I have such a jumble of emotions at the moment and I fear even writing this blog post. Even after reading John Meachum’s The Soul of America and understanding that our nation has been at dangerous crossroads before, I still ponder our future as a nation. The present challenge, the Kavanaugh confirmation hearing, seems to be laying bare all our divisions, challenging our suppositions of what America is or could be.

I come to my present state as the father of a 14 year old boy and a 13 year old girl, concerned about their futures, concerned about how they will be treated. I come to my present state as one who has been through confirmation battles before and someone who has seen how the process works. I have seen how nominees have been confirmed with a concern about how they would act upon the bench only to surprise the…