Kavanaugh is unfit to serve on the nation’s highest court

The Constitution of the United States exists to create a stable framework of government with checks and balances against tyranny, transcending political divides and assuring fundamental rights and freedoms to all the people of this land, including the most powerless or vulnerable. The Supreme Court is a critical element in that system of checks and balances, the final line of protection against the tyranny of a political majority.

For that reason, all judges, and Supreme Court justices most of all, are expected to meet the highest standards of impartiality, nonpartisanship, integrity, honesty, and balanced temperament. In fact, the authoritative Code of Conduct for United States Judges states that judges are required to “act at all times in a manner that promotes public confidence in the integrity and impartiality of the court” and to avoid all “political activity.”

That description does not fit the behavior that the nation saw on display last week when Judge Brett Kavanaugh appeared before the Senate Judiciary Committee to address allegations that he sexually assaulted Dr. Christine Blasey Ford when the two were in high school.

Millions of women and men were so moved by Blasey Ford’s painstaking testimony about her experience of assault that even President Donald Trump initially called her “very credible” and her testimony “very compelling.” In contrast, Judge Kavanaugh spoke with a lessthanjudicial temperament, angrily throwing questions back at senators and giving lessthanhonest replies, even fabricating a drinking game to avoid owning up to the more disturbing meaning of slang he used in his high school yearbook. Despite Blasey Ford’s willingness to testify under oath to the FBI, Judge Kavanaugh showed resistance to a full investigation.

During Senate hearings, Judge Kavanaugh descended into the kind of partisanship judges must avoid by characterizing Blasey Ford’s testimony as a “calculated and orchestrated political hit” and “revenge on behalf of the Clintons,” blaming “anger about President Trump and the 2016 election” and “leftwing opposition groups.” Concerns about partisanship in the confirmation process and divisions on the Supreme Court are not new, but this is the first time a nominee has tainted the process with such expressly partisan statements.

It is one thing to assert one’s case passionately in the face of serious allegations, but the behavior Judge Kavanaugh displayed went far beyond, raising serious questions about his fitness to serve as a federal judge, let alone a Supreme Court Justice. There is room on the Supreme Court for a range of judicial philosophies, but not for open partisanship or disregard for public confidence in the integrity and impartiality of the court. Would Judge Kavanaugh be able to preside over cases brought by groups he considers “left wing” or involving partisan conflicts or women’s rights? What will happen to public trust in the court itself ? What if he has committed perjury in his confirmation process? What if he is given a lifetime Supreme Court appointment and any of the allegations against him are in fact true?

These are questions that must be asked by the senators who will vote on his nomination, including Colorado Sen. Cory Gardner. Gardner was narrowly elected in 2014 under assurances that he would be a moderate and independent thinker not beholden to either political party. He explicitly promised during his campaign to protect women’s rights and to represent all Colo radans. In one of the most consequential votes he will ever cast, will Gardner show independence or go along with a highpressure push to confirm a deeply problematic and partisan nominee who is the subject of multiple credible claims of sexual assault?

Perhaps the ACLU is among the organizations Judge Kavanaugh might dismiss as “leftwing,” but we are in fact rooted in deeply nonpartisan commitment to the principles and rights enshrined in the Constitution for all people of any belief or party. It is significant and rare for the ACLU to oppose a Supreme Court nominee, something we have only done three times before in 98 years.

Rule of law depends upon faith in the system despite its flaws. Judge Kavanaugh’s confirmation would undermine the integrity of the Supreme Court while sending a terrible message to survivors of sexual assault. Sen. Gardner should oppose Judge Kavanaugh’s appointment to the Supreme Court. Justin Mock, Vice President of Finance and CFO; Bill Reynolds, Senior VP, Circulation and Production; Bob Kinney, Vice President, Information Technology