By Alex Thomas
WASHINGTON — Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh continued meeting with U.S. senators, including Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va.
Kavanaugh currently serves as a judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit and previously worked under Ken Starr and in President George W. Bush’s administration. He would succeed Justice Anthony Kennedy, who is retiring at the end of July.
“We talked about his judicial philosophy, his commitment to the rule of law and to the text and history of the Constitution. Beyond his judicial philosophy, we talked about what kind of person he is,” Capito said. “I think he is an excellent choice by the president.”
Capito said Kavanaugh emphasized his originalist view of the U.S. Constitution and what the Founding Fathers were thinking when they drafted the document.
“He basically reconfirmed to me that the Constitution is basically his guiding principle. That the text of the Constitution is extremely important in deciding cases, even though the Constitution was written over 200 years ago,” she said.
Capito said Kavanaugh also talked about meeting late U.S. Sen. Robert Byrd, D-W.Va., before being confirmed to his current judicial position.
“Sen. Byrd pulled out his Constitution and Judge Kavanaugh pulled out his Constitution,” Capito said.
“Sen. Byrd said, ‘You’re never going to forget this meeting.’ [Kavanaugh] said, ‘You know, I never have.’”
Byrd voted to confirm Kavanaugh to the Court of Appeals, one of four Democratic senators to do so. The only current sitting Democratic senator to vote for confirmation, Delaware Sen. Tom Carper, said Monday he is against confirming Kavanaugh.
“The Senate must hold Judge Kavanaugh accountable for his deeply concerning record over the past 12 years on the bench,” Carper said. “In the years that Judge Kavanaugh has served on the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals, he has revealed his true colors, and his substantial record over that time period has proven to be a profound disappointment.”
Republicans control the Senate with a 51-49 majority. Capito said Kavanaugh is aware the road to confirmation is not easy.
“There’s been some pre-judging — which is unfortunate — before people get to meet him,” she said. “He’s a very strong person and he knows he’s going to have a rough ride, but he seems very firm in his convictions.”
“I expect him to be confirmed, but I don’t expect it to be without a few bumps,” she added.
Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., has said he plans on having two meetings with Kavanaugh; one meeting before the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing and a second meeting after the committee hearing.
Manchin said Kavanaugh has “all the right qualities,” but the senator is concerned about the judge’s view of former President Barack Obama’s health care law.
