After Leading Pro-Kavanaugh Group Pauses Ads, People Wonder if They’re ‘Wavering’ on Nominee

Some of Brett Kavanaugh‘s most stalwart defenders appeared to be hedging their bets after a third woman, Julie Swetnick, came forward with disturbing allegations against the already embattled U.S. Supreme Court nominee. The Judicial Crisis Network (JCN) is the foremost group supporting Republican nominees to the nation’s federal court system at various levels, including the high court, and has so far led the charge in favor of Kavanaugh’s nomination and confirmation after his name was supplied to President Donald Trump by the Federalist Society’s Leonard Leo–who is also a co-founder of JCN.

On Wednesday, JCN’s chief counsel and policy director Carrie Severino was surprisingly non-committal about Kavanaugh’s prospects when pressed on the issue following the release of Swetnick’s sworn affidavit. During an interview on MSNBC, host Craig Melvin asked, “Should Judge Kavanaugh still be confirmed?” Severino refused to say yes or no.

While noting the Severino hedge, Open Secrets researcher Anna Massoglia reported that JCN had stopped running Facebook ads in support of their preferred Supreme Court nominee as of Tuesday. This was later confirmed by Campaign Legal Center’s Reform Program Director Brendan Fischer.

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