Trump SCOTUS Pick An Opponent Of Federal Overreach

In June, President Donald Trump nominated D.C. Court of Appeals Judge Brett Kavanaugh to replace retiring Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy. Within minutes of the judge being introduced on national television, political pundits began dissecting his career spanning more than a decade.
While Mr. Kavanaugh’s record is extensive and shows a strict adherence to the Constitution, his opinions towards cases involving the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) should be of particular interest to members of the agriculture community.
To say the judge is not an ally of federal regulatory overreach, would be an understatement.
According to a July report from the New York Times, Judge Kavanaugh voted on several occasions to limit the authority of the EPA. These cases specifically focused on issues pertaining to climate change and air pollution regulations.
The article’s author states, “His legal philosophy was clear: In the absence of explicit instructions from Congress, any far-reaching effort by the E.P.A. to tackle environmental problems should be met with deep skepticism by the courts. That philosophy often put him sharply at odds with the Obama administration, which sought to harness older environmental laws to deal with newer challenges like global warming.”
In fact, when cases involving the Clean Air Act came before Kavanaugh, he frequently dissented from the majority opinion.
An example of this came in 2007 when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled the Clean Air Act law was written in a way that would allow the regulation of greenhouse gas emissions. This was a major court victory for groups aiming to curb global warming. But it also paved the way for draconian measures being implemented towards farmers, croppers and energy sector professionals.
When a similar case came through the D.C. circuit in 2012, Mr. Kavanaugh dissented by writing, “The task of dealing with global warming is urgent and important,” he wrote. But, he added, “As a court it is not our job to make policy choices,” and he went on to note that “E.P.A. went well beyond what Congress authorized” in crafting a greenhouse gas permitting program.”
Even though Mr. Kavanaugh has recently affirmed his believe that the earth is warming and there is a need to address the issue, he also remains cynical that this burden should fall solely on the shoulders of the federal government.
He has demonstrated this skepticism by striking down, what he deemed, were deceiving rules from the EPA.
Being an originalist, Mr. Kavanaugh clearly believes any federal laws regarding pollution enforcement should come from Congress, not from an administrative body by way of an edict. This is good news for companies and workers who have been impacted by EPA regulations over the last several years; particularly farmers.
Shortly after Mr. Kavanaugh’s nomination, Ilya Shapiro, writing for the Cato Institute wrote that, “Kavanaugh’s willingness to push back on the excesses of the regulatory state make him a man for the moment.”
Adding to this sentiment, Kay Coles James, president of The Heritage Foundation, stated in a press release, “It’s more important now than ever that we have justices who are faithful to the Constitution and interpret the laws and Constitution according to their text and original meaning.”
Adam Brandon, president of FreedomWorks, proudly declared,” Judge Kavanaugh is a fantastic choice to succeed former Justice Kennedy on the Supreme Court. Kavanaugh has proven to be a staunch conservative who has relied on originalism and textualism while serving on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. We are confident he would strengthen the conservative wing of the Court and preserve the Constitution, as the framers intended.”
It certainly has been a long time since conservatives and advocates for limited government have been this excited over the future of the Supreme Court.
And while radical groups — along with partisan activists and unhinged Democrat Senators — try and turn the confirmation process into a proverbial crap show, it appears the nation’s highest court is finally returning to strict Constitutionalism.
