Kavanaugh, Dem senator meet out of the spotlight
Talk is lower-key than with Gorsuch
WASHINGTON — Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh met for the first time since being tapped for the high court with a Democratic senator yesterday, but to little fanfare or opportunity for the press to take note.
About two hours after walking in, Kavanaugh left the office of West Virginia Democrat Joe Manchin III. But this time would not be like the last time he met with a nominee of President Trump’s for the Supreme Court.
Manchin had welcomed photographers into his office suite for a meeting with Neil Gorsuch, the first Trump nominee to the Supreme Court. But that wasn’t the case yesterday.
An array of TV and still cameras gathered outside Manchin’s office, shooting through the glass-paned windows for the arrival of the nominee yesterday afternoon, but it was staff that would enter the lobby to greet Kavanaugh.
Not going through the traditional photo op means that the key Democratic senator and the nominee will not be appearing together in the pages of newspapers across the country — and West Virginia — this morning.
That might be by design, since Manchin has publicly expressed more reservations about Kavanaugh than he seemed to have with Gorsuch last year.
After Kavanaugh’s nomination was announced, Manchin released a statement saying he would reserve judgment.
“The Supreme Court will ultimately decide if nearly 800,000 West Virginians with pre-existing conditions will lose their health care. This decision will directly impact almost 40 percent of my state, so I’m very interested in his position on protecting West Virginians with pre-existing conditions. As I have always said, I believe the Senate should hold committee hearings; senators should meet with him, we should debate his qualifications on the Senate floor and cast whatever vote we believe he deserves. I look forward to meeting with Judge Kavanaugh, examining his rulings and making a determination of whether to provide my consent,” he said earlier this month.
After the meeting, Manchin told CNN the meeting was productive and they discussed several issues, but he did not indicate how he would vote and wanted to see how Kavanaugh’s Judiciary Committee confirmation hearing went.
Manchin is facing pressure from West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey, the Republican challenging Manchin this fall in a state carried overwhelmingly by Trump in 2016, on the nomination.
Morrisey has accused Manchin of delaying his announcement of a position on the Supreme Court nomination for political reasons.
“The men and women of West Virginia cannot count on Sen. Manchin to do the courageous thing and support Kavanaugh now,” Morrisey said in a statement. “Instead, they can count on Sen. Manchin making a craven political calculation once the outcome has already been decided.”