A law professor described Judge Thomas Hardiman, a candidate for the impending Supreme Court nomination, as a “Second Amendment extremist” for his originalist view of the Constitution, specifically regarding the Second Amendment.

Professor Adam Winkler at the University of California at Los Angeles School of Law argued that if Hardiman were confirmed, the Supreme Court would be more likely to take up cases challenging current firearm laws, lending the potential for those laws to be struck down. Consequently, with Hardiman on the Supreme Court, there would be more legal gun ownership in what are now heavily regulated states like California and Connecticut.

“He believes the government has very little leeway in regulating guns,” Winkler told The Washington Post. “He thinks the only type of gun-control laws that are constitutionally permissible are the ones that existed at the founding.”

Most notably, Hardiman wrote a 40-page dissent for Drake v. Filko where he argued the Second Amendment guarantees the right to carry a firearm in public “because the need for self-defense naturally exists both outside and inside the home, I would hold that the Second Amendment applies outside the home.”

During his tenure on the U.S. Court of Appeals, Kavanaugh wrote a strong dissenting opinion in opposition to Washington, D.C.’s ban on commonly owned semi-automatic firearms and registration requirement by applying an historical test consistent with Justice Scalia’s opinion in Heller.

“Judge Kavanaugh has demonstrated his clear belief that the Constitution should be applied as the Framers intended. To that end, he has supported the fundamental, individual right to self-defense embraced by Justice Scalia in the historic Heller decision. ”

“On behalf of our six million members, the NRA strongly supports Judge Brett Kavanaugh’s confirmation to the U.S. Supreme Court. We will be activating our members and tens of millions of supporters throughout the country in support of Judge Kavanaugh. He will protect our right to keep and bear arms and is an outstanding choice to fill Justice Kennedy’s seat,” concluded Cox.

johndoe3 wrote:...
BTW, the NRA came out today in support of Kavanaugh, citing the following...
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