In response to media reports that Republicans plan to hold hearings on the nomination of Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court before the National Archives provides the already limited set of documents requested by Senator Chuck Grassley, People For the American Way Executive Vice President Marge Baker issued the following statement.

“If you want to see how cynically Republicans are changing their standard on what the American people deserve to know about Brett Kavanaugh before he’s evaluated for a lifetime seat on the Supreme Court, just look back to their press conference this morning, where they bragged about how many documents would be released about Kavanaugh’s time with the White House Counsel’s office. Or think back to a few days ago, when Senator Cornyn made clear that documents that Kavanaugh created or contributed to as White House staff secretary were relevant to the confirmation process.

“But now it seems that Republicans are willing to move forward without even getting the limited set of documents they requested from Kavanaugh’s time in the White House Counsel’s office—to say nothing of the critical documents from his time as staff secretary that they’re trying to brush under the carpet.

“By this point, it should be clear to anyone paying attention that Chuck Grassley and Mitch McConnell are far more interested in rubber stamping Donald Trump’s nominees than in providing adequate vetting. Senators like Susan Collins, Lisa Murkowski, Jeff Flake and Bob Corker have said they want to stand up for the institutional integrity of the Senate; are they going to vote on a nominee without being allowed to review his record?

“This is an irresponsible and reckless process even by the irresponsible and reckless standards that Chuck Grassley and Mitch McConnell have set over the last few years. Every Senator who cares about the integrity of the Supreme Court and of Congress should put country over party and make clear that they won’t move forward on this nomination until they have a chance to review Brett Kavanaugh’s full record.”

People For the American Way is a progressive advocacy organization founded to fight right-wing extremism and defend constitutional values including free expression, religious liberty, equal justice under the law, and the right to meaningfully participate in our democracy.

###