Eleanor Holmes Norton: Christine Blasey Ford Should Not Do Anita Hill 2.0

EXCERPT:

BALDWIN: “So the Republicans so far have yet to get a response from -- from professor Ford. You know, they are offering up to hear her out privately or publicly. Her lawyer had said that said she would testify. Do you get the sense she is trepidatious, having second thoughts?”
HOLMES NORTON: "No, I get the impression she is being advised by counsel. If I were her counsel, I would tell her that she should not do Clarence Thomas or let me be clear Anita Hill 2.0. And that's what she is walking into. She is walking into a swearing contest. With a swearing contest, Dr. Ford against Kavanaugh, she is bound to lose the way Anita Hill lost in the beginning although we reap the benefit of her loss with the year of the woman and more women coming to the House and Senate than ever before. But Anita Hill became a victim. This woman has thought through in fact did not come forward until she had thought through what this would be like. She is willing to testify I am sure, but that would be a we’re hearing, not a sham hearing. We don’t have hearings in the House or the Senate where there is one hearing -- one witness on your side, and one witness on their side. The minority — I’ve been in the minority most of my time, they get to call its witnesses and you get to call -- and the majority get to call your. That isn’t the way this is being set up. The only reason we’re having a hearing in the first place is because of the Anita Hill debacle. But they were supposed to have their hearing on Thursday, you see they moved back to Monday. So they already — we’ve already got them on the run when it comes to fairness."