echoed what seemed to be the universal sentiment at the company: “As a woman and someone who cares so deeply about how women are treated, the Kavanaugh issue is deeply upsetting to me—as I know it is to many women and men in our company and around the world.” This implied that the accusations themselves settled the question; the judge’s personal innocence was irrelevant.29 Kaplan’s own apology stopped short of repudiating his friendship but called the episode “deeply painful, both internally and externally.” It was more than many thought he should have to say, but it seemed necessary for a company with the bulk of its workforce in revolt.
Outside the Silicon Valley bubble, many were shocked by the reaction at Facebook, as if Kaplan’s attendance at the hearing was tantamount to the corporation’s endorsement of Kavanaugh. In any case, believing that he was innocent of the accusations was hardly the equivalent of dismissing all complaints about sexual assault. Some Facebook employees and even executives were dismayed by the inability of many of their colleagues—mostly of the “millennial” generation—to deal with a diversity of political opinion. But having learned from Kaplan’s experience with the liberal mobs, they kept their expressions of support private.
Laura Cox Kaplan also drew fire for supporting her friend in the form of nasty messages from strangers, but the response within her professional network was markedly different from her husband’s Silicon Valley experience. She had been more vocal in Kavanaugh’s defense than her husband, having participated in the September press conference of longtime women friends supporting Kavanaugh. Before that press conference, she had notified the many organizations on whose boards she served, aware that her stance could provoke controversy and offering to step down if that happened. She needn’t have bothered—the press conference was ignored by the media. But her colleagues, perhaps because they were from a generation more accustomed to embracing friendships across the aisle, were universally supportive.
Kaplan co-chairs Running Start, a nonprofit organization that trains women from both parties to run for office. Her co-chairman, Tasha Cole, a Democrat and the vice president of the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, went out of her way to support Kaplan’s stand. “Watching her support a dear friend in this political climate with conviction, class, grace and perseverance turns a new page in our friendship,” Cole wrote in a Facebook post.30 The two have used the experience as a teaching moment for the young women they mentor through Running Start, encouraging them to use their voices, even when that may be unpopular.
That model of friendship despite political differences was embraced by Lisa Blatt, the Washington “super lawyer” who introduced Kavanaugh at his first hearing. The self-described liberal feminist holds the title for the most Supreme Court arguments by any woman—thirty-seven—and has won an astonishing thirty-four of those.31 She said Kavanaugh was “unquestionably well-qualified, brilliant, has integrity and is within the mainstream of legal thought.”32
In response, Brian Fallon, Hillary Clinton’s former press spokesman, called Blatt’s endorsement of Kavanaugh a “transactional ploy” and criticized her for “selling out progressive causes in order to advance her corporate clients’ interests.”33 Slate asked, “Why Is Lisa Blatt Endorsing Brett Kavanaugh?” and then answered its own question: “Because rich clients trump justice.”34
Blatt took Slate’s criticism in stride, considering it understandable but inaccurate. Lawyers on both sides of the aisle face those charges when they endorse someone they are likely to appear before as litigants. What she found patronizing and insulting was the assertion of people like Brian Fallon—even before the Ford allegations—that because she believed Brett Kavanaugh was a good person, she wasn’t a real liberal or was a patsy for the Republicans. Even worse was the hate mail she received, including people expressing hope that her daughter would be assaulted.
Most of Blatt’s friends who shared her politics distanced themselves from her. She offered them a choice: be her friend and agree to disagree about Kavanaugh or live in their political bubble without her. Most chose politics. Only two friends decided they could stand by her. They helped her pick out a dress to wear to the hearings and were able to appreciate how exciting it was for her to be invited to testify before the Senate. Many of Blatt’s colleagues were no more supportive than her friends, suggesting that her stand for Kavanaugh was hurting hiring at the firm. Others were patronizing or condescending, offering to help her back away from her support of Kavanaugh toward the end of the process. They didn’t realize she