Kavanaugh on Supreme Court amid criticism: ‘It’s an institution of law, not of politics’

Justice Brett Kavanaugh sought to push back against criticism that the U.S. Supreme Court has grown increasingly partisan, saying Thursday, “The court is an institution of law. It’s an institution of law, not of politics, not of partisanship.”

In remarks at a judicial conference in Minnesota, Kavanaugh touted the court’s mixed decision votes this past term and his close relationships with other justices.

“We have lived up, in my estimation, to deciding cases based on law and not based on partisan affiliation and partisanship,” Kavanaugh said at the event. “We don’t caucus in separate rooms. We don’t meet separately. We’re not sitting on different sides of the aisle at an oral argument … We work as a group of nine.”

He also said that when he joined the court, he was surprised by the amount of time the justices spent together. He said he estimated they probably eat lunch together about 65 times a year, adding, “And the rule at lunch is you can’t talk about work.”

“It’s a good rule,” he continued. “It builds relationships and friendships and then when we have tough cases — and we only really have tough cases — you have a reservoir of good will toward each of the other people.” 

Kavanaugh’s remarks in Minnesota mark the first public appearance from a justice since the Supreme Court recessed for summer in late June, after making a series of monumental decisions.

Conservative justices ruled along party lines to bring an end to affirmative action in college admissions and to strike down President Biden’s student loan forgiveness plan. Kavanaugh also, however, sided with some mixed majorities in cases this past term, including one that sided with Black voters in Alabama and one that preserved a federal law that prioritized keeping Native American children with Native American families. 

Kavanaugh’s appearance also comes at a time when confidence in the court is consistently low, and some justices have come under scrutiny for behavior that some say raises ethical questions. 

Kavanaugh refrained from discussing the ethical issues at length. He referred to Chief Justice John Roberts’s comments from May, when he said justices would continue to work on that as a group.

“That’s accurate,” Kavanaugh said. “I’m not going to add anything to what the chief justice has said on that topic.”

Kavanaugh also said he understands the issues in these decisions can be difficult, and he is not surprised that justices face intense scrutiny.

“You shouldn’t be in this line of work if you don’t like criticism,” he said. “Because you’re going to get it. And you’re going to get a lot of it.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.