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The Senate Judiciary Committee released Justice Brett Kavanaugh's responses Monday evening to some of the most controversial moments of his confirmation hearings before the Supreme Court, including the interaction with the father of a Parkland shooting victim.
Asked about one of the most controversial moments of his audition, when he seemed to avoid shaking hands with Fred Guttenberg, whose daughter Jamie was one of the victims of a shootout last February at Marjory Stoneman High School. Douglas from Parkland, Florida. stated that he thought that Guttenberg was a protester and that his security details came afterwards. "In this split second, I unfortunately did not realize that the man was the father of a shooting victim from Parkland, Florida," he wrote. "Mr. Guttenberg suffered incalculable loss, and if I had known who he was, I would have shaken his hand, talked to him and expressed my sympathy, and I would have listened to him.
Senator Dianne Feinstein, an eminent member of the Judiciary Committee, invited Guttenberg to the hearings. He did not immediately respond to TIME's request for comment.
Kavanaugh also stated that he had never asked the Capitol police to take Guttenberg out of the room and did not know if anyone had acted on his behalf to do so. "If anyone claimed to act on my behalf, they did it without my knowledge and contrary to my wishes," he wrote.
Kavanaugh also stated that he was using the phrase "abortion-inducing drugs" when confirming it only because he was imitating the way the plaintiffs he was talking about had used it. .
"At the hearing, I did not express an opinion about whether certain drugs cause an abortion. I used this sentence only to accurately trace the plaintiffs' own claims, "he wrote.
Kavanaugh had used the term when Senator Ted Cruz asked him about his dissent in Priests for Life c. United States Department of Health and Human Services. In that dissent, he was on the side of a religious organization that objected to the provision of the Affordable Care Act requiring health insurance companies and employees to provide contraception as part of their coverage.
As he did during the auditions, Kavanaugh declined to comment on the exceptions that he would authorize if Roe v. Wade be overthrown, citing judicial independence. When questioned as to whether a president should be subpoenaed, he used the same answer.
The Supreme Court candidate was answering questions from the Democratic Committee, who put them in writing in the minutes after his hearing last Friday. In total, according to the President of the Judiciary, Senator Chuck Grassley, the ten Democrats on the Committee submitted 1,278 written questions, a figure that he believes exceeds the total number of questions submitted for each other Supreme Court candidate. . Eight more questions were asked by Grassley and the other by Arizona Senator Jeff Flake.
"Submitting these many written questions seems like an extra effort to solve the problem. It's unnecessary and dilatory, especially when many have already decided to vote against Judge Kavanaugh, "Grassley said in a statement. "What else do you need to know to vote" no "?"
The judicial commission is expected to vote on Kavanaugh's confirmation on Thursday, followed by a vote in the Senate. At least four Democrats on the committee have already said they will vote against his confirmation.
The White House felt that the release of these questions was a further step in the success of the confirmation process. "Despite the endless complaints of critics, the Committee has received more material regarding the appointment of Judge Kavanaugh than any candidate in history – by far," said White House spokesman , Raj Shah. "Its members have more than enough information to consider his nomination, and we look forward to them advancing it to the Senate."
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