The confirmation hearing for the judge who may be Donald Trump’s single most consequential appointment, began with chaos and anger as dozens of protesters were arrested and Democrats sought to halt proceedings before they had started.
It was always clear the process to confirm 53-year-old Brett Kavanaugh, the man set to become Mr Trump’s second Supreme Court appointment in less than two years, would be deeply contentious. Yet on a hot, humid day when Washington both blazed and sweated, the mood inside the air conditioned chamber on Capitol Hill where the judge made his first appearance before senators quickly, rapidly became heated and angry.
Complaining that up to 42,000 pages relating to Mr Kavanaugh’s work had only been made available at the last minute, Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee sought to postpone the hearing.
“We have not been given an opportunity to have a meaningful hearing on this nominee,” said Democrat Kamala Harris of California. Another Democratic senator, Richard Blumenthal, of Connecticut, claimed “this process will be tainted and stained forever”.
In addition to the politicians, a number of protesters, some of them wearing costumes, sought to stop the hearings, claiming that Mr Kavanaugh would destroy the rights women had battled for and won over the the past four decades.
Especially eye-catching were a group of crimson-clad women dressed as characters from the recent television adaptation of Margaret Atwood dystopian novel The Handmaid’s Tale.
“We want to keep the rights that women have fought for and which are under threat. Especially for women of colour who are more vulnerable,” protester Nadine Bloch told The Independent
“Mr Kavanaugh wants to return things to the dark ages, take away our rights and control our bodies.”
But the protests, from both Democrats and activists, had little effect. The committee’s Republican chairman Chuck Grassley, gavelled the hearing to order and the process got underway. “The committee has received more materials on Judge Kavanaugh than we have had on any Supreme Court nominee in history,” he said.
He also said the contentiousness and protests surrounding Mr Kavanaugh’s confirmation, also set a new precedent. “This is something I’ve never gone through before in 15 Supreme Court nominations,” he said.
Republican senator John Cornyn, of Texas, called it “mob rule”.
In his opening remarks released ahead of delivery, Mr Kavanaugh sought to dampen the controversy over his nomination, which would likely shift the closely divided court to the right. He promised to be a “team player” if confirmed, declaring that he would be a “pro-law judge” who would not decide cases based on his personal views.
“A good judge must be an umpire – a neutral and impartial arbiter who favours no litigant or policy,” an excerpt of his comments released by the White House said.
“I don’t decide cases based on personal or policy preferences. I am not a pro-plaintiff or pro-defendant judge.
His remarks also paid tribute to Justice Anthony Kennedy, the 81-year-old justice who was frequently a swing voter on the court and whose announced his retirement in June and whose vacancy Mr Kavanaugh is seeking to fill.
“To me, Justice Kennedy is a mentor, a friend, and a hero,” Mr Kavanaugh said. “As a member of the court, he was a model of civility and collegiality. He fiercely defended the independence of the judiciary. And he was a champion of liberty.”
But protesters were not persuaded. They believe that while Mr Kennedy was known as a “swing voter” who helped the court maintain a balance, Mr Kavanaugh’s confirmation would move it sharply to the right.
“This is a mockery and a travesty of justice,” shouted one woman who was led away from the hearing, according to the Associated Press. “Cancel Brett Kavanaugh!”
Ilyse Hogue, president of the pro-choice group NARAL said: “What’s at stake is not just abortion rights, although that would be enough. It is the relegation of women to second class citizens, which would not only hurt my daughter and all of our daughters, but hurt my son as well. Because we know a Kavanaugh court would restrict rights for everyone.”
Struggling to speak over protesters, Republican senator Orrin Hatch of Utah, said: “These people are so out of line they shouldn’t be in the doggone room.”
