Tim Kaine: “I also rise to speak on the nomination of Judge Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court. When he was nominated to fill the…”

“I also rise to speak on the nomination of Judge Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court. When he was nominated to fill the vacancy occasioned by the retirement of Justice Kennedy, I immediately began to read all I could about his record. I reviewed his judicial opinions, law review articles, speeches, and I reviewed, such as they were made available, documents produced from his time working with the Bush administration and his work with the special prosecutor, Ken Starr. Following the review, I met with him to ask him serious questions about his record. I then watched his Judiciary Committee hearing with interest. After that hearing, based on all I had seen and read, I announced my opposition to his nomination for two reasons. First, the Nation needs a Justice with the backbone to stand up as an independent check against both the President and Congress. That is why our Nation gives judges life tenure, so they can render independent rulings without fear of losing their jobs. In a whole series of writings, speeches, and rulings over the course of many years, both as a lawyer and as a judge, Judge Kavanaugh has embraced an unusual deference to Executive power. I think this is one of the reasons the President nominated him, and I don't have confidence that Judge Kavanaugh will hold the President accountable to the law.…”