Twice a Supreme Court runner-up, Hardiman is back at work

Senator Angus King says he has concerns about the judicial record of President Trump’s U.S. Supreme Court Nominee Brett Kavanaugh.

Kavenaugh is meeting with senators to ask for their support. Those laws, passed long after Roe was handed down, would make abortion illegal if and when the Supreme Court were to say Roe is no more.

Stabenow said in a Monday statement that the vacancy “represents a very consequential moment for our country where we can chose to make progress on so many important issues for MI families or we can turn the clock back”. At 9:03 p.m. Monday, the president entered the East Room of the White House. Despite repeated evidence to the contrary, we expect more from our judges than from elected politicians. “Although Kavanaugh worked on the impeachment of President Clinton, he now maintains that “criminal investigations and prosecutions of the president” should be deferred while a president is in office”. Sure, depending how the confirmation process develops, it’s possible the nomination could affect a handful of races, but the most likely scenario will not change the overall trajectory of the November elections. Senate Democrats don’t have a majority, however, and they are powerless to block the nomination unless some Senate Republicans join them. In 2006 – after a grueling three-year confirmation process – Kavanaugh was confirmed to the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals. “His full name is Brett Michael Kavanaugh, so it is possible Trump though he was nominating Poison lead singer and victor of ‘Celebrity Apprentice, ‘ Brett Michaels”, he joked. Leahy disagrees, and he said Kavanaugh’s philosophy – and its obvious appeal to a president who is now under investigation – is a threat to the basic structure of American democracy. Kavanaugh has stated that he considers Roe v. Wade binding and would seek to uphold it, though he has ruled in some cases to place restrictions on abortion. Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer has promised to protect abortion rights.

And when Haspel said, “Senator, I think I’ve answered the question”, Harris responded, “No, you’ve not”.

Other Democrats are anxious about Kavanaugh’s written opinion that a President should not face legal action for a crime while in office. Special counsel Robert Mueller, of course, is now investigating potential collusion between Russian Federation and the Trump campaign during the 2016 election. They say Trump might be accused of a crime.

Instead, in possibly the most consequential decision of the modern era, Citizens United v Federal Election Commission, the Court rejected the case brought to it by the parties, and substituted its own.

Kavanaugh has shown a particular interest in the 14th Amendment from his earliest law school days at Yale University. “I don’t think he’s wired that way”, Leipold said. Orrin Hatch of Utah, Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn of Texas and Lindsey Graham of SC. But for Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell – whose primary goal is to lock in all 50 present Republicans – Collins and Murkowski certainly haven’t raised any significant red flags yet.

Justice Kagan’s dissent castigates the Janus majority decision because it “subverts all known principles” of precedent. He says that without Kennedy, the Supreme Court has strong left and strong right positions, but no one in the middle. “The old dodge of stare decisis has been thrown out the window because Justice [John] Roberts, Justice [Samuel] Alito [Jr.] and Justice [Neil] Gorsuch claimed they would follow precedent and the minute they got on the court they did not”.

Congressional Republicans suffered a crushing defeat in 2017 when they tried and failed to fully repeal the Affordable Care Act, also called Obamacare, former President Barack Obama’s healthcare law.

“Hmmm. So Trump picks the guy who thinks presidents shouldn’t be prosecuted”. Susan Shand adapted it for VOA Learning English.

VOA’s Steve Herman reported this story. Mario Ritter was the editor.