Kavanaugh's Wealth

I've been considering Brett Kavanaugh's nomination to the Supreme Court a bit, lately. It's been discussed a great deal, and his confirmation could have significant consequences for the court, for a long time.

Democrats have tried pretty much anything they could come up with, to delay or derail the confirmation. Not easy, of course, when they have no power to stop it. Today, Senator Feinstein reported a letter apparently alleging misdeeds of Kavanaugh while he was in high school.

But I'm considering Kavanaugh's documents, the ones he released voluntarily. Back in July, Tim Mullaney at Marketwatch asked a question: "Brett Kavanaugh has saved almost nothing -- so does he actually understand business?". From the article:"he has $15,000 to $50,000 in the bank, no reported stock, bond or fund holdings, and a 401(k) retirement account held by his wife that holds less than $15,000." In a word, that's pathetic.

Sure, Kavanaugh has a salary over $200,000, and a guaranteed lifetime pension if he serves another 15 year. And apparently he has a government retirement account with a decent -- though hardly impressive -- balance. But he doesn't even have a rainy day fund that would last 3 months?

There are other red flags in the statement: the baseball tickets, in particular. What sane person racks up tens of thousands of dollars in debt buying tickets to see the Washington Nationals??? What kind of person fronts the money for group purchases of tickets, racking up huge levels of credit card interest on at least 3 different cards, while his friends pay him back, later, "to the dollar"? Did they pay the credit card interest, too? Who are these friends, anyway?

I have many reasons to oppose Kavanaugh being on the Supreme Court. Good reasons. For totally sober reasoning, check out the op-ed by Senator Patrick Leahy in today's Washington Post, with respect to Kavanaugh's misleading testimony.

That's roughly where I put Kavanaugh's financial statement. It's either misleading, concealing, or evidence of gross incompetence. He is a prominent judge with no cash, no investments, and a very expensive baseball habit. Hell, I might have been happier if some of his ultra-conservative friends had just passed along a decent stock tip or two.

To me, it just doesn't add. It's not peanuts and Cracker Jacks, it's the burnt strip steak with ketchup. Someone like that can't be my umpire. It's almost like betting on Teddy Roosevelt to win the Presidents Race.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Name Day

A note from Youngstown... by request

Springsteen & E Street Band: Brooklyn, April 3, 2023