Kavanaugh Says He May Have Been Too Emotional at Senate Hearing

(Bloomberg) -- Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh wrote in an opinion article Thursday that he "might have been too emotional" and "said a few things I should not have said" during last week’s Senate hearing on sexual assault allegations against him.

In an article published on the Wall Street Journal’s website -- a day before the Senate plans to take a crucial test vote on his confirmation -- Kavanaugh said his testimony "reflected my overwhelming frustration at being wrongly accused, without corroboration, of horrible conduct completely contrary to my record and character."

He said he was more emotional than he had ever been. "I know that my tone was sharp, and I said a few things I should not have said. I hope everyone can understand that I was there as a son, husband and dad," he wrote.

Going forward, he wrote, "you can count on me to be the same kind of judge and person I have been for my entire 28-year legal career: hardworking, even-keeled, open-minded, independent and dedicated to the Constitution and the public good."

At last week’s hearing, as he denied the allegations against him, Kavanaugh made no secret of his anger at Democrats on the committee.

"This whole two-week effort has been a calculated and orchestrated political hit, fueled with apparent pent-up anger about President Trump and the 2016 election, fear that has been unfairly stoked about my judicial record, revenge on behalf of the Clintons and millions of dollars in money from outside, left-wing opposition groups," Kavanaugh told the committee.

In the days after the hearing, many Democrats have questioned whether he has the proper judicial temperament to serve on the nation’s highest court.

Retired Justice John Paul Stevens, a Republican appointee who retired in 2010, said Thursday that Kavanaugh doesn’t belong on the Supreme Court, reported the Palm Beach Post in Florida. Stevens said he had praised Kavanaugh in previous years and thought he was qualified for the court, the newspaper said.

“I’ve changed my views for reasons that have no relationship to his intellectual ability," Stevens said, according to the newspaper. "I feel his performance in the hearings ultimately changed my mind.”

To contact the reporter on this story: Laurie Asséo in Washington at lasseo1@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Joe Sobczyk at jsobczyk@bloomberg.net, Laurie Asséo, John Harney

©2018 Bloomberg L.P.