Judicial Confirmation Battle Heats Up

Since late yesterday afternoon, we have been working on an upcoming judicial nomination fight for Brett Kavanaugh, who has been nominated to serve as a U.S. Court of Appeals Judge for the District of Columbia Circuit.  This is one of the most prestigious circuit courts in the country.  I have had the pleasure of working with Brett over the last six years on a variety of matters, including religious liberties cases.  Brett has an extraordinary range of experience in both the public and private sectors, which makes him superbly qualified for the D.C. Circuit.  Brett has dedicated a majority of his 16 years of practice to public service.  At present, he serves as Assistant to the President and Staff Secretary.  In that capacity, he is responsible for coordinating virtually all documents to and from the President of the United States.  He has previously served as Senior Associate Counsel and Associate Counsel to the President, during which time he worked on numerous constitutional, legal and ethical issues handled by that office.

Prior to his service with the current Administration, Brett was a partner at the prominent law firm of Kirkland & Ellis, where his practice focused on appellate matters.  He specialized in appellate law and has extensive experience in the federal appellate courts, both as a law clerk and as counsel.  He has argued both civil and criminal matters before the Supreme Court of the United States as well as appellate courts throughout the country.  Brett also held esteemed law clerk appointments as a clerk to Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy, Judge Alex Kozinski of the Ninth Circuit, and Judge Walter Stapleton of the Third Circuit.  Prior to his Supreme Court clerkship, Brett earned a prestigious fellowship in the Office of the Solicitor General of the United States, which represents the United States before the Supreme Court. 

The American Bar Association has consistently rated Brett Kavanaugh as either well-qualified or qualified to serve on the D.C. Circuit.  His academic credentials are impeccable, receiving his B.A. from Yale College and his law degree from Yale Law School.  He also served as an editor of the Yale Law Journal.  Judge Walter Stapleton of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit said of Brett Kavanaugh, He is a real superstar.  He is a rare match of talent and personality. 

Some in the Senate are already saying that they are going to filibuster this well-qualified nominee.  We have been through this process before with obstructionists in the United States Senate; and this time, as in the past, we are prepared to meet this challenge.  We will keep you posted as this nomination moves forward.