Conservative group spending $$$$$$ for judge...

Conservative group drops another $1.4 million to confirm Kavanaugh

By BURGESS EVERETT

The conservative Judicial Crisis Network is dropping another $1.4 million on ads to help Brett Kavanaugh get confirmed to the Supreme Court.

The group's ad buy this week will bring its total spending to $3.8 million, according to an official familiar with the efforts. The latest batch of ads will target four Democratic senators from conservative states on national cable and broadcast networks in their home markets: Joe Manchin of West Virginia, Joe Donnelly of Indiana, Heidi Heitkamp of North Dakota and Doug Jones of Alabama.

Manchin, Heitkamp and Donnelly voted for Justice Neil Gorsuch last year; Jones was not yet in the Senate.

The Judicial Crisis Network is engaged in a pressure campaign for the votes of moderate Democrats with Demand Justice, a liberal group that's pledged $5 million to block Kavanaugh. Demand Justice launched ads last week asking centrist Democrats to stand up to Kavanaugh on the basis of preserving health care protections.

But those senators are under immense pressure from the right to support Trump's nominee. Manchin, Heitkamp and Donnelly are all up for reelection this year, while Jones will be up in 2020. A floor vote is expected just weeks before the midterms.

“Red state Democrats have a choice to make — stand with Sen. Schumer and the far-left-wing resistance, or vote to confirm a highly-qualified mainstream judge who has a record of being fair, independent, and adhering to the Constitution. The choice is simple," said Carrie Severino, Judicial Crisis Network's chief counsel.

The new ad uses b-roll of Kavanaugh's recent visits to the Capitol, including to meet with Senate Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and Sen. Johnny Isakson (R-Ga.). The spot uses Kavanaugh's own remarks at the White House when President Donald Trump introduced him, emphasizing the judge's pledge to be "independent" and keep an "open mind" as a Supreme Court justice. A narrator says "for conservatives, [Kavanaugh's] a grand slam."