Following today’s party-line Judiciary Committee vote on the nomination of Brett Kavanaugh to the United States Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit, People For the American Way President Ralph G. Neas released the following statement:

“I am deeply disappointed by the decision of the Judiciary Committee. The committee has a responsibility to properly vet nominees for lifetime seats on the Federal Bench.

“Mr. Kavanaugh is clearly unqualified for a position on one of the country’s most powerful courts. This nominee has less legal experience than 21 of the 22 judges who have been appointed to the D.C. Circuit since the Nixon era.

“This nomination is another example of the Bush administration valuing cronyism over qualification. Mr. Kavanaugh has proven his loyalty to the President, and now he’s been rewarded with a judicial nomination. There are plenty of qualified jurists to choose from, but the President has decided to favor his friends instead of selecting qualified, mainstream candidates.

“I applaud those Senators who voted to oppose Mr. Kavanaugh’s nomination. I hope that those who supported him think long and hard about the effects of their efforts to lower the standards we expect of Federal Judges. We continue to urge that the full Senate oppose this nomination.”