美國最高法院大法官人選卡瓦諾參加參議院確認聽證

U.S. Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh goes before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday as it begins confirmation hearings that President Donald Trump hopes will lead to a solid conservative majority on the nation's highest court.

On Wednesday, Kavanaugh is due to face direct questioning on a range of issues, including his stance on abortion, gay rights and presidential power.

In advance text of his opening remarks released by the White House, Kavanaugh says, " A good judge must be an umpire—a neutral and impartial arbiter who favors no litigant or policy."

The White House is hoping the full Senate will confirm the 53-year-old Kavanaugh to the nine-member court in September, in time for him to fill the vacancy left by the retirement of Justice Anthony Kennedy when the court opens a new term on October 1.

However, Democrats have vowed to fight Kavanaugh’s nomination from the start, fearing his lifetime appointment could ensure a strongly conservative court for a generation.美國總統特朗普提名的最高法院大法官佈雷特·卡瓦諾星期二開始接受美國參議院司法委員會的確認聽證。特朗普總統希望，這次確認聽證的結果將確保美國最高法院的保守派佔多數。

卡瓦諾星期三將直接接受司法委員會成員尖銳問詢，包括他在墮胎、同性戀權益以及總統權力等問題上的立場。

據白宮發佈的卡瓦諾開場陳述節選內容，他保證要成爲一個客觀、維護法律的法官。

白宮希望，參議院能在9月全票通過對現年53歲的卡瓦諾的提名確認，以便在10月1日最高法院新工作期開始之前，及時填補大法官安東尼·肯尼迪退休留下的空缺。

不過，民主黨議員從一開始就誓言反對這一提名，他們擔心卡瓦諾的這一終身任職會讓非常保守的法院延續一代人。