Brett Kavanaugh targeted for assassination

A California man tried to kill Justice Brett Kavanaugh of the United States Supreme Court. And the American political left literally do not care.

Attack on Brett Kavanaugh – what we know

Fox News has the most detailed account of the incident in front of Brett Kavanaugh’s house. At about 1:05 a.m. yesterday (June 8), Mr. Nicholas John Roske of Simi Valley, California, got out of a taxicab in front of the house. Apparently he nodded to two U.S. marshals on foot patrol, then walked away. Those marshals were there because several pro-abortion protesters have picketed the home for weeks.

Then he called 911 in Montgomery County, Maryland, to report himself! He said he:

was having suicidal thoughts and had a firearm in his suitcase.

Montgomery County police dispatched two officers to the location – presumably geo-tracked – from which Roske was calling. He was still on the line to 911 when the officers arrived, and they arrested him without incident.

But he had quite the kit in his backpack and suitcase, which officers also seized:

A black tactical chest rig and tactical knife, Glock 17 pistol with two magazines and ammunition, pepper spray, zip ties, a hammer, screwdriver, nail punch, crowbar, pistol light, duct tape, hiking boots with padding on the outside of the soles, and other items…

With that kit, he could break into the house, bind and gag Brett Kavanaugh, then execute him, gangland style. Then he could literally take a hike – a long one. Instead he called 911, spilled his guts, and waited for police to arrest him.

Why would he try to pull a stunt like that?

Roske told detectives he planned to break into the house and kill Brett Kavanaugh, then himself. That, he said, would “give his life purpose.” For motive, he cited the Roe v. Wade Leak and the Texas school shooting. He specifically said he expected Kavanaugh to uphold the Second Amendment and “loosen gun control laws.”

The Washington Post reported the arrest first. That report came out at 10:10 a.m. EDT, after the Court released one opinion, not on the Roe leak case. (Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, Docket No. 19-1392.)

At time of writing, the Court has a regularly scheduled conference for today. But it has not designated another Opinion Issuance Day. The Court has avoided issuing an opinion in Dobbs, which in any other context would be par for their course. They usually save their best for last, and they do have other cases almost as important as this one. All the same, this could reflect the Court’s paralysis on this case. It could also reflect Chief Justice Roberts’ continuing attempts to break the majority and forge a compromise consensus.

They don’t even care how close Brett Kavanaugh came to assassination!

The reaction of interested parties tells you how low American political discourse has gone. At 12:36 p.m., the President had said nothing about it! He had the perfect opportunity, because at noon he talked up gun control in a speech at Joint Base Andrews.

But instead, he said nothing about Brett Kavanaugh or Nicholas John Roske. But Deputy Press Secretary Andrew Bates did send a dry statement to The Daily Wire and to Fox News.

Then at 1:22 p.m., Attorney General Merrick Garland did some damage control.

Among other things, Garland said,

Last month, I accelerated the protection of all the Justices’ residences 24/7.

That explains the two marshals, though it leaves out the measures the Governors of Virginia and Maryland have taken.

Senator Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) had plenty to say – about how the Senate unanimously passed a bill to augment protection of Justices and their families. But the House hasn’t yet voted on their bill.

And they still won’t!

In the meantime, the protests continue, as if nothing untoward has happened!

Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas) reminded everyone sharply that Democrats fanned the flames with their own rhetoric.

In March of 2020, Senator Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said:

I want to tell you Gorsuch, and I want to tell you Kavanaugh. You have released the whirlwind, and you will pay the price. You won’t know what hit you if you go forward with these awful decisions.

And today? Crickets.

But others said plenty – and maybe shouldn’t have.

The group “Ruth Sent Us” gives the prize example. Roske had already admitted he found the address of Brett Kavanaugh on a “Ruth Sent Us” landing page. So yesterday afternoon – after the arrest – they sent this tweetstorm:

That last is worse than telling. The tweet shows a poster, at the school Brett Kavanaugh’s daughters attend, advertising a crisis pregnancy center. Over it someone has taped two flyers. One shows this quote:

If men could get pregnant, abortions would be available at Jiffy Lube®.

You may or may not have heard people say that Betty “Sue Ann Nivens” White said that. She didn’t. No one knows who did.

The other flyer is the bad one: it shows pictures of the girls. And the group leaves this message specifically for them:

Leader McConnell and the GOP aren’t worried for your safety. They worry only for the expensive Supreme Court they rigged, and their own power.

Whiskey Tango Foxtrot! “Ruth Sent Us” helped make this trouble, by publishing the names and home addresses of Brett Kavanaugh and his colleagues. They owe him and his family an apology, and should take those addresses down immediately. Instead they tweet a photograph we have every reason to believe they set up, to threaten them. Mollie Hemingway calls them on it:

Other examples

Nor does the reaction stop with these cynical threats. Shortly after the arrest, someone said no one should care about Justice Kavanaugh’s safety.

One activist then copped to feeling a little schadenfreude. She thought better of it – then again, why mention it?

Someone suggested Brett Kavanaugh should hire an armed teacher as a bodyguard.

Tom Fitton and Tim Pool called these activists on their rhetoric, and that of Democratic officials.

Arguably the worst response came from CNN. CNN personality Whitney Wild questioned whether Roske even had a gun as he said. Then in the next sentence she seemed to call it a false-flag pseudo-operation from the right.

Meanwhile, this is now officially an FBI matter.

But had Congress passed the Senate Supreme Court protection bill, it might be a direct matter for the Marshal of the Court. That worthy might be more trustworthy than the FBI.

In any event, the Court is in conference today. Maybe they’ll declare another Opinion Issuance Day this upcoming Monday. Then we shall see.