Susan Collins' home state newspapers say Kavanaugh unfit for Court

Brett Kavanaugh’s petulant, belligerent, and dishonest testimony before Congress make him both unqualified and unfit to serve on the Supreme Court, according to two of Maine’s largest newspapers.

Maine is home to Republican Sen. Susan Collins, one of the few Republican senators still undecided about the upcoming vote on Kavanaugh’s confirmation.

“Like Collins, we believe strongly in the Senate’s advice and consent role, which gives presidents great latitude in their judicial nominations,” says a Bangor Daily News editorial. “Kavanaugh fails this test. A no vote on his nomination is appropriate and necessary,” it concludes.

Likewise, the Portland Press Herald is against the notion of Kavanaugh sitting on the highest court in the land.

“Based on what he demonstrated in his own testimony, Kavanaugh lacks the character and judgment to serve on the Supreme Court,” the Herald concludes.

Editors for both papers concluded Kavanaugh is fundamentally unfit for the position even before seeing any additional information from the newly opened FBI background investigation into multiple accusations of sexual assault.

Both editorials called out Kavanaugh’s dishonesty and outright lying.

“Kavanaugh lied, under oath, about small things,” Bangor Daily News says, referring to Kavanaugh’s lies about underage drinking, his legacy status at Yale, and his statements about his high school yearbook. “If he’ll lie, under oath, about these things, he’ll lie about much bigger things.”

The Herald echoed those statements, noting, “when you have taken an oath to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, it’s not time to fudge the facts. If confirmed, Kavanaugh would bring this same lack of credibility with him to the place in the country where credibility matters more than anything.”

When it came to Kavanaugh’s demeanor before the Senate, both papers were appalled.

“Kavanaugh revealed that he has an explosive temper and resorts to bullying when he feels threatened,” wrote the Herald, adding, “his temperament was tested during the hearing, and he failed the test.”

The Bangor Daily News was critical of Kavanaugh’s “extremely partisan” rants during his testimony, saying Kavanaugh, “dispelled his notion that he’d be an impartial justice calling balls and strikes.”

The nation’s eyes are on Collins as she and others weigh their decision. Will Collins confirm a lying, angry partisan who faces credible accusations of sexual assault?

“The man who appeared before the Judiciary Committee on Thursday can’t control his temper, he is overtly partisan and he doesn’t always tell the truth,” says the Herald.

“Based on his own testimony, Kavanaugh has shown that he does not belong on the Supreme Court.”

Published with permission of The American Independent Foundation.