Pro-Kavanaugh Spox: Maybe It Was “Rough Horseplay”

Talking Points Memo reports:

Interesting and perhaps disturbing moment a short time ago as Carrie Severino, spokesperson of the Judicial Crisis Network, was interviewed on CNN. The JCN is the central campaign arm for Republican judicial nominations. The Federalist Society grooms and chooses the nominees. The JCN runs the campaigns, runs political ads in Senators’ states, as necessary. Here Severino argues that it’s not clear that what Ford describes wasn’t simply “rough horse play” as opposed to attempted rape.

Kavanaugh spokesperson/activist says it’s not clear that the incident was attempted rape as opposed to just “rough horseplay”. pic.twitter.com/cANvVNjFKX

— Josh Marshall (@joshtpm) September 18, 2018

How can it be horseplay if he wasn’t at the party? Asking for non-liars everywhere.

— Allison Winn Scotch (@aswinn) September 18, 2018

A woman representing the “Judicial Crisis Network” — a group that’s done a $1.5m ad buy in support of Kavanaugh — just described Kavanaugh’s behavior toward Dr. Ford as “boorish horseplay.”

— ana marie cox (@anamariecox) September 18, 2018

And now the “horseplay” defense. With friends like these … https://t.co/D77VZaef7v

— Lawrence O’Donnell (@Lawrence) September 18, 2018

rough horseplay at the party he wasn’t at https://t.co/rYBB62wZu1

— Greg Dworkin (@DemFromCT) September 18, 2018

You don’t suffer years of trauma from “horseplay.” This is shameful.

— Jessica Valenti (@JessicaValenti) September 18, 2018

“Horseplay” is the new “Locker room talk”.

COMING SOON:
—Waterboarding = “goofing around”
—Being thrown down a flight of stairs = “shenanigans”
—Murder = “just breaking your balls a little” https://t.co/3lq0wz0jx7

— Charles Gaba (@charles_gaba) September 18, 2018

venn diagram of dudes saying teenage sexual assault is horseplay and dudes who wear “rules for dating my teenage daughter” shirts: O

— Molly Priddy (@mollypriddy) September 18, 2018

If the ‘rough horseplay’ defense doesn’t work, they’ll have to pivot to ‘Hey, she got away, so it couldn’t have been THAT bad, right?’

— John Wing (@JohnWing5) September 18, 2018

I’m a regular guy: I put my pants on one leg at a time and I turn up my music real loud during horseplay to drown out the screams. https://t.co/9BKA2cqhLR

— Joe Berkowitz (@JoeBerkowitz) September 18, 2018