Democrats on the House Judiciary Committee Tuesday demanded access to Justice Brett Kavanaugh’s records from his employment in the George W. Bush White House, citing the panel’s role in “judicial disqualification and misconduct.”
Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerry Nadler sent a letter to the National Archives asking the records department “to complete its review and release records,” to the panel related to Kavanaugh’s 2001-2006 White House service.
The New York Democrat said in the letter, also signed by subcommittee Chairman Hank Johnson of Georgia, that the panel “is considering legislative proposals to create a code of conduct for Supreme Court Justices.”
Nadler said the Senate “only received a small fraction” of Kavanaugh’s White House record when it confirmed him to the high court in October 2018.
Kavanaugh served in the White House counsel’s office from 2001 until 2003 and as staff secretary from 2003 to 2006.
Senate Democrats, during his initial confirmation hearing, seized on Kavanaugh’s writings about abortion during his time in the White House counsel’s office, including a 2003 email in which he appeared to question the view that the Supreme Court ruling legalizing abortion was “settled law.”
According to Nadler, the Archives has completed processing records related to Kavanaugh’s time in the White House counsel’s office and he is seeking all of his emails and office files from that time.
Nadler also asked the Archives to work with panel Democrats to speed up the production of the documents from Kavanaugh’s staff secretary tenure, which is not scheduled for release until 2021.
The House plays no role in confirming judicial nominees.
Nadler, in the letter to the National Archives, cited the panel’s oversight responsibility over the judicial branch.
“The Committee’s jurisdiction encompasses the laws governing judicial ethics and the judicial oath of office; judicial disqualification, and misconduct; and the organization of the Supreme Court.”
