Indian American Donald Trump’s Supreme Court nominee Neomi Rao, on Tuesday, faced fierce questioning from Democrats for commentary she wrote decades ago as a student at Yale University suggesting women should change their behavior to avoid date rape.
Rao, who serves as Trump’s “czar” overseeing regulatory rollbacks, if official, will be seated on what is regarded as the country’s second most powerful court.
“I cringe” at some of the language, Rao told the senators during her testimony on Tuesday. As most every Democratic senator on the podium mentioned her early writings, Rao stressed that they occurred nearly “two decades” ago at a “time of exploration” in college.
Republican Senator Joni Ernst of Iowa, who recently in public disclosed she had been a victim of sexual assault, said Rao’s columns gave her “pause”, according to a report by CNN.
Responding to an alleged date rape incident on campus, Rao, in one piece for the Yale Herald in 1994 titled “Shades of Gray,” wrote: “It has always seemed self-evident to me that even if I drank a lot, I would still be responsible for my actions.”
She added: “A man who rapes a drunk girl should be prosecuted. At the same time, a good way to avoid a potential date rape is to stay reasonably sober.”
On Tuesday, Rao said that when she was writing about the incident she emphasized that rape is a crime and no one should “blame the victim” but that she had attempted to make a “common-sense observation” that there were some actions a woman could take so it would be less likely she would become a victim. Rao said she hoped she has “matured” as a writer and a person.
Democratic Sen. Patrick Leahy of Vermont took over on her statements and said that as a former prosecutor, he had dealt with rape cases. He said he feared her sentiments might lead some women to be too ashamed to report rape.
Rao responded that she had made it “very clear” that “rape is a terrible crime for which men should be held responsible.”
“I was trying to make in perhaps not the most elegant way the sort of common-sense observation… It’s the advice my mother gave me; it’s the advice that I give my children. And I certainly regret any implication of blaming the victim,” she said.
Other Republicans jumped over to her defence, mentioning that the American Bar Association had given her a rating of “well qualified.” The Senate committee is majority Republican.
Senator Dianne Feinstein of California, as well as Democratic presidential candidate Cory Booker and Senator from New Jersey, focused on Rao’s work for the Trump administration and its goal to roll back agency regulations.
-Sowmya
