The new nominee for the Supreme Court of the United States of America Brett Kavanaugh has attacked the allegations of sexual misconduct against him as “smears, pure and simple”.   He has further indicated that these allegations “debase our public discourse”.   In which case, I would be very interested to hear whether or not this is his personal opinion, or whether or not it is his professional legal opinion as a judge.   Certainly, it is important to respect the privacy of both the accuser and the accused, so as to protect the innocent – but surely it is also important to ensure that people who feel that they have been victims have the power to come forward without fear of recrimination and vilification themselves.

Had Mr Kavanaugh said that these accusations were baseless, and that he hoped that all parties would be treated with respect until a judgement was made…  that perhaps would have been deemed appropriate to the position to which he aspires.  That a judge and supreme court nominee should lash out at an accuser seems to me to be undignified at best, and downright contemptuous of due process at worst.

This perhaps after all has served to show his colours.