President Donald Trump has picked federal appeals court Judge Brett Kavanaugh as his new United States Supreme Court nominee, announcing his decision Monday night in a prime-time televised address.
If confirmed, Kavanaugh will replace the retiring Justice Anthony Kennedy, a crucial swing vote on the court, when Kennedy steps down at the end of the month.
Kavanaugh thanked Trump for the honor and briefly discussed his beliefs on the bench.
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Judge Kavanaugh has impeccable credentials, unsurpassed qualifications and a proven commitment to equal justice under law," Trump said during his nomination speech at the White House.
"My judicial philosophy is straightforward. A judge must be independent and must interpret the law, not make the law," Kavanaugh said as he accepted the nomination.
"A judge must interpret statutes as written and a judge must interpret the Constitution as written, informed by history and tradition and precedent," he said.
[ >> Jamie Dupree: Brett Kavanaugh no stranger to D.C. legal, political circles ]
A Washington insider, Kavanaugh, 53, has served on the D.C. Circuit Court since 2006 and has a long and solid record as a conservative jurist. He was born in D.C., and raised in Maryland where his mother also worked in the judiciary as a state court judge. Kavanaugh, who attended both Yale University and Yale Law School, clerked under Kennedy. He also worked for Independent Counsel Kenneth Starr in the 1990s, where he played a crucial role in writing the Starr Report, which led to the impeachment of President Bill Clinton.