show bio Brett Kavanaugh

Brett Kavanaugh is a federal judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. A former staff secretary in the Executive Office of President George W. Bush, Kavanaugh received his B.A. from Yale and his law degree from Yale Law School, where he served as notes editor of the Yale Law Journal. Prior to a clerkship for Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy, Kavanaugh earned a one-year fellowship in the Office of the Solicitor General of the United States, Kenneth Starr.

U.S. Court of Appeals Judge
Date: 10/25/2007

U.S. Court of Appeals Judge Brett Kavanaugh of the District of Columbia Circuit discusses his experiences serving in the judiciary and wonders how America can continue to attract talented people to serve in the judicial branch of government. Kavanaugh says the system needs to continue to look for talented people who have experience in government and politics and dealing with tough issues. Kavanaugh says, for the most part, potential judges should not be dismissed because of past work performed both in the public and private sector. Kavanaugh calls the confirmation process of judicial appointments “broken,” citing examples from both the Bush and Clinton Administrations. He says the politicization of the process is causing talented people to shy away from judicial appointments.

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