Nix the toxic, give him a shot

With the prime-time announcement that Judge Brett Kavanaugh is President Trump’s nominee for the Supreme Court last night, we can begin the confirmation process in earnest.

The Senate Judiciary Committee should give Judge Kavanaugh a fair but thorough vetting.

Obviously, the temptation by Democrats, this year more than ever, will be to make a sideshow of the proceedings and use the entire matter to denigrate the president and Republicans as we head into the midterm elections.

In fact, even hours before they knew who the president’s pick was, a number of high-profile antiTrumpers were pledging to vote the nominee down.

U.S. Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa.) tweeted, “I will oppose the nomination the President will make tonight because it represents a corrupt bargain with the far Right, big corporations, and Washington special interests.”

Sen. Liz Warren also signaled that a Trump pick would be unacceptable, tweeting, “Every single judge on @realDonaldTrump’s short list for the Supreme Court has been pre-approved by rightwing extremists. They’ve shown their willingness to side with the wealthy & powerful over the rights of women, workers, voters, & minorities. But we’re ready to fight back.”

Kavanaugh is a solid pick for the Supreme Court. He is a true conservative and considered a brilliant thinker by his contemporaries.

Our political leaders have a chance to stem the tide of toxic division during this confirmation process. The people deserve the best from those on Capitol Hill. Not a rubber stamp by any means but also not a calculated charade in which a man’s reputation is destroyed for political ends.

Let us see if they rise to the occasion.