[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2006, Book I)]
[June 1, 2006]
[Pages 1065-1067]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



Remarks at a Swearing-In Ceremony for Brett Kavanaugh as a United States Circuit Judge for the District of 
Columbia
June 1, 2006

    Please be seated. Thanks for coming. Welcome to the Rose Garden 
where, in a few moments, Brett Kavanaugh will be sworn in as a judge on 
the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.
    Today, a court that is often considered the second highest in our 
land gains a brilliant and talented new member. The staff of the White 
House celebrates a friend they admire and a colleague they will miss. I 
congratulate a good man and a fine public servant on a job well done.
    I'm especially pleased to be with Brett's wife, Ashley--[laughter]--whose face I know well and whose 
marriage was the first

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lifetime appointment I arranged for Brett. [Laughter]
    We welcome Brett's parents, Martha and 
Ed, and his mother-in-law and father-in-law, Nancy and 
John Estes from Abilene, Texas.
    I welcome the star of Brett's most recent televised hearing, 
Margaret Murphy Kavanaugh. [Laughter] 
Margaret has his mother's--has her mother's good looks and her dad's 
preference for hearings that do not last too long. [Laughter]
    We're honored this afternoon by the presence of Justice Anthony 
Kennedy, who hired Brett as a law clerk 
more than a decade ago. He now welcomes him as a fellow judge. And I'm 
also pleased that Mary Kennedy is with us 
today. Thanks for coming.
    The Vice President has joined us. Mr. Vice 
President, welcome. Appreciate Al--Attorney General Al 
Gonzales for being here, and former 
Attorney General John Ashcroft is with us as 
well. I want to extend a warm welcome to Brett's new colleagues on the 
DC Court of Appeals. Thank you all for coming.
    The power to nominate judges is one of the most serious 
responsibilities the Constitution gives the President. Our Founders 
thought carefully about the role they wanted judges to play in the 
American Republic. They decided on a court system that would be free of 
political and public pressure, with judges who are prudent in exercising 
judicial power and firm in defending judicial independence.
    When a President chooses a judge, he owes it to the Constitution and 
to the country to choose with care, and I have done so in choosing Brett 
Kavanaugh. I chose Brett because of the force of his mind, his breadth 
of experience, and the strength of his character.
    Brett grew up in Maryland. In high school, he distinguished himself 
both in academics and athletics. He graduated from Yale with honors. 
What did that feel like?[Laughter] He stayed at Yale to earn his law 
degree. Brett was an editor of the Yale Law Review and impressed all 
around him with his mastery of the law and his strong work ethic.
    After Yale, he embarked on a law career that has spanned judicial--
on a career that has spanned the judicial branch, the executive branch, 
and the private sector. He clerked for Judges Walter 
Stapleton and Alex Kozinski on the Federal appellate courts and for Justice 
Kennedy on the Supreme Court. He served 
in the Solicitor General's Office and in the Office of the Independent 
Counsel. He was a partner in a leading national law firm. For the past 5 
years, he has served in the White House as Associate Counsel, a senior 
Associate Counsel, and as Staff Secretary.
    Over his career, he's argued cases before the Supreme Court, 
appellate courts, and trial courts. He has given his time and talent to 
provide legal services for those in need. He's earned a reputation for 
integrity and independence. Brett's abilities and professionalism have 
been recognized by members of both political parties. After I nominated 
Brett, a bipartisan group of his law school classmates wrote a letter of 
support saying Brett would bring credit to the distinguished court to 
which he has been nominated.
    Brett's nomination also earned the backing of many leaders of the 
bar, including former Attorney Generals of both parties. And in three 
separate evaluations by the American Bar Association, all 42 reviewers 
rated him as well-qualified or qualified to serve on the Federal bench.
    In the history of the DC Circuit, no judge has undergone a more 
thorough and rigorous confirmation process. And all who watched this 
process saw what I know: that he's a man of fairness, humility, and a 
reverence for the laws and the Constitution of our country.

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    Brett Kavanaugh is one of the many highly qualified men and women 
I've nominated to the Federal courts. These nominees come from many 
different backgrounds, and they bring different experiences to the 
bench. Yet they all have met the same high standards of legal ability, 
temperament, and judgment. I'll continue to fulfill my responsibility to 
nominate men and women of character and integrity who administer the law 
and not legislate from the bench. And I call upon the United States 
Senate to meet its responsibility to give every nominee a fair hearing 
and a timely up-or-down vote.
    When Brett Kavanaugh takes his oath this afternoon, he will carry on 
a fine family tradition. His mother, Martha, was a public school teacher in the District of 
Columbia and went on to serve as a prosecutor and a State judge in 
Maryland. Martha instilled in her son a passion for service and raised 
him to be true to the motto of his Jesuit high school: ``Men for 
Others.''
    Throughout his life, Brett has used his many talents to serve 
others, and today he walks a new path of service: to administer justice 
equally, impartially, without fear or favor. Our Nation is fortunate 
that Brett Kavanaugh has accepted these responsibilities, and I'm proud 
to stand with Brett as he takes his place as a judge on the DC Circuit 
Court of Appeals.
    And now I ask Justice Kennedy to 
administer the oath.

Note: The President spoke at 1:06 p.m. in the Rose Garden. In his 
remarks, he referred to Mary Kennedy, wife of U.S. Supreme Court 
Associate Justice Anthony M. Kennedy. The transcript released by the 
Office of the Press Secretary also included the remarks of Judge 
Kavanaugh.