Brett softens tone in op-ed

Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh wrote in an op-ed Thursday that he “might have been too emotional” during last week’s Senate hearing, but that he was subjected to “wrongful and sometimes vicious allegations.”

Kavanaugh, in a column for The Wall Street Journal, defended his conduct before the Senate Judiciary Committee and vowed to be an “openminded” and “independent” judge.

“I testified before the Judiciary Committee last Thursday to defend my family, my good name and my lifetime of public service,” he wrote of his appearance after the testimony of Christine Blasey Ford, who accused him of sexually assaulting her at a high-school party in 1982.

“My hearing testimony was forceful and passionate . . . I know that my tone was sharp, and I said a few things I should not have said.”

Kavanaugh said he was grateful to participate in the process leading up to his initial hearing, but harshly criticized the turmoil that followed.

“I was subjected to wrongful and sometimes vicious allegations,” he wrote.

“My time in high school and college, more than 30 years ago, has been ridiculously distorted. My wife and daughters have faced vile and violent threats.”

But the judge assured readers that he would be “hardworking, even-keeled, openminded, independent and dedicated to the Constitution and the public good.”

“I revere the Constitution,” he wrote. “I believe that an independent and impartial judiciary is essential to our constitutional republic.”

A vote on Kavanaugh’s confirmation could come as early as this weekend.