President Donald Trump’s Supreme Court nominee, Brett Kavanaugh, is a safe choice for a Republican president. Kavanaugh won’t excite the base the way Judge Amy Coney Barrett would have. But Kavanaugh is a solid, Federalist Society–certified conservative judge, well to the right of Chief Justice John Roberts if not quite as extreme as Justice Clarence Thomas.
For liberals, who face an uphill battle to defeat the nomination, Kavanaugh at least has the benefit of being a juicy target. There are many important issues Kavanaugh can be attacked on in ways that will excite the Democratic base. As Matt Ford suggested in The New Republic, now is the time for Democrats to get serious about putting the composition of the court front and center as an election issue. Kavanaugh is extreme enough that Democrats can usefully deploy him as foil.
Here are some key issues they can highlight.
1. Likely to overturn Roe v. Wade.
Remember the undocumented pregnant minor who was denied access to an abortion? Brett Kavanaugh was in the minority of judges who voted against giving her access to an abortion. He will vote to overturn Roe v. Wade.
— Renato Mariotti (@renato_mariotti) July 10, 2018
2. Subservience to Trump on presidential exemption from legal prosecution.
Barrett was the right pick if Trump's top priority was smoothing the politics of overturning Roe. Kavanaugh was the right pick if Trump's top priority was protecting himself from criminal investigation.
— Ezra Klein (@ezraklein) July 10, 2018
And so Kavanaugh was the pick. https://t.co/YorWGN10Rc pic.twitter.com/dcCn6RWN3y
3. Second Amendment extremism.
Brett Kavanaugh is a true Second Amendment radical. He believes assault weapon bans are unconstitutional, a position way out of the judicial mainstream, far to the right of even late Justice Scalia.
— Chris Murphy (@ChrisMurphyCT) July 10, 2018
4. General use of the courts to advance a conservative agenda.
Brett Kavanaugh's record as a judge and lawyer is clear: hostile to health care for millions, opposed to the CFPB & corporate accountability, thinks Presidents like Trump are above the law – and conservatives are confident that he would overturn Roe v. Wade. I'll be voting no.
— Elizabeth Warren (@SenWarren) July 10, 2018
5. Servility to Trump.
Brett Kavanaugh: "No president has ever consulted more widely or talked to more people from more backgrounds to seek input for a Supreme Court nomination." pic.twitter.com/26LSUnSobB
— Axios (@axios) July 10, 2018