Consistency

Since the election, I've had over a dozen people insist I've got a double standard when it comes to politicians accused of abuse, whether physical, mental or sexual.  It stems from Rightos trying to make themselves feel better for Keith Ellison becoming Minnesota's Attorney General by insisting on some sort of morality failure on behalf of all of his voters, a morality they insist they still have intact.  For the record, anyone who has championed Trump has zero ability to question mine or anyone else's morality.  Theirs dried up years ago.

I'm not going to spend this post defending Ellison over Wardlow.  Doug Wardlow, the Republican's candidate, was deeply flawed on his own level.  I've gone on record stating a more moderate Republican would've likely won against Ellison, but that's a subject for another day.  Today, I only want to focus on whether or not I've been consistent.

In my opinion, I have been.

When Ellison's ex-girlfriend made allegations of abuse against him, right before the official Democratic Primary vote, I VERY CLEARLY stated if these accusations against Ellison were true, he should withdraw from the race (you can find my shows here: https://soundcloud.com/user-587903571/sets/matt-mcneil-show).  His ex girlfriend stated she had a video tape of the abuse, but then refused to show said tape to anyone.  Why?  If the tape is real, no one has a clue outside of her.  I went onto state there should be a thorough investigation, and if the allegations are proven to be true, Ellison should (depending on when the accusations were proven to have merit) either withdraw from the AG race, or resign the Attorney Generals position.  If the allegations were proven to be false, then Ellison should have the ability to seek recourse for his damaged reputation.

Abuse allegations seem to come in three different varieties.  First are the ones where there's an immediate amount of substantial evidence the party being accused is guilty of the crime.  When this type of case arises, pretty much everyone is in unison; the guilty party should resign and face the consequences of their behavior.  One important definition in regards to these cases: it's not about what one side WANTS to be true.  It's about undeniable evidence coming to light of unacceptable behavior. Keith Ellison's allegation (as long as the video tape is not verified, and regardless of what the right wing WANTS to be true) doesn't fall into this category.

Then there are the allegations where a person comes forward to accuse someone of abuse, but the evidence is primarily 'he said, she said;' unsubstantiated allegations where there are no other witnesses to the actual abuse.  There might be evidence which points to the abuse happening, but nothing definitive, hence why a full investigation is needed.  This is where Ellison's allegation comes in.  In Ellison's case, the alleged abuse tape could elevate his allegations to a confirmed case of abuse, but without the tape, it becomes a 'he said, she said' accusation.

The third type of case is one where there are multiple, separate allegations of inappropriate behavior.  Justice Brett Kavanaugh, former Senator Al Franken and Trump himself fall into this realm.  Where each individual allegation of abuse is still a 'he said, she said' situation, multiple allegations against the individual establish a pattern of behavior which call for an immediate investigation.  Once again, there might be evidence which points to the abuse happening, but nothing definitive, hence why a full legitimate investigation is needed.

The Minnesota DFL took the Ellison matter very seriously, hiring an outside attorney to conduct an investigation.  The investigation determined the only piece of evidence which could prove Ellison's guilt or innocence is the alleged video, which the ex-girlfriend still refuses to release. Without the video, it comes down to a 'he said, she said' situation.  Then in an effort to show due diligence, the DFL tried to hand the case over to county prosecutors and local police for further investigation. Ellison himself called on the US House to conduct a full investigation into the allegations against him, something a guilty person would probably be hesitant to do.

Here's where I've been consistent,  In both the Kavanaugh and the Ellison cases (even though there were multiple allegations against Kavanaugh and only one allegation against Ellison), I called for the EXACT SAME course of action.  I wanted a fair investigation into both individuals.  If a fair investigation proves abuse, then appropriate action should be taken.  In the case of Kavanaugh, a fair investigation did not happen. Trump and the Republican's 'investigation' made it impossible for his accusers to prove their claims, even if a drunk Kavanaugh admitted to them in front of the Senate (even then, I still think the GOP would have approved him).  I've stated from the beginning of the accusations against Kavanaugh:  "Investigate him fairly and completely, and if the investigation proves to be unfounded, then, by all means, confirm him to the Supreme Court."

For the record, IF the abuse allegation against Ellison is proven to be true, then he should resign immediately, not only for his unacceptable behavior, but for running the Minnesota DFL thought his maze of lies.

I believe all people deserve to have the chance to defend themselves, as long as the investigations are conducted fairly.  This is one of the main regrets I've had about Senator Al Franken leaving office.  Two of the people making allegations against him clearly had political motivations (and mysteriously Trump BFF Roger Stone was mixed up in these allegations too), but since the bellowing screams from the right were "no investigation, only resignation," Franken never got a chance to defend himself.

Righto's are incredibly inconsistent when it comes to abuse allegations.  They claim anyone who supported Ellison is a hypocrite because many Democrats questioned Kavanaugh after the multiple allegations against him, but here's the catch.  Republicans themselves never held Kavanaugh to ANY standard.  They only use the Democrat's calls for investigation to imply they themselves were for investigating Kavanaugh when they clearly weren't!  Even though Kavanaugh wasn't held to any real scrutiny (outside of a carefully orchestrated dog and pony show investigation with very limited scope) Republicans demand Ellison withdraw/resign without an investigation because...frankly I have no idea how the modern Republican's logic circuits work.  Once again, this is them trying to claw themselves out of the gutter back to a pseudo-high road position by implying they have a morality the other side doesn't, a morality they themselves never display.

This highlights the insane modern Republican inconsistency.  If a Democrat is accused of abuse, the want an immediate resignation, a public apology and for every Democrat who voted for the individual to apologize in triplicate.  If a Republican is accused, they immediately dismiss the allegation, attack the victim (usually with death threats), and demand no investigation ever happen.  Even when a Republican is caught with substantial evidence against them, Republicans will still refuse to condemn them by name.  Try to get a Republican to condemn Kavanaugh, former MN House Rep. Tony Cornish, or Trump himself.  They can't call these people out by name.

Media outlets only like to point out alleged Democratic inconsistencies, even though the Republican inconsistency is a sledge hammer hitting them in the face.  The evidence against Kavanaugh is far more damning when compared to the evidence against Ellison, but most of the media gives Republicans an unearned benefit of the doubt.  I've heard media in Minneapolis St. Paul, even sports guys, state the allegations against Ellison were enough evidence to justify him withdrawing from the AG race, but yet they haven't called for ANY Republican to resign, including Trump, whose allegations against him are more consistent and damning than anything Ellison is accused of.  The predictable narrative most media accepts is 'Democrats are evil, and Republicans are incorrigible scamps.'

I've called for investigations into Ellison, Kavanaugh, Franken and Trump.  In all four cases, I've said if the evidence proves them guilty, they should all step aside.  I've been consistent, much to Republican and media pundit chagrin.  If you're still wanting to call me out, that's more on you than it is on me.