Many leading Democrats and Republicans are doing all they can to keep the embers of Brett Kavanaugh's confirmation war white-hot.
In a nation still sharply divided over the Supreme Court pick and in desperate need of reconciliation, President Donald Trump and some top Democrats are more concerned about firing up their respective party's bases ahead of next month's midterm elections.
That's a setback for the country now trying to find its way forward.
At a ceremonial swearing-in ceremony for Kavanaugh on Oct. 8, Trump went out of his way to prime the pump. He apologized to the nation's newest justice for "the terrible pain and suffering" he and his family were "forced to endure" during the confirmation process.
"Those who step forward to serve our country deserve a fair and dignified evaluation, not a campaign of political and personal destruction based on lies and deception," Trump said. "What happened to the Kavanaugh family violates every notion of fairness, decency and due process."
Trump, who lives life on continuous offense, may have been responding to the latest salvo from a group of Democrats in Congress who are vowing to take over the investigation of Kavanaugh should their party win control of the House. The members are led by New York Rep. Jerry Nadler, the ranking member of the House Judiciary Committee.
He's calling for a thorough investigation into all the allegations that Christine Blasey Ford and other women have made against Kavanaugh as well as claims that he perjured himself during his testimony.
"If he is on the Supreme Court and the Senate hasn't investigated, then the House will have to," Nadler said. "We would have to investigate any credible allegations certainly of perjury and other things that haven't been properly looked at before."
Other Democrats, including Illinois Rep. Luis Gutiérrez and California Rep. Ted Lieu, have even suggested impeaching Kavanaugh if evidence emerges that he lied during his testimony.
Enough already. Even those who had major reservations about this nomination — and we had more than our share — can agree that it's time to put down the pitchforks and end this battle. The country is rightly weary of the Kavanaugh caper and eager to move forward.
Moving on can't happen quickly enough.
FROM AN EDITORIAL IN THE KANSAS CITY STAR
