Most of the country’s Republican governors are urging the Senate to swiftly confirm Judge Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court.
Thirty-one GOP governors sent a letter Wednesday to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., expressing their support for Kavanaugh’s nomination and praising his credentials.
The four governors who did not sign the letter are: Bruce Rauner of Illinois, Larry Hogan of Maryland, Charlie Baker of Massachusetts, and Phil Scott of Vermont. All four are Republican governors in blue states.
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“As Judge Kavanaugh stated in his remarks to the nation, his judicial philosophy is straightforward. He believes a judge must be independent and open-minded and must interpret the law as written,” the governors wrote. “As his record shows, he will interpret the Constitution as written, informed by history, tradition, and precedent. Judge Kavanaugh will adjudicate legal disputes with impartiality, preserving the Constitution of the United States and the rule of law.”
The letter highlights Kavanaugh’s judicial experience, having graduated from Yale Law School and clerking for Judge Walter Stapleton on the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, Judge Alex Kozinski on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit, and Justice Anthony Kennedy on the Supreme Court.
He also worked as a prosecutor with independent counsel Ken Starr during the investigation involving President Bill Clinton and as staff secretary to President George W. Bush.
Kavanaugh was confirmed the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in 2006 and has written around 300 opinions since joining the federal bench.
“If confirmed as associate justice, we have no doubt Judge Kavanaugh will continue to set aside his personal preferences and make decisions based on the law,” the GOP governors wrote.
They said it “seems right and fitting for one of Justice Kennedy’s own law clerks to follow in his footsteps and continue our nation’s great tradition of the rule of law.”
