[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 129 (Tuesday, July 31, 2018)]
[Senate]
[Page S5467]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                     Nomination of Brett Kavanaugh

  Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, the confirmation process for Judge 
Kavanaugh continues and, predictably, so does the Democrat hysteria. It 
is the same old playbook: Any Supreme Court nominee from a Republican 
President is guaranteed to destroy the Constitution, abolish our 
rights, and endanger the lives of the American people. I am not 
exaggerating for effect. Those are actual accusations from Democrats 
and liberal interest groups.
  In the lead-up to Justice Gorsuch's confirmation, the head of one 
liberal organization stated that there was ``substantial evidence'' 
that if Gorsuch's ``egregious views were to become law, Americans' 
lives . . . would be put at risk in untold ways.'' A year into Justice 
Gorsuch's tenure on the Supreme Court, Americans seem to be doing OK.
  But that didn't stop the former Democratic Governor of Virginia from 
tweeting that ``the nomination of Judge Brett Kavanaugh will threaten 
the lives of millions of Americans for decades to come.''
  Then, of course, there is that other favorite Democrat accusation--
that the Constitution will be put in jeopardy if we confirm a 
Republican President's Supreme Court nominee. In the lead-up to Judge 
Kavanaugh's nomination, the junior Senator from California said: 
``We're looking at a destruction of the Constitution of the United 
States.''
  I have to say that I find this accusation particularly hilarious 
because if there is one thing that we can count on Judge Kavanaugh to 
do, it is to defend the Constitution. In fact, his respect for the 
Constitution and the rule of law is perhaps the distinguishing feature 
of his jurisprudence.
  In a speech last year, Judge Kavanaugh said:

       As I see it, the Constitution is primarily a document of 
     majestic specificity, and those specific words have meaning. 
     Absent constitutional amendment, those words continue to bind 
     us as judges, legislators, and executive officials.

  Later on in the same speech, Judge Kavanaugh noted:

       Because it is so hard, and because it is not easy even to 
     pass federal legislation, pressure is often put on the courts 
     and the Supreme Court in particular to update the 
     Constitution to reflect the times. In the views of some, the 
     Constitution is a living document, and the Court must ensure 
     that the Constitution adapts to meet the changing times.
       For those of us who believe that the judges are confined to 
     interpreting and applying the Constitution and laws as they 
     are written and not as we might wish they were written, we 
     too believe in a Constitution that lives and endures and in 
     statutes that live and endure. But we believe that changes to 
     the Constitution and laws are to be made by the people 
     through the amendment process and, where appropriate, through 
     the legislative process--not by the courts snatching that 
     constitutional or legislative authority for themselves.

  In short, if there is one thing the American people can count on, it 
is that Judge Kavanaugh will uphold the Constitution, even when he 
doesn't like the result. He will not attempt to legislate from the 
bench or to make the Constitution say what he wants it to say. Anyone 
who comes before Judge Kavanaugh can be certain that he will rule based 
on the facts of the case, the law, and the Constitution, and nothing 
else--not his personal feelings, not his political opinions, not his 
beliefs about what the law should be, but just the plain text of the 
law and the Constitution. That is the kind of judge that all of us, 
including the Democrats, should want on the Supreme Court--the kind of 
judge who, in the words of Judge Kavanaugh, will decide ``cases based 
on settled principles without regard to policy preferences or political 
allegiances or which party is on which side in a particular case.''
  The truth of the matter is that Democrats are not worried that Judge 
Kavanaugh will not uphold the Constitution. Let's be clear about that. 
They know very well that he will. What they are worried about is that 
he will not deliver their preferred outcomes and that his judicial 
opinions will conflict with the Democrats' political opinions. 
Democrats aren't looking for a qualified Supreme Court Justice. They 
are looking for a political rubberstamp.
  For Democrats, the only good Supreme Court Justice is a Supreme Court 
Justice who will use his or her power to advance the political agenda 
of the Democratic Party. Just look at the Democrat Senator who 
announced his opposition to the President's Supreme Court nomination 
before the President had actually nominated anyone. That is right. The 
Democrat Senator announced plans to oppose the nominee before a nominee 
even existed.
  Well, that is all the evidence we need that Democrats' opposition to 
Judge Kavanaugh is based not on any actual problems with Judge 
Kavanaugh but on Democrats' ideological opposition to any nominee they 
are not sure will be a rubberstamp for the Democrat agenda.
  The confirmation process will continue, and I am sure the hysteria 
from Democrats will continue as well, but the Senate will move forward 
with the business of confirming another outstanding judge of the 
Supreme Court.