Televised Senate Drama Captivates O.C. Viewers : Opinions: Those watching the proceedings are sharply divided on whether Thomas or Hill is telling the truth. Some have had enough.

Like millions of their fellow Americans, Orange County residents kibbutzed their way through the unusual Sunday Senate hearing that delved into allegations of sexual harassment by Judge Clarence Thomas, and strong opinions were not hard to find.

Tearing television viewers away from the Sunday fare of football games and baseball playoffs, the dramatic Supreme Court confirmation hearings had people buzzing all day and into the night as supporters and opponents of Thomas and his accuser, Oklahoma law professor Anita Faye Hill, paraded onto Capitol Hill and before the cameras.

“Everyone’s watching but us,” said Westminster Police Lt. Andrew Hall. “Everyone I talk to on the phone is saying the same thing--they haven’t the foggiest idea who’s telling the truth.

“It’s the topic of conversation. On hot days, we ask each other about the weather. Lately, it’s, ‘Have you seen the hearings?’ ”

Guy Finn, a firefighter who had been watching the hearings at the Brea fire station, said the proceedings offered some high drama.

“It’s better than the soap operas,” he said.

But he disapproves of the way the senators are handling the matter, saying he “can’t wait” until he has the chance to vote on limiting congressional terms in office.

“It seems like they’re busier being political than they are about the facts,” Finn said. “I don’t think this thing should have hit the news. It should have been handled behind closed doors.”

Like others, Finn said he could not decide if Thomas or Hill is telling the truth.

“It’s to the point where it doesn’t really matter,” he said. “I don’t think they’re ever going to find out. And I think it’s going to ruin both their careers. It’s sad.”

But for some, the truth seemed obvious.

“He’s not guilty. I trust him,” said David Conibeer, a salesman at Orange Coast Jeep Eagle in Costa Mesa, as he watched the hearings on a television in the customer waiting room at the dealership.

Conibeer said Hill “seemed a bit seedy,” adding that he “didn’t believe a word she said.”

But compelling as the hearings were to some, there were those who were less enthusiastic.

Linda McCarthy, who works at a a walk-in medical clinic in Irvine, fumed that the hearings are pointless.

“It’s the biggest waste of taxpayer dollars since Watergate,” she said. “Someone’s lying and it’s a waste of time to try to figure out who it is.”

McCarthy added that she was annoyed that the hearings cramped her television-watching habits.

“It’s unreal that I can’t watch anything on my TV besides that,” she said.