According to a report at The Daily Beast, House Judiciary Committee Chairman Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) is under increasing pressure from progressive groups to open an investigation into Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh over accusations he perjured himself during his congressional hearings.
While Nadler is fending off a growing number of House Democrats who want to open impeachment hearings on President Donald Trump, he is also on the receiving end of a campaign to demand documents from the National Archives related to Kavanaugh's prior writings on Roe v. Wade while he served in President George W. Bush's administration.
Those documents were denied to Democrats during Kavanaugh's confirmation hearings despite a request from Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY).
According to the report, Demand Justice, a progressive organization focused on the nation’s judiciary, has scheduled digital ads in Nadler's district demanding he focus on seeking the Kavanaugh documents.
"The ad campaign is coming in the wake of a number of states around the country passing draconian abortion laws restricting abortion access and setting up potential legal challenges to Roe — challenges designed to make their way to the Supreme Court," the Beast reports. "That timeframe has put additional pressure on progressive groups to try and illuminate Kavanaugh’s full record on the matter, in hopes of potentially applying some political pressure before a case makes it to his chamber."
As the Beast notes, "During his hearings, Kavanaugh did not disclose his personal view but said: 'I understand the importance of the precedent set forth in Roe v. Wade. It has been reaffirmed many times over the past 45 years.' But what was in the public record suggested that his position on Roe being settled law wasn’t firmly held. The New York Times reported in early September that he had written in a 2003 email: 'I am not sure that all legal scholars refer to Roe as the settled law of the land'."
According to polling from the liberal Pack the Court advocacy group, there is a solid majority of voters who feel the controversial Kavanaugh should face further scrutiny.
“Trump isn’t the only predator that Speaker Pelosi is refusing to impeach,” Sean McElwee, Pack the Court director of research said in an interview. “It’s time for Democrats to perform their basic oversight duties and review documents from Kavanaugh’s time in the Bush White House. The nation deserves to know whether Justice Kavanaugh perjured himself during his confirmation hearings.”
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