HALF THE DEMOCRATS ON SENATE JUDICIARY ANNOUNCED THEIR OPPOSITION TO JUDGE KAVANAUGH BEFORE HIS HEARING EVEN STARTED
Even Before His Hearing, Five Democratic Members Of The Senate Judiciary Committee Have Announced They Will Oppose Judge Kavanaugh
The Same Day Judge Kavanaugh's Nomination Was Announced, Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) Stated "The Nomination Of Judge Brett Kavanaugh To The Supreme Court Is Alarming & I'm Strongly Opposed To His Confirmation." "The nomination of Judge Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court is alarming & I'm strongly opposed to his confirmation. #ScotusPick" (Sen. Cory Booker, Twitter Feed , 7/9/18)
- Booker Also Claimed Supporters Of Judge Kavanaugh Are "Complicit" In "Evil." SEN. BOOKER: "There is so much at stake here, this has nothing to do with politics. This has to do with who we are as moral people. I'm not here just to tell folks what they already know, I'm here to call on folk to understand that in the moral moment, there is no neutral. In a moral moment, there are no bystanders. You are either complicit to that evil, you are either contributing to a wrong or you are fighting against it." (Tim Hains, "Sen. Cory Booker: Supporters Of Judge Kavanaugh Are 'Complicit' In 'Evil,'" Real Clear Politics , 7/25/18)
The Same Day Judge Kavanaugh's Nomination Was Announced, Sen. Kamala Harris (D-CA) Said She Would "Oppose [Judge Kavanaugh's] Nomination To The Supreme Court." "'Judge Brett Kavanaugh represents a direct and fundamental threat to that promise of equality and so I will oppose his nomination to the Supreme Court. Specifically, as a replacement for Justice Anthony Kennedy, his nomination presents an existential threat to the health care of hundreds of millions of Americans.'" (Press Release, "Senator Harris Statement Opposing Nomination Of Judge Kavanaugh To The Supreme Court," Sen. Kamala Harris , 7/9/18)
The Same Day Judge Kavanaugh's Nomination Was Announced, Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) Said He Would Be "A 'No' Vote On The Nominee." "RICHARD BLUMENTHAL OF CONNECTICUT ON JULY 9 - 'I will be a 'no' vote on this nominee. Judge Kavanaugh's record and writings -- which I have reviewed -- signal an extreme hostility to the precious rights and liberties that make our nation great.'" ("WHIP LIST: Where Senators Stand On Supreme Court Nominee Brett Kavanaugh," WTVA , 7/25/18)
- Blumenthal Refused To Even Meet With Judge Kavanaugh Because He Said It Would Be "An Empty" And "Deceptive Charade." "Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., will not be meeting with Brett Kavanaugh, President Trump's nominee to the Supreme Court, saying doing so would be an 'empty' and 'deceptive charade.'" (Melissa Quinn, "Blumenthal Refuses To Meet With Kavanaugh: Meeting 'Would Be An Empty, Deceptive Charade,'" Washington Examiner , 8/23/18)
The Day After Judge Kavanaugh's Nomination Was Announced, Sen. Mazie Hirono (D-HI) Said She Would Only Vote For Judge Kavanaugh "If He Turns Miraculously Into A Sotomayor." NPR'S ARI SHAPIRO: "You wrote on Twitter that Kavanaugh has not earned the benefit of the doubt and that he has to demonstrate his ability to exercise unbiased and independent judgment. Are you open to voting for him?" SEN. MAZIE HIRONO (D-HI): "Maybe if he turns miraculously into a Sotomayor, but it is a high burden for him. And the reason that I said that he does not get the benefit of the doubt is because we know that the president said that he wants someone on the court who will overturn Roe v. Wade and who will also repeal or support repealing the Affordable Care Act, two really important issues for us as well as so many other things on which he's much more inclined to support corporate interests over individual rights." (NPR's " All Things Considered ," 7/10/18)
- Sen. Hirono Even Cancelled Her Meeting With Judge Kavanaugh Because She Claimed He Was Selected To Protect "His Own Okole." "I have cancelled my meeting with Judge Kavanaugh. @realDonaldTrump, who is an unindicted co-conspirator in a criminal matter, does not deserve the courtesy of a meeting with his nominee - purposely selected to protect, as we say in Hawaii, his own okole." (Sen. Mazie Hirono, Twitter Feed , 8/22/18)
Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) Said She Would Not Support Judge Kavanaugh Because He Supposedly "Has Not Been In The Mainstream." "The two then discussed Trump's Supreme Court nominee, Brett Kavanaugh, whom Klobuchar said she will not support. 'When you look at the record of this nominee, you see someone who has not been in the mainstream,' the two-term senator argued, though Newberger accused Klobuchar and her colleagues of attempting to 'change [the] court with political ambitions.'" (Anthony Gockowski, "In Minnesota Senate Debate GOP Challenger Blasts Klobuchar For Opposing SCOTUS Nominee Brett Kavanaugh," The Tennessee Star , 8/29/18)
IT IS UNHEARD OF FOR A MEMBER OF THE SENATE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE TO ANNOUNCE THEIR OPPOSITION PRIOR TO A SUPREME COURT NOMINEE'S CONFIRMATION HEARING
While At Least Nine Senate Democrats Announced Their Opposition Prior To Judge Gorsuch's Confirmation Hearing, None Were Members Of The Judiciary Committee
On January 31, 2017, Sen. Ed Markey (D-MA) Announced That He Would "Not Support The Nomination Of Judge Neil Gorsuch To The Supreme Court." "I will not support the nomination of Judge Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court. #SCOTUSnominee." (Sen. Ed Markey, Twitter Feed , 1/31/17)
On January 31, 2017, Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR) Called Judge Gorsuch "An Illegitimate And Extreme Nominee," Adding That He Would "Do Everything In [His] Power To Stand Up Against This Assault On The Court." "'This is a stolen seat being filled by an illegitimate and extreme nominee, and I will do everything in my power to stand up against this assault on the Court.'" (Press Release, "Merkley Statement On Supreme Court," Sen. Jeff Merkley , 1/31/17)
On January 31, 2017, Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR) Said, "No Senator Who Believes That Individual Rights Are Reserved To The People, And Not The Government, Can Support This Nomination.'" "'His opposition to legal death with dignity as successfully practiced in Oregon is couched in the sort of jurisprudence that justified the horrific oppression of one group after another in our first two centuries. No Senator who believes that individual rights are reserved to the people, and not the government, can support this nomination.'" (Press Release, "Wyden Statement On Nomination Of Gorsuch To The United States Supreme Court," Sen. Ron Wyden , 1/31/17)
On January 31, 2017, Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) Announced His Opposition To Judge Gorsuch Stating That He "Cannot Support A Nominee Who Does Not Recognize That Corporations Are Not People." "U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) announced his opposition to Judge Neil Gorsuch, President Trump's nominee to the Supreme Court. 'The people of Ohio deserve Supreme Court Justices who will defend the rights of working families over Wall Street and corporate special interests - and Judge Gorsuch's record doesn't pass that test,' Brown said. 'I cannot support any nominee who does not recognize that corporations are not people.'" (Press Release, "Brown Announces Opposition To Gorsuch," Sen. Sherrod Brown , 1/31/17)
On February 1, 2017, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) Said She Would Not "Stand Down When American Values And Constitutional Principles Are Attacked," Which Is Why She Would "Oppose Judge Gorsuch's Nomination." "We cannot stand down when American values and constitutional principles are attacked. We cannot stand down while the President of the United States hands our highest court over to the highest bidder. And that is why I will oppose Judge Gorsuch's nomination." (Press Release, "Senator Warren's Remarks On The Supreme Court," Sen. Elizabeth Warren , 2/1/17)
On February 1, 2017, Sen. Booker Said He Would "Not Vote For Judge Gorsuch" And Would "Oppose His Nomination." "I will not vote for Judge Gorsuch. I will oppose his nomination." (Sen. Cory Booker, Twitter Feed , 2/1/17)
On February 1, 2017, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) Said She Planned "To Stand Up For Individuals Over Corporations And Oppose [Judge Gorsuch's] Nomination." ("Quotes By Your Senators About The Neil Gorsuch Nomination," People For The American Way , Accessed 8/25/18)
On February 2, 2017, Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) Said She Would Oppose Judge Gorsuch's Nomination Because He Did Not Have A "Mainstream Record." "Senate Democrat Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin said Thursday she would oppose President Trump's nomination of Judge Neil Gorsuch to the U.S. Supreme Court. In an interview with the Journal Sentinel, Baldwin asserted that Gorsuch, a federal appeals court judge in Colorado, did not have a 'mainstream record,' and she cited judicial rulings of his on cases involving disabled students, workers and women's reproductive health." (Craig Gilbert, "Tammy Baldwin Will Vote No On Trump Pick Neil Gorsuch For Supreme Court," Milwaukee Journal Sentinel , 2/2/17)
On March 15, 2017, Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) Signaled His Opposition To Judge Gorsuch By Saying, "Judge Gorsuch Is Not The Kind Of Nominee Who Has Sympathy And Helps Average Americans When It Comes To Judging And The Law." "Donald Trump campaigned on helping average people. His nominee sides with corporate interests against average people like Mr. Maddin, Ms. Caplinger, and the Hwang family over and over again. From all indications, Judge Gorsuch is not the kind of nominee who has sympathy and helps average Americans when it comes to judging and the law." (Sen. Chuck Schumer, Remarks On Senate Floor, Washington, D.C., 3/15/17)
None Of The Nine Democrats Were Members Of The Senate Judiciary Committee. (Committee On The Judiciary, U.S. Senate, Hearing, 3/20/17 - 3/23/17)
While Sen. Inhofe Announced His Opposition Prior To Kagan's Confirmation Hearing, He Was Not A Member Of The Judiciary Committee
On May 10, 2010, Sen. James Inhofe (R-OK) Announced His Opposition To Elena Kagan's Confirmation. "Sen. James Inhofe, R-Oklahoma, said Monday he would vote against Elena Kagan's nomination to the Supreme Court, the first Republican to publicly express opposition to President Obama's choice to replace Justice John Paul Stevens. Inhofe voted against Kagan when her nomination to be solicitor general came before the Senate last year. Despite opposition from Inhofe and some other GOP senators, Kagan was confirmed." ("POLITICAL HOT TOPICS: Tuesday, May 11, 2010," CNN , 5/11/10)
Sen. Inhofe Was Not A Member Of The Senate Judiciary Committee. (Committee On The Judiciary, U.S. Senate, Hearing, 6/28/10 - 7/1/10)
Three Senate Republicans Announced Their Opposition Prior To Judge Sotomayor's Confirmation Hearing, But None Were Members Of The Judiciary Committee
Sens. Pat Roberts (R-KS), Sam Brownback (R-KS), And James Inhofe Pledged To Vote Against Judge Sotomayor Before Her Confirmation Hearings. MSNBC'S RACHEL MADDOW: "Senators Pat Roberts and Sam Brownback of Kansas and James Inhofe of Oklahoma have all already pledged to vote against Sotomayor. Inhofe refused even to meet with her." (MSNBC's, Rachel Maddow Show," 7/10/09)
- Sen. Roberts Was The First To Announce His Opposition. "Unfortunately, Sen. Pat Roberts, R-Kan., was the first senator to publicly oppose U.S. Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor before the Senate Judiciary Committee formally questions her." (Aaron Landes, "Letters To The Editor On Tiller, Sotomayor, Ymca, Nuclear Power, Tax Refunds," The Wichita Eagle, 6/7/09)
- Sen. Inhofe Announced His Opposition On June 17. "U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe said Wednesday he will vote against confirming the Supreme Court nomination of U.S. Circuit Court Judge Sonia Sotomayor." (Jim Myers, "Inhofe Will Vote No On Sotomayor," Tulsa World , 7/18/09)
- Sen. Brownback Announced His Opposition On June 24. "Sen. Sam Brownback, R-Kan., on Wednesday became the third Republican senator to announce plans to vote against Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor regardless of what occurs in her confirmation hearing." ("A Trio Of GOP Senators Now Opposes Sotomayor," National Journal's Congress Daily, 6/25/09)
Sens. Roberts, Brownback, And Inhofe Were Not Members Of The Senate Judiciary Committee. (Committee On The Judiciary, U.S. Senate, Hearing, 7/13/09 - 7/16/09)
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