Chaos and fury at confirmation hearing for Trump's controversial Supreme Court justice nominee

'I am an optimist. I live on the sunrise side of the mountain, not the sunset side of the mountain'

The confirmation hearing for the judge who may be Donald Trump’s single most consequential appointment, began with chaos and anger as dozens of protesters were arrested and Democrats sought to halt proceedings before they had started.

It was always clear the process to confirm 53-year-old Brett Kavanaugh, the man set to become Mr Trump’s second Supreme Court appointment in less than two years, would be deeply contentious. Yet on a hot, humid day when Washington both blazed and sweated, the mood inside the air conditioned chamber on Capitol Hill where the judge made his first appearance before senators quickly, rapidly became heated and angry.

Complaining that up to 42,000 pages relating to Mr Kavanaugh’s work had only been made available at the last minute, Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee sought to postpone the hearing. In response, Mr Kavanaugh vowed said the Supreme Court should “never, never be viewed as a partisan institution”, and said if confirmed he would “keep an open mind in every case”.

He added: "For twelve years, I have been a judge on the US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit. I have written more than 300 opinions and handled more than 2,000 cases. I have given it my all in every case. I am proud of that body of work, and I stand behind it. I tell people 'Don’t read what others say about my judicial opinions. Read the opinions'.”

Democrats complained that they were still missing many of the documents they had been promised related to the judge's work. “We have not been given an opportunity to have a meaningful hearing on this nominee,” said Democrat Kamala Harris of California. Another Democratic senator, Richard Blumenthal, of Connecticut, claimed “this process will be tainted and stained forever”.

In addition to the politicians, a number of protesters, some of them wearing costumes, sought to stop the hearings, claiming that Mr Kavanaugh would destroy the rights women had battled for and won over the the past four decades.

Especially eye-catching were a group of crimson-clad women dressed as characters from the recent television adaptation of Margaret Atwood dystopian novel The Handmaid’s Tale.

“We want to keep the rights that women have fought for and which are under threat. Especially for women of colour who are more vulnerable,” protester Nadine Bloch told The Independent

“Mr Kavanaugh wants to return things to the dark ages, take away our rights and control our bodies.”

But the protests, from both Democrats and activists, had little effect. The committee’s Republican chairman Chuck Grassley, gavelled the hearing to order and the process got underway. “The committee has received more materials on Judge Kavanaugh than we have had on any Supreme Court nominee in history,” he said.

He also said the contentiousness and protests surrounding Mr Kavanaugh’s confirmation, also set a new precedent. “This is something I’ve never gone through before in 15 Supreme Court nominations,” he said.

Republican senator John Cornyn, of Texas, called it “mob rule”.

In his opening remarks released ahead of delivery, Mr Kavanaugh sought to dampen the controversy over his nomination, which would likely shift the closely divided court to the right. He promised to be a “team player” if confirmed, declaring that he would be a “pro-law judge” who would not decide cases based on his personal views.

“A good judge must be an umpire – a neutral and impartial arbiter who favours no litigant or policy,” an excerpt of his comments released by the White House said.

“I don’t decide cases based on personal or policy preferences. I am not a pro-plaintiff or pro-defendant judge.

His remarks also paid tribute to Justice Anthony Kennedy, the 81-year-old justice who was frequently a swing voter on the court and whose announced his retirement in June and whose vacancy Mr Kavanaugh is seeking to fill.

“To me, Justice Kennedy is a mentor, a friend, and a hero,” Mr Kavanaugh said. “As a member of the court, he was a model of civility and collegiality. He fiercely defended the independence of the judiciary. And he was a champion of liberty.”

Later, when he actually addressed the committee in person, he spoke of his family, of his love of coaching his girls' basketball team. He also said he had promoted women and minorities as his law clerks.

"I am an optimist. I live on the sunrise side of the mountain, not the sunset side of the mountain. I see the day that is coming, not the day that is gone. I am optimistic about the future of America and the future of our independent Judiciary," he said.

But protesters were not persuaded. They believe that while Mr Kennedy was known as a “swing voter” who helped the court maintain a balance, Mr Kavanaugh’s confirmation would move it sharply to the right.

“This is a mockery and a travesty of justice,” shouted one woman who was led away from the hearing, according to the Associated Press. “Cancel Brett Kavanaugh!”

Ilyse Hogue, president of the pro-choice group NARAL said: “What’s at stake is not just abortion rights, although that would be enough. It is the relegation of women to second class citizens, which would not only hurt my daughter and all of our daughters, but hurt my son as well. Because we know a Kavanaugh court would restrict rights for everyone.”

Meanwhile, just before lunch, Fred Guttenberg, the father of Parkland shooting victim, Jaime, tried - and failed - to shake hands with Mr Kavanaugh: “My daughter was murdered at Parkland.” The White House later said security had "intervened" before the judge could shake the hand that had been proffered to him.

Mr Trump accusing senate critics of Mr Kavanaugh of “looking to inflict pain and embarrassment”. In a Tuesday sent after the day of opening statements, said Mr Kavanaugh was “one of the most highly renowned jurists to ever appear before Congress”.

Mr Kavanaugh is next due to answer questions from senators. He closed his statement by saying: "If confirmed to the Supreme Court, I will keep an open mind in every case. I will do equal right to the poor and to the rich. I will always strive to preserve the constitution of the United States and the American rule of law.”