OPINION:
Elections have consequences. One of the main reasons people voted for Donald Trump was the change he was likely to make to the Supreme Court. Many conservative Americans cringe at the thought of a Hillary Clinton-picked, liberal-packed Supreme Court. Now mainstream-media pundits are losing their minds over Trump nominee Brett Kavanaugh.
On June 27, 81-year-old Associate Justice Anthony Kennedy, a Reagan Supreme Court pick, announced that he will retire on July 31. He’s considered a conservative but he’s known as a swing vote. He was the key swing vote on three hot-button issues: same-sex marriage, abortion access and affirmative action.
On Monday, Mr. Trump announced his SCOTUS nominee in the form of the 53-year-old Kavanaugh, making it clear that he wants conservatives and originalists on the Supreme Court. So I don’t understand the Democrats’ outrage and pending Senate theatrics. Mr. Kavanaugh, though well-qualified and with 12 years at the D.C. Circuit, is seen by the left as “too close” to the Republicans. On the other side of the aisle, he’s not too trusted by some conservative Republicans because he clerked for Justice Kennedy.
One must note that the oldest Republican pick on the Supreme Court is 70-year-old Clarence Thomas. The only African American currently on the highest court, he’s been there since 1991 — and he’s likely to retire depending on how the Republicans do in the midterm elections. The two oldest justices are Democratic picks: Ruth Bader Ginsburg, 85, and Stephen Breyer, 79.
To all those on the left protesting Judge Kavanaugh’s nomination, if you’re so certain he would be bad for America, how is it that you failed to convince folks to put Hillary Clinton in office?
TEDDYLEE GRAY
St. Ann, Jamaica
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