“We fear that partisanship has injected itself into Judge Kavanaugh’s candidacy,” write Michael J. Proctor and Mark Osler.
WASHINGTON ― Two former law school classmates of Brett Kavanaugh’s who previously vouched for him wrote to the Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday to say they are withdrawing their support for him because of “the nature” of his recent testimony.
“Under the current circumstances, we fear that partisanship has injected itself into Judge Kavanaugh’s candidacy,” Michael J. Proctor and Mark Osler say in a letter to Sens. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), the committee’s chairman and ranking member, respectively. “That, and the lack of judicial temperament displayed on September 27 hearing, cause us to withdraw our support.”
Proctor and Osler were among 23 classmates of Kavanaugh’s at Yale Law School who signed a letter in August pledging their support for his confirmation. At the time, they cited his “exemplary judicial temperament” as a reason for their support. But after watching Kavanaugh’s explosive behavior in his confirmation hearing as he addressed the sexual assault allegation against him by Christine Blasey Ford, the two former classmates say they can’t stand by him in his Supreme Court bid.
“The reason for our withdrawal is not the truth or falsity of Dr. Ford’s allegations, which are still being investigated, but rather was the nature of Judge Kavanaugh’s testimony,” they write. “In our view that testimony was partisan, and not judicious, and inconsistent with what we expect from a Justice of the Supreme Court, particularly when dealing with a co-equal branch of government.”
Meanwhile, three of Kavanaugh’s former clerks who had written a letter supporting him told the Senate Judiciary Committee on Monday that they want to clarify that they are “deeply troubled” by the sexual assault allegations against him.
- Jennifer Bendery
Proctor and Osler were among 23 classmates of Kavanaugh’s at Yale Law School who signed a letter in August pledging their support for his confirmation. At the time, they cited his “exemplary judicial temperament” as a reason for their support. But after watching Kavanaugh’s explosive behavior in his confirmation hearing as he addressed the sexual assault allegation against him by Christine Blasey Ford, the two former classmates say they can’t stand by him in his Supreme Court bid.
“The reason for our withdrawal is not the truth or falsity of Dr. Ford’s allegations, which are still being investigated, but rather was the nature of Judge Kavanaugh’s testimony,” they write. “In our view that testimony was partisan, and not judicious, and inconsistent with what we expect from a Justice of the Supreme Court, particularly when dealing with a co-equal branch of government.”
Meanwhile, three of Kavanaugh’s former clerks who had written a letter supporting him told the Senate Judiciary Committee on Monday that they want to clarify that they are “deeply troubled” by the sexual assault allegations against him.
- Jennifer Bendery
My take: Thank you! It is an unparalled shame that Brett Kavanaugh has not taken it upon himself to honorably withdraw. That he would not do so only considering the charges at hand is disqualification enough but not doing so considering the heated partisanship and emotional outbursts and the public's reaction to it puts this nominee beyond the pale and the fact that Republicans on the Senate committee would continue to try to push him through considering all that places us just about squarely in the Twilight Zone.
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