Ed Markey: “I rise to speak in opposition to the nomination of Judge Brett Kavanaugh to serve as an Associate Justice on the U.S.…”

“I rise to speak in opposition to the nomination of Judge Brett Kavanaugh to serve as an Associate Justice on the U.S. Supreme Court. The vacancy that Judge Kavanaugh seeks to fill is not an ordinary one. The retirement of Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy created one of the most consequential vacancies on the High Court that this country has ever seen. There is a reason why scholars and pundits refer to the Supreme Court of the last 30 years as the ``Kennedy Court.'' His influence on so many important cases cannot be overstated. Throughout his three decades on the Supreme Court, Justice Kennedy was often the swing vote in decisions decided 5 to 4 on a divided Bench. After John Roberts became Chief Justice in 2005, Justice Kennedy was the deciding vote in 92 percent of all cases decided by one vote. Let me repeat that. Of the 203 cases decided by a 5-to-4 vote in the John Roberts era, Justice Kennedy was the deciding vote in 186 of them--92 percent. The Justice who succeeds Anthony Kennedy on the Supreme Court will have the opportunity to leave a deep and lasting mark on issues of the highest magnitude. Any nominee to the Supreme Court carries significance, but a nominee at this moment, for this seat, will play a defining role in our Nation's history. The constitutional obligation conferred on Senators to provide their advice and consent on a Supreme Court nomination is a powerful, a serious, and a sacred responsibility.…”