Judge Silberman was named to the Federal bench in 1985 by President Ronald Reagan and in 2008 received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest civilian award, from (surprise!) President George W. Bush, the man who launched the Afghan and Iraq aggressions.
Silverman was supported in his opinion by Kavanaugh, a former legal aide to President Bush who was later appointed by Bush to the Federal bench. In July, 2007, Senators Patrick Leahy(D-Vt.) and Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) accused Kavanaugh of "misleading" the Senate during his nomination.
In a statement issued at the time opposing the appointment, Sen. Durbin prophesied, "By every indication, Brett Kavanaugh will make this judgeship a gift that keeps on giving to his political patrons who have rewarded him richly with a nomination coveted by lawyers all over America. And that, of course, is exactly what happened. Here's what aroused Durbin's concern:
"For example, he (Kavanaugh) would not tell us his views on some of the most controversial policy decisions of the Bush administration--like the issues of torture and warrantless wiretapping. He would not comment. He would not tell us whether he regretted the role he played in supporting the nomination of some judicial nominees who wanted to permit torture as part of American foreign policy" It would have been so refreshing and reassuring if Brett Kavanaugh could have distanced himself from their extreme views. But a loyal White House counsel is not going to do that. And that is how he came to this nomination. And that is how he came to dismiss the torture charges against contractor CACI. Surely, Kavanaugh's decision in the CACI case is proof he misled the Senate and merits impeachment.
In Jan., 2005, The New York Times reported testimony suggesting that guards and/or interrogators at Abu Ghraib were urinating on detainees, pouring phosphoric acid on them, sodomizing them with a baton, tying ropes to their penises and dragging them across the floor, and jumping on their wounds. Some prisoners were hung with their hands tied behind their back until they died. It should be remembered that the Abu Ghraib inmates were suspects, imprisoned without due process or trials. Abu Ghraib's commanding officer Brig. General Janis Karpinski estimated that 90 percent of them were innocent.
According to an article by Jeffrey Toobin in the September 21 issue of The New Yorker, President Obama already has the chance to nominate judges for 21 seats on the federal appellate bench---more than 10 percent of the 179 judges on those courts, and at least half a dozen more seats should open in the next few months.
In a Detroit speech, Obama said the role of our courts "is to protect people who don't have a voice"the vulnerable, the minority, the outcast, the person with the unpopular idea, the journalist who is shaking things up"And if somebody doesn't appreciate that role, then I don't think they are going to make a very good justice.
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