Kavanaugh will be a solid vote for constitutional fidelity and judicial restraint. Some firebrands might have preferred more of a . . . well, firebrand, but with midterm elections coming and a narrow majority, Trump wanted a solid pick, a Harvard/Yale guy who’s likely to sail through the confirmation process. And that’s what he got. Plus, on the D.C. Circuit, Kavanaugh has a strong record in support of the Second Amendment.

As for the confirmation process, well, Kavanaugh will sail through it unless Democrats get their way. Even before Trump had named his nominee, some Democrats were promising to oppose whoever he named. Democrats desperately need a win before the midterms, and many of them are spoiling for revenge after the Senate’s refusal to confirm Obama’s appointee, Judge Merrick Garland.