Brett Michael Kavanaugh was nominated by President Donald Trump on July 9th to join the Supreme Court and replace Anthony Kennedy. Because of his views on certain important issues, many politicians are actively fighting his nomination and the public is outraged. Having the seat as a Supreme Court Justice, Kavanaugh would be a part of the second most powerful court in the country, but this just isn’t any seat. This is Kennedy’s seat, which represents the swing vote on key issues including abortion rights, affirmative action, and same-sex marriage.Kavanaugh’s confirmation hearing took place on September 4th and here are some of the biggest takeaways from the four-day hearing:
According to CNN, during the hearing on Tuesday, September 4th, the confirmation was interrupted a total of 63 times. The Women’s March tweeted, “We’re disrupting the Kavanaugh hearings every few minutes, with hundreds of women prepared to get arrested to prevent these hearings from moving forward.” Not only were protestors making statements inside the hearing room, but there was also a more silent protest outside.
Women in the liberal advocacy group known as Demand Justice dressed depicting the novel-turned-TV series The Handmaid’s Tale by wearing red and white costumes as they protested in silence. According to CNN, “the protestors’ costumes resembled the dress of the ‘handmaids,’ who in the television show are forced into sexual servitude under the totalitarian government that has taken over part of the United States. Their reproductive rights are stripped completely away.”
On Wednesday, September 5th, Senator Kamala Harris pressed Kavanaugh during the hearing with a series of questions regarding the Russia investigation. According to TIME, Harris asked him if he had ever spoken with anyone at the law firm Kasowitz, Benson & Torres about Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russia’s interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election. This question was primarily important because Marc Kasowitz, one of the firm’s partners, has worked alongside Trump. He never answered the question in which Harris responded with, “I think you’re thinking of someone and you don’t want to tell us.” Kavanaugh was also asked if a sitting president would be required to respond to a subpoena, which he declined to answer along with the question of whether Trump had the right to pardon himself.
In more recent news, as of Friday, September 14th, an allegation of sexual misconduct has surfaced against Kavanaugh. CNN reports that a woman is accusing the Supreme Court nominee of assaulting her in the early 1980s. There is no suggestion that after the incident the woman reported the assault to law enforcement. However, she stated that she did receive medical treatment regarding the alleged assault. Kavanaugh has denied the allegation.
There are people who don’t like knowing about what is going on in the world of politics, even in the world of President Donald Trump. But it’s important that as millennials living in this country, we are aware of and understand the reality in which we live because what is happening right now could affect our future.