President Trump nominates hard-line conservative Brett Kavanaugh to Supreme Court
After days of secretive back-to-back interviews and frenzied speculation, Trump finally trotted out the
"What matters is not a judge's political views but whether they can set aside those views to do what the law and the
Kavanaugh, who used to clerk for Kennedy, has an extensive resume touting a plethora of conservative causes and opinions.
The 53-year-old
"Mr. President, I am grateful to you, and I'm humbled by your confidence in me," Kavanaugh said, standing alongside Trump. "
Kavanaugh will likely face combative
However, Kavanuagh faced criticism for dissenting last year against permitting a migrant Central American 17-year-old to have an abortion while in federal custody, complaining it would hand rights to undocumented immigrants to have "immediate abortion on demand."
President
"Brett is a brilliant jurist who has faithfully applied the
Kavanaugh faced a grueling confirmation process after Bush tapped him for the
On abortion, Kavanaugh vowed during those confirmation hearings that he would follow
"With this pick, the President is making good on his pledge to 'punish' women for their choices," Schumer said, referencing one of Trump's most infamous campaign pledges. "
Citing his dissent in the case of the 17-year-old undocumented teen, Brooklyn Law School Prof.
"He used strong language in that ruling that kind of sounded like dog whistles to the larger anti-abortion crowd," Araiza told the
Before his federal judgeship, Kavanaugh worked for special counsel
Since becoming a federal appeals judge, Kavanaugh has voted against the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act and ruled in favor of the
A source familiar with Trump's thinking told The News ahead of his announcement he didn't expect Kavanaugh to be appointed, considering his record on opposing abortion rights was far spottier than that of other candidates.
"Social conservatives are putting a tremendous amount of pressure on the President not to pick Kavanaugh," the source said.
"He could be the deciding vote in overturning Roe v. Wade, which is what
"Kavanaugh is an extreme conservative with a clear partisan record,"
Since the Starr investigation, Kavanaugh's take on prosecuting Presidents appears to have changed, and that may have played part in Trump's decision.
In a 2009 article, Kavanaugh argued strongly against "the indictment and trial of a sitting President," saying such a process would "cripple the federal government" and render it "unable to function with credibility." Trump -- whose presidential campaign remains under investigation for possible collusion with the Russian government -- is already facing calls for his impeachment from some congressional
Kennedy, who will officially step down
The
Kavanaugh is Trump's second
Senate Majority Leader
McConnell (R-Ky.) advised Trump against nominating Kavanaugh, saying his extensive paper trail of experience could allow
Nonetheless, McConnell praised Trump after his announcement.
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With
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