President Trump rolled out his second Supreme Court nominee, Judge Brett Kavanaugh. The rollout was as impressive and effective as the Gorsuch announcement.

Giving America the chance to see Brett Kavanaugh with his family and hear from him directly about the proper role of a judge was incredibly effective. What people saw was someone who not only has the right temperament for a judge but someone they would be happy to have as a neighbor.

In stark contrast to that scene in the White House East Room was the vitriol that was on full display during a left-wing protest in front of the Supreme Court. Fox News reporter Shannon Bream left the area due to threats from the crowd. She later tweeted:

“Very few times I’ve felt threatened while out in the field. The mood here tonight is very volatile… Literally had to bail on our live show from #SCOTUS. Moving the show back to the safety of the studio.”

I not only watched the White House rollout but I also watched other networks to get the mood of the Left. It is hard to describe the insanity that has gripped the so-called “progressive movement.”

One day they are harassing government officials in restaurants. The next day they are attacking teenagers with MAGA hats. The following day they are raging at the Supreme Court.

Comparisons to Nazis have been made too flippantly in the past. And, of course, the Left is describing anything remotely conservative as “fascist,” which is absurd. But what we are seeing on the Left, and especially at that rally, is the sound and conduct of fascism.

Here’s something to keep in mind. Ruth Bader Ginsburg is the most left-wing justice on the Supreme Court. When Bill Clinton nominated her, everyone knew she was going to be a far-left activist. After all, she had been an ACLU lawyer.

Yet she was confirmed 96 to 3. Republicans who voted for her were trying to preserve civility in politics. Obviously, it hasn’t worked. President Trump invited several Democrat senators to the White House ceremony. They all refused to attend. So much for civility.

The Fight Ahead

A coalition of conservative, pro-life, pro-family organizations will be fighting to secure Kavanaugh’s confirmation. Many of us remember what the Left did to Robert Bork. I am proud of the role I played in preventing the borking of Clarence Thomas.

In the days ahead, conservative groups will issue talking points and opinion pieces addressing Kavanaugh’s judicial philosophy and the nuances of his many rulings. For example, it should reassure conservatives that Kavanaugh considered Justice Antonin Scalia to be “a hero and role model.”

But right now various progressive organizations are going through his high school yearbook looking for an off-color joke. They are searching for ex-girlfriends who might accuse him of lewd behavior. They are getting names of former neighbors and digging up any dirt they can find.

The fearmongering and scare tactics are already out of control. For example, the Women’s March, which botched its press release, condemned Kavanaugh’s nomination as “a death sentence for thousands of women.”

We will do all the normal things that are done to help confirm nominees. But it is extremely important that we are all praying for Judge Kavanaugh, his wife, Ashley, and their two daughters, Margaret and Liza. I hope they can shield themselves from the Left’s ugliness.

I know you will be heartened to hear that Vice President Pence had some time with Judge Kavanaugh and members of the late Justice Antonin Scalia’s family. They prayed together about the challenging days ahead, which is exactly what we all need to do as we work to get him confirmed.

Trump to NATO

After announcing a new Supreme Court pick, President Trump got up early the next morning and flew to Europe for a NATO conference. Afterwards he plans to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin, and that has our European allies in a tizzy.

They don’t think Trump should meet with Putin until he stops assassinating political opponents and stops meddling in foreign nations. Putin’s behavior is outrageous. But our allies are also furious with Trump because he is demanding that they spend more on their own defense.

According to The Washington Post, “U.S. defense spending amounted to 68.7 percent of the NATO total last year.” What is wrong with this picture?

If NATO nations want to send Putin a message, they should start by meeting the minimum goal of spending 2% of their GDP on defense. Even better, they should meet that target not in five years but this year.

If our NATO allies did that, Trump could tell Putin that he has just returned from a meeting of more than two dozen nations who have all vowed to spend billions of additional dollars to restrain his ambitions. That just might get Vlad’s attention.

Sadly, Europe is dominated by left-wing thinking. It embraces socialism while refusing to ensure its own defense. It is beyond absurd for European bureaucrats to claim that Trump is not tough enough on Putin while refusing to spend more on their defense.