A writer for The Atlantic compared Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh to singer R. Kelly on Wednesday, citing both men’s anger at being accused of sexual misconduct.
R. Kelly exploded in an interview with CBS News’ Gayle King this week about allegations of sexual assault, calling the women’s claims “unfair” and saying he would be “stupid” to engage in the acts he is accused of. Kelly is facing 10 counts of sexual abuse and has a long history of allegations of engaging in sexual acts with underage girls and abusing and kidnapping women.
Pop-culture writer Spencer Kornhaber noted that Kavanaugh was angry when he was accused by three women of sexual misconduct. Kornhaber did not mention that Christine Blasey Ford and Deborah Ramirez’s allegations against Kavanaugh are entirely uncorroborated, or that he faced multiple accusations that were retracted or shown to be false. (RELATED: Senate Judiciary Finds ‘No Evidence’ To Support Sexual Assault Allegations Against Kavanaugh)
The writer admits that the “substance” of the allegations “differs vastly” but never finds it important enough to describe how they are different.
“The closest comparison here might be to the #MeToo target now on the Supreme Court. The substance of what the two men have been accused of differs vastly, but their responses — and the cultural scripts they draw upon — rhyme,” Kornhaber claimed.
In his CBS interview about sexual abuse allegations, R. Kelly took on the tenor of a child in tantrum, eerily akin to Brett Kavanaugh at his confirmation hearing, @skornhaber writes https://t.co/ccEoapLzYo
— The Atlantic (@TheAtlantic) March 7, 2019
Kornhaber also suggested that Kavanaugh only responded to the allegations against him with emotion, and didn’t point out that Kavanaugh provided several pieces of evidence in his defense, including the statements of alleged witnesses and a calendar from the year of the alleged assault.
“Boys-will-be-boys logic — whether about drunken tomfoolery or sexual conquest — play in both’s defense,” Kornhaber writes. “Most strikingly, the force and fury of the tactics used by both men make the same dare. For those inclined to believe the accused, passion in the face of prosecution could read as innocence. For those who aren’t, it might look like a predator’s brutality coming out.”
Kavanaugh never used a “boys-will-be-boys logic” in his own defense, instead unequivocally denying that any of the alleged assaults ever happened in the first place.
In what universe?! You can’t be serious.
— Britt McHenry (@BrittMcHenry) March 7, 2019
Our media lie, pushing false reports such as that Kavanaugh was the leader of a roving underage serial gang rape cartel. And even after their (frankly ridiculous) lies blow up they keep pushing them, as is disgustingly done here by The Atlantic. https://t.co/VTb6J3qCZO
— Mollie (@MZHemingway) March 7, 2019
This is a stupid and baseless comparison on every level, and if the Atlantic had any shame, it would be ashamed to have published this https://t.co/S39xUNswiL
— Buck Sexton (@BuckSexton) March 7, 2019
Comparing Brett Kavanaugh to R. Kelly is aggressively stupid punditry. https://t.co/9jWz0kGqCj
— Alexandra DeSanctis (@xan_desanctis) March 7, 2019