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| From left: Senators Tammy Duckworth, Kamala Harris and Mazie Hirono. |
DONALD TRUMP'S NOMINATION of U.S. Circuit Judge Brett Kavanaugh to replace Justice Anthony Kennedy on the U.S. Supreme Court drew strong reactions from the three Asian American senators who will ultimately vote on the nominee.
The conservative PR machine have been working overtime trying to paint Kavanaugh as a moderate but his record shows he may be a wolf in sheep's clothing.
Trump picked him out of a list vetted by the Federalist Society, an ultra-conservative legal organization,and the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank largely funded by the billionaire Koch brothers and their affiliates.
Picking Kavanaugh off of this list is like putting an oil industry lobbyist in charge of the Environmental Protection Agency ... oh, wait!
Uh ... picking Kavanaugh off of this list is akin to putting an pro-charter school lobbyist in charge of the Department of Education ... oh, wait!
Uh, let's try ... picking Kavanaugh is comparable to putting a pharmaceutical executive in charge of controlling drug prices and the Affordable Care Act as Secretary of Health & Human Services ... oh, hell! I give up!
Allowing special interest organizations line up Supreme Court nominees for the chief executive is highly unusual. In fact, no other president has depended on outside lobbyists for recommendations for judicial appointments.
Allowing special interest organizations line up Supreme Court nominees for the chief executive is highly unusual. In fact, no other president has depended on outside lobbyists for recommendations for judicial appointments.
Three of the senators who will cast votes on the nomination to the Supreme Court are Democrat Asian American senators Kamala Harris, Mazie Hirono and Tammy Duckworth.
California's Sen. Kamala Harris, who is also a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, has made it clear that she will oppose the Kavanaugh's nomination. “During the 2016 presidential campaign, President Trump made clear that he had a litmus test for Supreme Court Justices—overturn Roe v. Wade and oppose a woman’s constitutionally-protected right to make her own health care decisions. The President then released a list of nominees who had been vetted to meet that test. Judge Kavanaugh is on that list," said Harris in a statement.
“Judge Kavanaugh has consistently proven to be a conservative ideologue instead of a mainstream jurist. As recently as last year, he disregarded Supreme Court precedent and opposed the health care rights of a vulnerable young woman. That ruling was overturned by a sitting of all the judges on his court. In 2015, Kavanaugh wrote that an employer, based on their personal beliefs, can deny their employee access to birth control coverage."
“Judge Kavanaugh has consistently proven to be a conservative ideologue instead of a mainstream jurist. As recently as last year, he disregarded Supreme Court precedent and opposed the health care rights of a vulnerable young woman. That ruling was overturned by a sitting of all the judges on his court. In 2015, Kavanaugh wrote that an employer, based on their personal beliefs, can deny their employee access to birth control coverage."
Likewise, Hawaii Sen. Hirono, also a judiciary committee member, expressed her misgivings on Kavanaugh's so-called moderate image. “Judge Kavanaugh has not earned the benefit of the doubt. He has the burden of proof to demonstrate his ability to be independent of the President and exercise unbiased and independent judgment," said Hirono.
“Significantly, Judge Kavanaugh has advocated that Congress legislate to exempt U.S. presidents from civil and criminal actions while in office. This is of deep concern at a time when Donald Trump is a defendant in numerous civil lawsuits and is the subject of a significant criminal investigation," she said.
To Illinois Sen. Duckworth, Kavanaugh's apparent position on the Affordable Care Act is a personal issue.
“The newfound urgency to fill Justice Kennedy’s Supreme Court seat from many of the same people who refused to even consider President Obama’s nominee is transparent opportunism that represents everything Americans hate most about politics today," said Duckworth, who lost both her legs when her helicopter was shot down while she was flying combat missions in Iraq.
To Illinois Sen. Duckworth, Kavanaugh's apparent position on the Affordable Care Act is a personal issue.
“The newfound urgency to fill Justice Kennedy’s Supreme Court seat from many of the same people who refused to even consider President Obama’s nominee is transparent opportunism that represents everything Americans hate most about politics today," said Duckworth, who lost both her legs when her helicopter was shot down while she was flying combat missions in Iraq.
"We can’t ignore the reality that Donald Trump wants to take us back to a time when insurers could refuse coverage to people with pre-existing conditions or that he promised to only nominate Justices who would put the government back in between women and their doctors.
“If he succeeds, it won’t only affect people like me who could be prevented from having children through IVF (invitro fertilization); the impacts will be felt by everyone. Whoever replaces Justice Kennedy will play a critical role in the lives of all women and every single American. Moving forward, I will thoroughly review Judge Kavanaugh’s rulings, evaluate his qualifications and look for him to make it clear to the American public that he would be independent, not simply a rubber stamp for Donald Trump’s whims, if he hopes to earn my support.”
The chances of the Democrats blocking Kavanaugh's nomination are razor thin. Democrats are working to turn Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Susan Collins of Maine, both of whom support Roe v. Wate, against Kavanaugh. However, Democrats only have 49 senators and some of those are wavering.
Democrats also hope to forestall the nomination process until after the November elections when they might regain the majority. However, Republican leader Mitch McConnel will likely do everything he can to speed up the hearings and push for a vote before the elections.
Justice Kennedy, who announced his retirement at the end of the court's 2017-2018 session last month, was seen as a swing vote on many important social issues that came before the court. He cast the deciding vote in Fisher v. University of Texas that upheld affirmative action by allowing the use of race as a factor in school admissions; but on the other hand, he also voted with other conservatives in Citizens United v. FEC, that paved the way for an unprecedented influx of outside money in electoral politics, such as in super PACs by ruling that corporations have the same rights as individuals to contribute to political campaigns.
If Kavanaugh is confirmed for the lifetime position on the highest court in the land, the 53-year-old federal judge would give conservative justices a 5-4 majority and lead the court in a solidly conservative direction for decades to come, likely affecting decisions on abortion, gerrymandering, affirmative action, LGBTQ rights and immigration, not to mention the possibility of waving off any attempts to indict a sitting president.
“The Supreme Court has a profound impact on the rights—and lives—of all Americans," said Sen. Harris, who is among those who might be running against Trump in 2020.
"When at its best, it has advanced the meaning of those words above its doors, ‘Equal Justice Under Law.’ At its worst, the Supreme Court has upheld racial segregation, enabled voter suppression, and equated corporations with people," she said. "Whether or a not the Supreme Court enforces the spirit of those words, ‘Equal Justice Under Law,’ is determined by the individuals who sit on that Court."
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“If he succeeds, it won’t only affect people like me who could be prevented from having children through IVF (invitro fertilization); the impacts will be felt by everyone. Whoever replaces Justice Kennedy will play a critical role in the lives of all women and every single American. Moving forward, I will thoroughly review Judge Kavanaugh’s rulings, evaluate his qualifications and look for him to make it clear to the American public that he would be independent, not simply a rubber stamp for Donald Trump’s whims, if he hopes to earn my support.”
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SCREEN CAPTURE / CNN
Judge Brett Kavanaugh was named by Donald Trump as his nominee for SCOTUS. |
The chances of the Democrats blocking Kavanaugh's nomination are razor thin. Democrats are working to turn Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Susan Collins of Maine, both of whom support Roe v. Wate, against Kavanaugh. However, Democrats only have 49 senators and some of those are wavering.
Democrats also hope to forestall the nomination process until after the November elections when they might regain the majority. However, Republican leader Mitch McConnel will likely do everything he can to speed up the hearings and push for a vote before the elections.
Justice Kennedy, who announced his retirement at the end of the court's 2017-2018 session last month, was seen as a swing vote on many important social issues that came before the court. He cast the deciding vote in Fisher v. University of Texas that upheld affirmative action by allowing the use of race as a factor in school admissions; but on the other hand, he also voted with other conservatives in Citizens United v. FEC, that paved the way for an unprecedented influx of outside money in electoral politics, such as in super PACs by ruling that corporations have the same rights as individuals to contribute to political campaigns.
If Kavanaugh is confirmed for the lifetime position on the highest court in the land, the 53-year-old federal judge would give conservative justices a 5-4 majority and lead the court in a solidly conservative direction for decades to come, likely affecting decisions on abortion, gerrymandering, affirmative action, LGBTQ rights and immigration, not to mention the possibility of waving off any attempts to indict a sitting president.
“The Supreme Court has a profound impact on the rights—and lives—of all Americans," said Sen. Harris, who is among those who might be running against Trump in 2020.
"When at its best, it has advanced the meaning of those words above its doors, ‘Equal Justice Under Law.’ At its worst, the Supreme Court has upheld racial segregation, enabled voter suppression, and equated corporations with people," she said. "Whether or a not the Supreme Court enforces the spirit of those words, ‘Equal Justice Under Law,’ is determined by the individuals who sit on that Court."
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