Parkland father's moment with Brett Kavanaugh goes viral
The father of a high school student killed in the Parkland, Fla., gun massacre approached Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh at Tuesday’s confirmation hearing in Washington, D.C., his hand outstretched.
Fred Guttenberg introduced himself as the father of Jaime Guttenberg, who was a 14-year-old student at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School when she was killed on Feb. 14.
Kavanaugh, who was caught off guard as he headed for a break in his testimony, turned and was led away without shaking the other man’s hand.
Fred Guttenberg, father of Parkland victim, Jaime, tries to shakes hands with Brett Kavanaugh: “My daughter was murdered at Parkland.”
White House says an “unidentified individual approached” Kavanaugh, but “before the judge was able to shake his hand, security had intervened.” pic.twitter.com/IerpDMOW0h
— NBC News (@NBCNews) September 4, 2018
Shortly after the curt exchange, Guttenberg recounted the event in a tweet that within a few hours had 50,000 likes and 29,000 retweets.
Just walked up to Judge Kavanaugh as morning session ended. Put out my hand to introduce myself as Jaime Guttenberg’s dad. He pulled his hand back, turned his back to me and walked away. I guess he did not want to deal with the reality of gun violence.
— Fred Guttenberg (@fred_guttenberg) September 4, 2018
While debate over Kavanaugh’s confirmation has been focused on his views on abortion and on the president’s immunity from criminal charges, the judge’s views on guns have also come under scrutiny.
A strong Second Amendment advocate, Kavanaugh has said he would overturn laws in Washington, D.C., such as the ban on semiautomatic firearms. The gunman in the shooting, which killed 17 and wounded 14, used an AR-15 assault rifle.
Like many conservative groups, the National Rifle Association has given its backing to Kavanaugh.
#ScotusPick “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.” – @ChrisCoxNRA pic.twitter.com/SeC3bcjXVK
— NRA (@NRA) July 10, 2018
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