Trump now has nominated two Justices who have the potential to be intellectual heavyweights in the place we need that weight the most.

So this is my quick take on the nomination of Brett Kavanaugh.

My overwhelming focus as the drama unfolded tonight was not Kavanaugh’s record. I’m not sufficiently familiar with Kavanaugh’s record to reach an independent judgment on him. But Kavanaugh has passed muster with a wide range of conservatives who are familiar with his record and background, particularly Leonard Leo of The Federalist Society. I’ll rely on, and accept, their judgment on future Justice Kavanaugh.

When it comes to Supreme Court nominees, we really do need OUR best and brightest. We need our Scalias on the high court. From what I’ve been able to gather, Kavanaugh is among our best and brightest, as was Gorsuch.

Trump now has nominated two Justices who have the potential to be intellectual heavyweights in the place we need that weight the most.

Since the announcement, I’ve been focused on the maturity of Trump’s decision to nominate Kavanaugh. It’s on par with his decision to nominate now-Justice Gorsuch.

The closest I came to a prediction was when I commented:

The “rational” me says someone in Trump’s position would take the safe pick, Kavanaugh. Barring a skeleton in the closet, he’ll be confirmed before the First Monday in October.

But I suspected that Amy Coney Barrett would be the nominee because of the politics of the anti-Catholic bigotry focused against her. And it certainly would have made for amazing political theater. But Trump took the rational and mature approach.

That maturity has been the hallmark of Trump’s approach to reshaping the judiciary. And we will benefit from that maturity for a generation to come.



