On Thursday, the American Bar Association, which has given Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh its highest rating, called for a delay in his confirmation proceedings to allow for an FBI investigation into the sexual misconduct allegations made against him.
In a letter addressed to the Senate Judiciary chairman, Senator Chuck Grassley, and ranking Democratic senator Dianne Feinstein, ABA president Robert Carlson wrote that Supreme Court appointments are “simply too important to rush to a vote.”
“Deciding to proceed without conducting additional investigation would not only have a lasting impact on the Senate’s reputation, but it will also negatively affect the great trust necessary for the American people to have in the Supreme Court,” Carlson wrote.
The ABA had previously given Kavanaugh its highest possible rating, a unanimous “well-qualified.” During Thursday’s intense Judiciary hearings, that rating was cited more than once.
Kavanaugh himself brought it up when discussing his time on the D.C. Circuit Court. “For 12 years, everyone who has appeared before me on the D.C. Circuit has praised my judicial temperament,” he said. “That’s why I have the unanimous well-qualified rating from the American Bar Association.”
The ABA also came up during Lindsey Graham’s red-faced rant about the alleged injustices perpetrated against Kavanaugh. “Here’s my understanding, if you lived a good life people would recognize it. Like the American Bar Association has, the gold standard,” Graham said. Then he read a series of fawning quotes from legal professionals that included the ABA’s rating of Kavanaugh.
