If you did not get a chance to hear from Judge Kavanaugh at his nomination announcement, I encourage you to take the time and listen to him. I am confident you will see in him what virtually everyone he has worked with will testify; this is an honorable man for whom family and faith are incredibly important. His humility and candor are evident.
It is because of this public service that liberals staunchly opposed Judge Kavanaugh when he was nominated for the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. He was first nominated in 2003, but his nomination stalled for three years in the Senate as they unfairly targeted him for political reasons. He was finally confirmed in 2006 by a vote of 57-36.
That he is so fiercely opposed by the radical liberals tells you a lot. Judge Kavanaugh has written over 300 published opinions and has proven himself to be an impartial judge seeking to apply the Constitution as written, refusing to legislate from the bench which is what the left demands.
Judge Kavanaugh (a Catholic himself) has protected religious freedom, as protected by the Constitution. In Newdow v. Roberts, he upheld prayer and invocations at government ceremonies. Noting Supreme Court precedent that, “The Constitution does not oblige government to avoid any public acknowledgment of religion’s role in society.”
In Archdiocese of Washington v. WMATA, Judge Kavanaugh was appalled at the unconstitutionality of D.C. Metro’s ban on religious advertising. As The Washington Post reported, “Judge Brett M. Kavanaugh was unrelenting in questioning Metro’s lawyer, former solicitor general Donald B. Verrilli Jr., and stated unequivocally his view that the policy is ‘pure discrimination’ in violation of the First Amendment.”
In Priests for Life v. HHS, Judge Kavanaugh voted to prevent the Obama Administration from enforcing its contraceptive mandate against religious entities.
Kavanaugh also recognizes the Government’s interest in protecting the unborn. In a recent case (Garza v. Hargan ) we told you about, where an illegal immigrant minor in U.S. custody wanted to force the government to help her in getting an abortion, Judge Kavanaugh recognized the government’s legitimate interest in preferring life over abortion.
Although you may hear some concern from some of our friends in the pro-life community about this case, the reality is that judge Kavanaugh strongly rejected the ACLU’s argument, instead siding with the legal argument made by the Trump Administration that requiring the federal government to assist the minor in obtaining an abortion would ignore the government’s “permissible interest in favoring fetal life, protecting the best interests of a minor, and refraining from facilitating abortion.” He forcefully dissented from the en banc ruling saying it was “based on a constitutional principle as novel as it is wrong: a new right for unlawful immigrant minors in U.S. Government detention to obtain immediate abortion on demand.”
Judge Kavanaugh has stood strong against the overreaching of federal agencies. He dissented from a denial of en banc rehearing in U.S. Telecom Ass’n v. FCC writing that, “the Government must keep its hands off the editorial decisions of Internet service providers.” And he has many other encouraging decisions in this area.
There is simply no other way to look at this nomination than to say it is an excellent pick by President Trump. We’ve just scratched the surface; Judge Kavanaugh has strong opinions respecting the Second Amendment and upholding voter ID laws, among hundreds of others.
Justice Kavanaugh will be no swing vote. He has proven he will stand for the Constitution as written every time, and he deserves our support.
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Mario Diaz, Esq. is CWA’s general counsel. Follow him on Twitter @mariodiazesq.