WASHINGTON (CN) - Concluding a four-day confirmation hearing, supporters of Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh praised the judge's temperament and legal mind Friday, while witnesses opposing him warned senators he would be a consistent vote against abortion, voting rights and affirmative action.
The Senate Judiciary Committee finished their public questioning of Kavanaugh around 10 p.m. on Thursday, the second consecutive day of questions that ran well into the night. Like most judicial nominees, Kavanaugh largely avoided discussing his personal views on legal issues, instead promising to remain independent if confirmed to the high court.
Friday's session began with testimony from two representatives of the American Bar Association Standing Committee on the Federal Judiciary, which unanimously rated Kavanaugh well-qualified.
Paul Moxley, the chair of the bar committee, said his group studied input from nearly 500 people who "were likely to have knowledge of [Kavanaugh’s] qualifications."
Coupled with reviews of Kavanaugh's record on the bench, the committee’s review yielded praise for Kavanaugh’s temperament, professional qualifications and integrity.
John Tarpley, the group's principal evaluator, was careful to note, however, that the review did not consider how Kavanaugh might rule on specific legal issues likely to go before the Supreme Court.
Tarpley specifically praised Kavanaugh's writing ability, saying he has great skill in clearly explaining complicated legal issues in opinions. He also said the review gave Kavanaugh high marks for his personality and professional qualifications.
"Given the breadth, diversity and strength of the positive feedback we received from judges and lawyers from all parts of the profession, the committee would have been hard-pressed to come to any conclusion other than that Judge Kavanaugh has demonstrated exceptional professional competence," Tarpley said.
Luke McCloud, a former Kavanaugh law clerk who went on to clerk for Justice Sonia Sotomayor and now works at the firm Williams & Connolly, praised Kavanaugh's efforts to hire minority law clerks.
Kavanaugh explained earlier in the hearing he undertook this effort in response to learning that Supreme Court justices were having a difficult time making their clerk teams diverse because they hire from lower courts.
"Many of the judge's minority law clerks have gone on to clerk for the Supreme Court, something that is still all too uncommon in these days," McCloud said. "I am fortunate to count myself among them, but I would not have even applied for that position had it not been for the support and encouragement of Judge Kavanaugh."
Maureen Mahoney, who worked with Kavanaugh in the U.S. Solicitor General's Office, echoed this praise of the judge, saying he has served as a mentor to many female lawyers attempting to break into the male-dominated top of the field.
"It's difficult to overstate how important opportunities like these can be for a lawyer's career, especially in appellate practice," said Mahoney, a former deputy solicitor general. "Credentials like a Supreme Court clerkship or a job at the solicitor general's office are keys that unlock doors at the highest levels of the legal profession. Very few women have historically held these elite positions.”
Akhil Amar, a law professor at Yale who described himself as a "liberal Democrat," praised Kavanaugh, saying his originalist approach to the law might make him a more palatable vote for liberals than even Justice Anthony Kennedy.
