her at a teen party 36 years ago; Kavanaugh said he was 100 percent certain that he hadn’t.

 

"It has become something of a cliché to say that the United States has become increasingly tribal in the era of President Trump, with each side in its own corner, believing what it chooses to believe and looking for reinforcement in the media and politics,” says a New York Times analysis. "But the battle over Judge Kavanaugh’s Supreme Court nomination has reinforced those divisions.”

 

"Whether civics without partisanship is possible anymore is perhaps the most pressing American debate of the Trump era, one that winds its way into the lives of everyday people and cleaves them away from their family and friends,” says The New Yorker. "But it is also, at the moment, a public-relations obstacle for Republicans, who — if the mistaken-identity defense does not take — seem likely to try to persuade Americans that Ford’s testimony cannot be distinguished from a partisan effort to defeat President Trump’s nominee.”

 

One of the most notable examples of that persuasion at the Senate Judiciary session came when Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., blasted his Democratic colleagues over what he called the "sham” hearing.

 

“Boy, y’all want power and I hope you don’t get it,” Graham told his Democratic colleagues.

 

It was "a display that earned him praise from the White House and scorn from the left,” says Fox News.

 

The messages in the hearing were directed at two audiences, the Times says. One was Trump, who'd backed Kavanaugh "but left open the possibility, however unlikely, that he might pull the nomination if he believed Dr. Blasey,” says the Times. The other was the senators whose votes seem genuinely in play.

 

Trump made clear that he was sticking with his nominee. “His testimony was powerful, honest and riveting,” he tweeted. “The Senate must vote!”

 

Potential swing GOP Sens. Jeff Flake, Ariz.; Lisa Murkowski, Alaska; and Susan Collins, Maine, remained silent about their plans.

 

The American Bar Association urged the Judiciary panel and the full Senate to slow down on the vote until the FBI has time to do a full background check on the assault claims.

“We make this request because of the ABA’s respect for the rule of law and due process under law,” said the ABA letter to the committee leadership. “Each appointment to our nation’s highest court (as with all others) is simply too important to rush to a vote.”

 

But Republicans are reluctant to do that for several reasons, says The Associated Press — including the likelihood that further investigations could push a vote past the November elections that may switch Senate control back to the Democrats and make consideration of any Trump nominee more difficult.

 

Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn, R-Texas, says the Judiciary Committee will vote on Kavanaugh’s nomination as planned on Friday, with procedural votes on Saturday and Monday and a final confirmation vote on Tuesday.

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Britain keeps more HIV patients healthy than the U.S. — at a much lower cost

While Britain’s National Health Service has a lot of problems, it has some huge advantages over the American system that enable it to provide high-quality HIV care in a cost-efficient way, says The New York Times’ Fixes column.

 

As far as the quality of care, in Britain 78 percent of people living with HIV have no detectable virus in their blood. In the United States, the number is 49 percent.

 

Then there’s cost. 

 

Truvada is one of the world’s most-used HIV medicines. In the United States, Truvada only is available as a brand-name drug at $20,000 a year, says the Times in the second of two articles on the high cost of HIV medications in the United States.

 

In Britain, a coming generic version of Truvada is expected to sell for between $100 and $200 a year.

 

A few states that are responsible for a big share of Medicaid spending on HIV drugs — New York, Georgia, Florida, California and Maryland — could lead an effort toward using more generics, says the Times.

 

These drugs are available, but doctors don’t prescribe them, says the Times. Like Britain's National Health Service, Medicaid would have to find ways to encourage doctors to prescribe the generics. 

 

If generics were more widely used, it would encourage competition that could further cut the price, says the Times.

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At United Nations, the topic is unilateralism

As 133 world leaders met Tuesday at the U.N. General Assembly, U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned of rising polarization and populism, waning cooperation and “fragile” trust in international institutions.

 

“Democratic principles are under siege,” he said in his speech opening the proceedings. “The world is more connected, yet societies are becoming more fragmented. Challenges are growing outward, while many people are turning inward. Multilateralism is under fire precisely when we need it most.”

 

In his subsequent speech, President Trump panned the “ideology of globalism” and lauded his administration’s achievements.

“The U.S. will not tell you how to live and work or worship,” Trump said as he touted his “America First” agenda. “We only ask that you honor our sovereignty in return.”

Trump said that in “less than two years, my administration has accomplished more than almost any administration in the history of our country.”

Some of his fellow leaders laughed. Trump said it wasn't the reaction he expected “but that’s all right.”

Later he told reporters, “Well, that was meant to get some laughter so it was great.”

 

French President Emmanuel Macron spoke shortly after Trump, saying “nationalism always leads to defeat.”

 

“Friends, I know you may be tired of multilateralism. I also know that the world is flooded with information, and one becomes indifferent. It all starts to look like a big show,” he said. “Please, don’t get used to it, don’t become indifferent. Do not accept the erosion of multilateralism. Don’t accept our history unraveling. I’m not getting used to this, and I’m not turning my head.”

 

In his speech, President Hassan Rouhani of Iran — which has been a target of escalating U.S. accusations —  said, “Confronting multilateralism is not a sign of strength; rather it is a symptom of the weakness of intellect — it betrays an inability in understanding a complex and interconnected world.”

 

Here are summaries and audios of all the speeches on Tuesday, from the U.N.

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World leaders meet at U.N. General Assembly

Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is expected to paint a grim picture of the state of the world when leaders open their annual meeting Tuesday, spotlighting the breakdown of trust and the need to counter unilateralism and reinvigorate international cooperation.

 

U.N. diplomats now know to expect the unexpected from President Trump, who threatened to annihilate North Korea and “crush loser terrorists” during his debut speech at the General Assembly last year.

But at this year’s convergence of world leaders in New York, Trump will have an additional role. Aside from his speech, he'll lead a meeting of the 15-member Security Council, the most powerful body of the United Nations.

Among the pressing issues for world leaders to discuss: wars in Yemen and Syria that have killed hundreds of thousands of people; negotiations over North Korea’s nuclear program; and the fate of the Iran nuclear accord, which Trump repudiated but European leaders want to preserve.

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Wash your hands, but nix the antibacterial soap

Thank you to the reader who responded to Friday’s item on antibiotic resistance with information on antibacterial soaps.

 

Use plain soap and water to wash your hands, say the Food and Drug Administration and the CDC.

 

The benefits of using antibacterial hand soap haven’t been proven, the FDA says. And in fact, the wide use of these products over a long time has raised the question of potential negative effects on your health, the agency says.

 

Last December, the FDA issued a final rule banning the marketing of over-the-counter consumer antiseptic wash products — including hand soaps formulated as liquids, foams and gels; bar soaps; and body washes — containing certain active ingredients such as triclosan.

 

Here, from the FDA, is more on triclosan, which also is found in toothpastes, some cosmetics, clothing, kitchenware, furniture and toys.

 

Here, from the CDC, is more on when and how to most effectively wash your hands. Basically, the CDC says:

 

• Wet your hands with clean, warm or cold running water, turn off the tap and apply soap.

 

• Lather your hands, rubbing them together with the soap. Make sure to lather the backs of your hands, between your fingers and under your nails.

 

• Scrub your hands for at least 20 seconds (the time it takes to hum the “Happy Birthday” song from beginning to end twice).

 

• Rinse your hands well using clean, running water.

 

• Dry your hands on a clean towel or air dry them.

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