Senate confirms controversial judge for Amarillo spot

WASHINGTON --- A controversial choice for a federal judgeship in Amarillo, Matthew Kacsmaryk, was confirmed by the Senate Wednesday largely along party lines, 52-46, with one Republican, Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, joining all Democrats in voting against him.

He will fill the judgeship of the late U.S. District Judge Mary Lou Robinson, who had gone on senior status in 2018 and died in February. Kaczmaryk, 42, Deputy General Counsel to a conservative legal group, First Liberty Institute in Plano, was nominated for the position in September 2017 and has had a lengthy delay because of opposition from the LGBTQ community and abortion rights groups concerned about his views. Seventy-five human rights groups led by Lambda Legal signed a letter to senators against him.

Both U.S. Texas GOP senators, who had recommended him to the White House for the opening, welcomed his confirmation.

"I am glad to see the Senate vote today to confirm my good friend, Matt Kacsmaryk, to fill this crucial judicial vacancy for the Northern District of Texas," said U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz. "As a passionate constitutionalist, Matt has served Texas well in his various professional and public service roles and proven himself to be a remarkably experienced and deserving candidate for this vacancy."

U.S. Sen. John Cornyn said, "Matthew's experience as a federal prosecutor and advocate for the First Amendment will serve him well in this role. I'm grateful for my colleagues' support for his confirmation and thankful to President Trump for his nomination."

Cruz and Cornyn recommended Kacsmaryk to President Trump after a review by a group they formed to make recommendations to them, the bipartisan Federal Judicial Evaluation Committee.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., was unusually personal in a stinging critique of the nominee. He began by saying on the Senate floor Wednesday that there were many judicial nominees with "terrible records on women's reproductive health, LGBTQ equality and other issues."

"But Matthew J. Kacsmaryk from the Northern District of Texas takes the cake," said Schumer. He said that the nominee had "demonstrated a hostility to the LGBTQ community bordering on paranoia."

Schumer quoted Kacsmaryk as having described the landmark 2015 Supreme Court decision legalizing gay marriage as "a road to potential tyranny."

Collins, a moderate Republican, said in a statement, "A number of Mr. Kacsmaryk's writings and interviews indicate an alarming bias against the rights of LGBTQ Americans and disregard for Supreme Court precedents. For example, Mr. Kacsmaryk has dismissed proponents of reproductive choice as 'sexual revolutionaries,' and disdainfully criticized the legal foundations of Roe v. Wade. . . Such extreme statements reflect poorly on Mr. Kacsmaryk's temperament and suggest an inability to respect precedent and to apply the law fairly and impartially."

Carl Tobias, a law professor at the University of Richmond School of Law who tracks judicial nominations, said, "The groups mounted a huge effort mainly because of his clear derogatory comments about LGBTQ people and abortion. I think that individuals and groups who appear before him on these issues will believe that he cannot be impartial and may even seek recusal."

But the newly confirmed judge has his strong supporters, too. "Few people are more qualified to fulfill a lifetime appointment to the federal bench or are more deeply committed to the principles of the Constitution than Matthew Kacsmaryk," said Kelly Shackelford, President, CEO, and General Counsel for First Liberty Institute.

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