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Brett kavanaugh has a long, long record of adopting extreme views to put polluters ahead of public health in eighteen air and water cases in which he's reach a substantive conclusion. He's rule for polluters, 16 times in eighteen separate cases when he's considered issues related to endangered species. He's road for last protection for endangered species 17 times that means that brett kavanaugh has the rule for polluters or for less protection for endangered species 33 out of 30 six times he in particular, he has concluded that the lacks the authority to regulate the greenhouse gases that cause climate change has concluded that lacks the authority to regulate cross state air pollution. That starts in States like Ohio and ends up in maine. He has an extraordinarily long record of rolling with polluters and against public health um it's my pleasure to introduce Sen Tom carper who's the senior Democrat on the environment and public works Committee. Thank you, senator carpet. Thank you Please please remain standing and could ask all the men understand, move over here under the tree of approved that treaty bring it over here and give me some shaking and this is this is there's, a reason why they called global warming and this is this is just one of one of the many, many reasons Scott thank you for being here and providing leadership again on this front. Does he's mention there's uh lot of activity going on like right down the Street here Uh they have a judiciary Committee and tell nominated by President trump to be to serve on the Supreme court we've heard a lot about that Kevin hurd alot about him today. Alot of the cookbook are today in the number of my Democratic colleagues and I'm one of those who stands with corey and I'm very proud to be able to say with my other colleagues Democratic colleagues me too, in terms of our willingness to to to face the of the music, but one area of brett Capitol records and having a whole lot of attention it's really not the attention that it deserves Deals with his environmental record Scott is sad. The month is nearly 300 opinions there maybe no area of law where we pushes. I think, maybe a great greater threat, greater threat than his use on the environment shortly after President trump nominated judge kavanaugh was quick to call judge kavanaugh the next Scott pruitt and that is not a term. I use lightly with judge kavanaugh is the next Scott through it there's, both good news and bad news I'll start with the bad news Brett kavanaugh record is bad news for clean air clean water and for our client, but there's, a good news to judge kavanaugh is the next cut through it and we know what happened to him. He's no longer he's no longer the administrator at he's not in the position to do the kind of harm to our country that he did at American people overwhelmingly rejected Scott pruitt and his agenda, along with my colleagues, including This man right here, Sen Mark yep Mark II. We work tirelessly to tirelessly for months to skin, since God put packing and with the help of a lot of our colleagues, mostly Democrat but but a couple of Republicans as well we're ultimately successful. I think there's even more reason for help them. Last year. Our Democratic colleagues and I hated by several Republican senators, defeated President trump's pick to lead the chemical office's the guy named, Michael Jackson In his career promoting less protective chemical safety standard than earlier this year we took down the nomination of kathleen hearted White has been nominated by the President to serve as the chair of the Council on environmental quality of the White House and we expose heard his team with her help. We expose her to sting for science and her refusal to acknowledge the clear and present danger that climate change poses to our generation in to future generations and she's gone as well. Nomination is gone along with Michael Jackson. I just wanna say again my thanks to all the folks around the country. Certainly the groups alot environmental groups and certainly my Colleagues on the Democratic side, mostly but Cup on the Republican side too, but let's not forget this, Michael Johnson and Kevin hart the White were rejected because they embrace the handful of environmental positions. They're real deal breakers for Republican senators. They were deal breakers for Republican Center. Sadly judge kavanaugh environmental records is a compilation of the very worst accomplish the very worst of those same extreme positions I've believe that when the American people and the centers with whom we serve I'm are represent them fully understand fully understand what's at stake and we got a fighting chance to stopping this nomination stage cannot be higher. Are air Earth. Water are climate and really the future of this planet. On which we live and depend on it. We must fight, judge calvin nomination everybody's hard as we thought that is Scott, Michael and kathleen White and we're doing that in order to make make sure that's got that bread kavanaugh cannot finish what's got through. It started and this is a fight worth fighting and frankly it's one that we intend To win and with that, let me let me point you and bring up here next wise cool early autumn day. I'm here for needs no introduction at marcus Center March. Thank you. Tommy thank you to Tom copper and uh the Democratic leader on the environment Committee on all of these incredibly important issues and I know we're gonna be joined by other members of the Committee, but I thank you for your great leadership um. We should all be very Shared uh Red kavanaugh becoming the key deciding vote on the Supreme court on the most important issues facing our country healthcare. Llc gt II issues. He thinks lgbt stands for let's go back in time on affirmative action on gun safety and of course, climate change and the environment the archives has said that there are seven million pages related to brett cabin record, but Congress has only received seven percent of those pages. Seven percent of seven million pages and only half of that, seven percent is available to the public. That means that 93 percent The documents about brett cabinets record in the White House are not available to me not available to my colleagues and not available to you. The American public. We have only seen the tip of the kavanaugh papers. Iceberg and at seven percent Senate Republicans and the trump administration have failed the grade miserably on transparency the trump White House must release all of brett cabin Records so that the American people can judge brett kavanaugh for who he really is. The otherwise we must ask what is he hiding so, while we may not know what is in millions of pages of documents about brett kavanaugh. That are being kept secret by the White House. We do know that judge calvin track record on the environment and on the climate is fantastic therapists every single American should be very worried About what they Justice bread, kavanaugh would mean for our air for our water, our land, our health and our climate as a judge, brett kavanaugh has consistently opposed strong environmental protections. He has ruled for industry. 32 out of 35 times he got a choice to make a decision 32 out of 35 times Don't judge kavanaugh oppose stronger environmental protections when judge Kevin are says, quote in many cases of rules for environmental interest that is about is true as when donald trump calls global warming, a hoax read kavanaugh say, retirement in tight climate decisions are a cop corporate pollute. Are wishlist Siding with chemical manufacturers increasing hazardous air pollutants harming water supplies, protecting big oil and big coal big polluters are cheering the nomination of judge kavanaugh even more than when Scott pruitt got hired at the and that's because bigoil and King cole want to use brett cabin to turn the Supreme court's motto from equal Justice under the law to justices under corporate control That is what this vote is all about. That is what this fight is all about and that's why we have to stand up and say no, no to bigoil know the King call no to the federal society. No to the cook brothers and no to President trump and no to further expansion of the citizens, United President where there are no restrictions upon what these industries can do to influence the decision Things didn't made in this building across the Street from us right now, that's what this is all about, read kavanaugh believes that the koch brothers, bigoil, can spend whatever money they want under disclose unlimited to influence. The climate, the environment, the public health and safety of our country the Supreme court is no place for someone like judge brett kavanaugh who wants to move us backwards On key healthcare, consumer protection, climate and environmental protections, we need to say no to brett kavanaugh on the Supreme court. It will be the most important vote for our generation that this United States Senate makes we're just gonna fight every single way until all of the documents made public. You cannot run only seven percent of the marathon and get a medal. You cannot only Tell us about 70 percent of your record on your resume and get a job well. This is a job for a life time and that life time is to help safety and well-being of every child in this planet and the planet itself. So we're gonna fight as hard as we can and we have an incredible warrior from the state of oregon um, a champion of the environment through and through his genetically hard wired, to fight for the environment the great Jeff murphy welcome Well, greetings everyone, little warm today and I think about the fact that right now Coast to Coast, you can see the impact of climate chaos impact of carbon pollution. Having a huge huge effect out in the West we're talking forest fires where smoke is covering the state for weeks to time buyers ready to Montana through Idaho through Washington through oregon down in the California of fire season, much longer than it used to be much more intensive It used to be much more smoke than that used to have well that's climate chaos. That's driven by burning fossil fuels and I bring that to our attention because we're in the Middle of it right now feeling uh feeling and feeling the heat feeling, heat and then down in the the Southeast. We just dodge the tropical storm that could have been a hurricane. Can we remember what happened just a year ago with, with hurricane Maria and earned me earned and harvey pounding our city's pounding Puerto Rico virgin islands, Texas well, that too is driven By carbon pollution and then we have all the other effects. You can see and every other state whether it's more drought here and more tropical delicious. There, whether it's the ticks survive in the winter and killing the mood for the pine. Beetles surviving the winter and killing the pine trees. I think back not that long ago and I hesitate to say this, but I will say it. We had a clean air act signed by President Nixon, a Republican. We had a clean water act signed by President Nixon the Republican, we had an established by President Nixon how is that possible. That we have lost the bipartisan stewardship of our public resources of our land of our beautiful blue Green planet and the answer is dark money coke brother dark money and my colleague from massachusetts call it out. This corrupt When your option of our constitution is ongoing now, every single day it's being attacked it's being attacked by the dark money. The exact opposite of the way jewel jefferson said that he's voting citizens need to have an equal voice. Citizens United the exact opposite it's been attacked by gerrymandering which explains why far more votes were cast for Democrats and environmentalists over on the House side, but they're not in control Roll and then we have of course, voter suppression. I just heard last week just last week about Texas. Closing a border office where they issued so that people can actually vote and they moved. It so that people on the border have to travel. Eighty miles to get that I did now. I haven't checked out all the details of that story, but I'm assuming for the moment that's right it's just one little example of voter suppression. If you believe in a Democratic Republic once you believe in voter in Empowerment, rather than voter suppression and how does this all coming together. Well, the Supreme court at the heart of all of it, the Supreme court is at the heart of the fact they haven't taken on gerrymandering so that we have fair representation of the people in the House of representatives and they've made voter suppression. Worst by tearing down the voting rights act and they certainly made disproportionate voice an enormous problem with dark money through the Gates of citizens, United and here we are today Talking about the nominee and nominee who has no interest in taking on these three corrupting forces of our constitution, not gerrymandering not voter suppression, not dark money and nominee who we already know opposes the power of the people on virtually any issue will certainly, on workers issues and consumers, issues certainly on reproductive rights in general, health care issues, but what hasn't gotten enough attention is how it impacts the environment. Our responsibility to big goods Towards of our planet, so this is an individual who we don't know alot about ice on the floor, an hour, so go talking about all these missing documents from his five years as Secretary to the President same documents that he was talking about and Republican got up and said afterwards. Why are you concern we've delivered so many documents so many documents to the Committee so many documents to the Senate I'd own care. If you deliver the whole Library of Congress documents to the Senate, if you're not delivering the documents he was involved in. We can't do our responsibility it's not about how many documents you delivered it's how many years censored, how many of censored we have a situation where the individual controlling, what we see was a an employer work for judge kavanaugh. He worked for the nominee. How can you have the person in the documents, be the person who work for the nominee are you kidding me I think that the Republicans would have said it's okay to have somebody who worked for say, judge cavan. We can taking be the individual to bet that the paperwork and decide what we see and then there's all the additional documents that we don't even don't even making it to that stage from the time he was Secretary so here we are with this vast amount of information. We would really get insight, but listen we don't have that, but what we do have should make everyone of us a fierce opponent of this individual to serve on the environment here in Object of the transport rule created to curb harmful emissions across state lines which would have prevented 34000 premature deaths. He rejected long-standing interpretation that Congress directed the agency to control any air pollution with the clean air act that particular ruling by the way, that's straight out of the coke brothers, fossil fuel industry playbook their greed to take I fight renewable energy clean energy the transition to renewable energy that greed is doing such damage not just to this generation but that will be amplified for our children and amplified again for our grandchildren. We need to stop now. We need to drive to a hundred percent clean and renewable energy. We need all of your support to make that happen and that includes, say no to judge kavanaugh so let's be in this fight Every single moment it is a rigged system. This Senate process rigged by the Republicans revenge, the American public in the senators from even knowing the full extent, but what we do know is enough to say no absolutely no to the confirmation. Brett kavanaugh. Thank you. We have a few more Speakers, but if there any press who have questions for our senators before I let them go okay. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you all write our next like to ask when young to come up from who sick falls and here comes when gwen came all the way from music falls New York to share her thoughts on brett cabin nomination Nice one point, one. Thank you. Hello, my name is nadia young. I'm 13 years old and for music New York, when I was 10 years old, I was told that I couldn't drink the water at home or school petersburg water was contaminated, contaminated by the way, is used to make fun products to kind of plastics was located half a mile from my home to can't accuse away in their manufacturing. Our private, well tested and 20 100 parts per trillion and my school tested at 15 parts per trillion. I remember not being able to take showers at home or fill my water bottle at basketball practice. We even had to brush your teeth with bottled water. My mom then became very involved involved with our community. She attended every meeting that involve giveaway and she even went to distribution twice a week. It hurt because I used to spend a lot of time with my mom, but after we found out about It's like we have no time when my blood got tested it came back at 207 parts per billion out of 300 and 53 children and who sick falls. My blood level was the highest peak is linked to causing six diseases. One of these diseases kidney cancer the man that discovered our areas, contamination was Michael key his father, died of kidney, cancer, Michael van de quick Google search of And cancer, this led him to testing the water and paying for himself without Michael search. Many others and I would have still been drinking away. My local state and federal government did not find this due to it being an unregulated chemical. It took region one administrator due to sink under President Obama to issue a stop drinking notice for everyone after we sold our House in New York which we called cloud nine. I had to switch schools and doctors. I know I have a two month old sister who still has to get her blood drawn even though we stopped drinking. It years ago. I'm worried about our health in the future. I'm here today to say even though I'm only 13 in understand the importance of the and the Supreme court, we need strong laws that protect human health and prevent corporate pollution. I have Experience firsthand how this one chemical has changed my family and community people are worried about their health and environment. I'd own believe judge kavanaugh would be the right person to uphold the life-saving environmental laws in petersburg New York and music falls we're fighting for medical monitored to keep our community healthy we're just starting the legal process to help to hope someday we'll get Justice for Community we need to find a way to keep our community healthy and to catch and prevent illnesses caused by the way and other chemicals instead of rolling for communities like ours, judge Kevin has said decided for polluters, President trump should nominate someone with a strong environmental record. Thanks for listening Great great job when and our next Speaker will be kristin Jackson from the natural resources Council of maine hi. Everyone. My name is kristine Jackson and I'm from portland maine and I'm here today to urge the us Senate to reject the nomination of judge kavanaugh to serve on the Supreme court. It is clear to me that judge brett kavanaugh poses opposes a grave threat to maine's environment. Our clean air, clean water and healthy environment that are critical to our economy the health of maine people and our quality of life. Don't kavanaugh has along History of defending polluters over people if confirmed to the Supreme court, it seems certain. He would make decisions that would jeopardize the health of maine's people and environment. I'm particularly concerned that judge kavanaugh could make decisions that would increase air pollution. Main is located at the end of the nation's tail pipe meaning our air quality is greatly impacted from pollution maine has one of the highest rates of asthma in the country, so increase air pollution means more asthma attacks more missed days of school by main children and more people being rushed to the emergency room on those on alert days, main relies on federal Protections under the clean air act to limit pollution. However, judge kavanaugh has ruled that the does not have the authority to regulate this type of cross state air pollution. If the authority to protect us from upland pollution is weekend to revoked maine as well suffer main. Also receives mercury. Mercury pollution from up when sources main loons have the highest level of mercury contamination in the country and particularly women, of childbearing age, are advised to not eat fish cut in our thousands of lakes and ponds but judge kavanaugh has argued Earned standards for toxins like mercury and insisted that cost to polluters be considered when regulating these students are health and environment should not be jeopardized to protect the profits of polluting industries. If brett kavanaugh has confirmed means clean water will also be at increased risk judge kavanaugh is expected to support the view that federal clean water act protections should not be extended to certain small streams, such a decision would remove clean water act protections from thousands of miles of main streams that serve as drinking water to Residence and service critical habitat of fish species like means prize, berto I'm also deeply concerned about the decisions that judge kavanaugh could make. That will accelerate climate change. The Gulf of maine is warming faster than 99 percent of our world's oceans and this warming is causing lobsters to migrate further and further from our Coast threatening our iconic multimillion dollar commercial fishery. We need urgent federal action to curb the impacts of climate change, but judge kavanaugh has twice rule the doesn't Don't have the authority to regulate climate changing greenhouse gases, people come to maine from all over the world to experience the outdoors eat. Our iconic seafood and enjoy our state's natural beauty. But the health of our people, our environment and our nature, based economy is at stake with the nomination of judge brett kavanaugh to the us Supreme court in earned the us Senate to reject his nomination. Thank you kristin and now we have two of the nation's leading legal experts on air and Danger species and they're both gonna come up and just talk for a couple of minutes and then we'll take any questions that folks may have. Our first speakers, David with the natural resources defense Council and our second sneak speakers with the Center for biological diversity. Hello, everybody thank you very much for being here and I wanna make three points I'm David. This is not the first point on David with the natural resources defense Council. I would like to make three points. First and he does not proposed judicial nomination. Is slightly we've opposed to only one other Supreme court nominee in 25 years Nice, uh, but judge Kevin ross domination poses a unique threat to the principles and protections that we defend. We go to court on behalf of the three million members and activists of the second just kavanaugh has consistently interpreted our clean air and clean water laws to block important life saving protection kristin describe what the impact would have been In a blocking the cross state pollution rule, so it's kavanaugh invented new requirements that aren't in the clean air act and the effort to block that rule, which would save 34000 lives every year. Fortunately, in this case, the Supreme court overturned his decision six to two with just roberts and Kennedy in the majority and they concluded the kavanaugh is approaching, ignored, quote the realities of interstate air pollution and their firm that rule was a permissible, workable and equitable in Irritation of the clean air act it's another year for example, last year kavanaugh issued a two to one decision now on appeal to the Supreme court blocking from curving the Super potent climate pollutants called seas Congress required to ensure the safety of the substitutes that replaced zone depleting chemicals in our air conditioners, but kavanaugh again read limitations into the law that Congress did not write And if his decision stands that were grandfather, the use of these dangerous pollutants indefinitely third, just kavanaugh seems inclined to use the doctrine of his own invention. So-called major rules, doctor when, to block action on climate change into the clean air act to block rules like the seasoning net neutrality rule and many, many other areas under his theory federal agencies cannot take actions that the judge believes our major without quote, clear can Authorization and this would largely reduced reverse the Supreme court's three decade old chevron President and Mark a giant shift of power from federal agencies to judges in the interpretation of federal laws. As he rode into percent on net neutrality where chevron allows agencies to rely on statutory ambiguity to issue ordinary rules the major rules, Dr and prevent It's an agency from relying on statutory ambiguity, tissue major rules for this return, chevron upside down for any judge who did the rule major if the judge found the law unclear in any respect and it is always easy to argue. After the fact that the laws unclear it would mean that Congress had failed to legislate at all. This would be a major traditional power grab at the expense of both the President and the Congress in the oral arguments for the still undecided clean power plan, judge Kevin seem ready to use this Dr can to overturn the rule and Yesterday, in the hearings he appeared to reference climate regulations when he said, with what seems like the stain, an executive branch agency wants to do some new policy and proposes a new policy to Congress. But Congress doesn't pass the new policy went often happens or too often I've seen is that the executive branch's then relies on the old laws of source of authority to do this new thing and then they try to say well the old laws and vigorous so we can fit this new policy into the old law as justification for In this new thing well, in fact, Congress was quite clear and writing the clean air act that has the authority to curb climate pollutants in 19 65 the year. Kavanaugh was born, President Johnson, ask Congress for clean air legislation to cover climate change pollution and, in 19 70 Congress passed that very law included in the clean air act of 19 70 the fact that we must worry that judge kavanaugh doesn't think this kind of legislation is clear enough is a major reason. He should not Confirm to the Supreme court so I would just end by noting that yesterday decided our list of minor decisions which he claimed, he was being pro environmental one of those in case we're here old against us in three of the four claims. Well that would be like claiming that Paul manafort was vindicated in his recent trying just coming out, has a strong tilt Against public health and environmental protections and toward protecting polluters, these decisions have real impact on people's lives and that is why Ann opposes his confirmation. Thank you. Hello. Everyone bill snape Center for biological diversity. I'm also a professor at American University law. School and that does make me professor snape and I think you have to listen to what I have to say. It to have three things. I wanna say The first is great. Stats earlier that the senators told us about with very high percentage of cases that judge kavanaugh decides to go against the public interest go against the environment go against the little. Guy but I think it's actually equally instructive to look at his actual written decisions the decisions that he actually rights because on the court of appeals there's three judges and sometimes it's just voting and sometimes he's leading and let me be very clear about my synopsis of his written decisions at the Circuit as it relates to protect When his decisions have cause human death, illness, injury as well as the destruction of natural systems that we all depend upon that was the homer Supreme court case. That David just talked about second, he's got a very peculiar and one sided view of cost benefit analysis. He's constantly inserting cost benefit analyses into uh cases and situations where Congress doesn't want him to do that he is relentless it's a very common theme of his decisions, but the further theme when you look at his car Benefit analysis he doesn't seem to understand the benefit of weapons oceans, rivers streams, lakes, fishing, wildlife, endangered species, ecosystems. He literally does not seem to get it any values them very, very low and it shows because he he sides with the corporate polluters in the corporate developers pretty much all the time. Third and perhaps the one that gets under my skin the most when I hear him speak, he says over and over again that he's a strict construction list that is just interpreting the law and not making the law Well, I think he's fitting and I'm being polite. He constantly cherry picks laws and facts and provisions of statutes that suits him and he ignores those provisions that he simply disagrees with and in fact, in the homer case that David and I will talk about the Supreme court reviewed him on that very attempt of his to add law into what was doing and it was that case that said with the delay in implementation that role was going to cause human Illness that, in my view, is on judge Kevin hands and let us remember in conclusion, judge kavanaugh already has a lifetime job. It's on the Circuit. Let's keep him there. He does not belong in the Supreme court. It's what the sign says. Stop kavanaugh. Thank you alright. Thank you to all of our speakers in the folks who are watching at home and if you have any questions, will be around afterwards to to talk to you, thanks again for joining us. Thank you











