So much for that American Bar Association review of Kavanaugh

There was a time back during the Kavanaucolypse when liberals were pinning their hopes on a new review of Justice Brett Kavanaugh’s qualifications by the American Bar Association (ABA). The group had originally given him a rating of “well qualified” but agreed to review new material following the accusations brought against him during the end of the confirmation process. This analysis is handled by the ABA’s Standing Committee, but now a representative of the organization has declared the process was concluded with Kavanaugh’s confirmation. (Daily Caller)

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The American Bar Association (ABA) will not revoke its “well qualified” rating for Justice Brett Kavanaugh’s nomination to the Supreme Court, after allegations of sexual and professional misconduct prompted the group to reopen its review of Kavanaugh’s record.

An unnamed ABA official told CNN that the ABA rules provide that the review process should close with the nominee’s confirmation.

“Per the published policy and historical practice of the Standing Committee on the Federal Judiciary, once a justice or judge is confirmed, the Standing Committee’s rating process is closed,” according to the ABA’s standing committee on the federal judiciary.

This isn’t the end of the Kavanaugh investigations, however. The 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals is still moving forward with a review of more than a dozen complaints filed against Justice Kavanaugh during the heat of the battle. These mostly have to do with allegedly false or misleading statements made during the testimony answering charges from Blasey Ford and questions about his “judicial temperament” during the same proceedings.

For any of Kavanaugh’s liberal detractors, I wouldn’t get my hopes up very far over this news. At this point, he’s already on the bench. Even if the ABA or the 10th Circuit came back with some negative finding and lowered his rating, that doesn’t really change anything. Kavanaugh has put on the robes and taken his seat. Having a particular rating from a professional association isn’t a requirement for the job. The only way he gets removed (short of unexpectedly passing away) is through impeachment.

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While it’s true that impeachment is a political process, those still hoping to cause Kavanaugh’s downfall should remember that even the Democrats are going to be wary of starting down that road. As far as his testimony regarding the claims of Christine Blasey Ford goes, nobody can prove that he lied about anything no matter what you believe. And if losing his cool with some of the Democrats under such inflammatory questioning and presenting an appearance of partisanship rises to the level of an impeachable offense, we might start losing SCOTUS justices right and left every time the power in Washington changes hands.

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Ed Morrissey 10:00 PM | November 22, 2024
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