Editor’s Note: The opinion piece below was written by Yarmouth resident Sarah Day, who formerly worked in the White House. The piece was published on centralmaine.com on Sept. 10, 2018, before Dr. Christine Blasey Ford’s allegations came to light and was referenced by Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh on Thursday in his written testimony:

“Throughout my life, I’ve devoted huge efforts to encouraging and promoting the careers of women. I will put my record up against anyone’s, male or female. I am proud of the letter from 84 women — 84 women — who worked with me at the Bush White House from 2001 to 2006, and described me as, quote, “a man of the highest integrity.”

Read the op-ed from Sarah Day  from Yarmouth, Maine. She worked in Oval Office operations, outside of President Bush’s office. Here’s what she recently wrote in centralmaine.com, and today she stands by her comments.

Quote, “Brett was an advocate for young women like me. He encouraged me to take on more responsibility and to feel confident in my role. In fact, during the 2004 Republican National Convention, Brett gave me the opportunity to help with the preparation and review of the president’s remarks, something I never … something I never would have had the chance to do if he had not included me. And he didn’t just include me in the work. He made sure I was at Madison Square Garden to watch the president’s speech, instead of back at the hotel, watching it on TV.” End quote.”

Day’s op-ed is published below:

 

Since his nomination to the Supreme Court in July, much has been said about Brett Kavanaugh. Much has been written and discussed about his record as a judge, but little has been said about who he is as a person.

Brett Kavanaugh is smart, funny and kind. He is generous with his time, compassionate towards others, diligent in his work, and the kind of person you hope will advance to the highest levels of his profession. I know this from personal experience, because Brett was my co-worker from 2002 to 2006 at the White House.

When you work at the White House, you put in a lot of hours. And so I got to spend a great deal of time with Brett; he was just Brett then, not Judge Kavanaugh. He was the staff secretary and I was a staff assistant in Oval Office Operations, working directly for President George W. Bush. I saw Brett every day as he oversaw the paperwork going to and coming from the president.

Here is what else I saw — I saw a man who was meticulous and engaged with the work he was doing. I saw someone with a deep reverence for the presidency and our government. I also saw a man who loved the law. Any free moment he had was devoted to reading the latest news and rulings from the legal community, usually with a Diet Coke in hand.

Brett was also an advocate for young women like me. He encouraged me to take on more responsibility and to feel confident in my role. In fact, during the 2004 Republican National Convention, Brett gave me the opportunity to help with the preparation and review of the president’s remarks, something I never would have had the chance to do if he had not included me. And he didn’t just include me in the work — he made sure that I was at Madison Square Garden to watch the president’s speech, instead of back at the hotel watching on TV.

While I’m thankful to Brett for his professional support, I am more thankful for his friendship. In 2004, my mother passed away after having cancer for two years. I had been back and forth to see her and had been dealing with the stress of her various operations and medication changes since almost the beginning of my time at the White House. Both Brett and his wife Ashley reached out to me each step of the way to offer their encouragement and prayers. Their thoughts of and for me amid their very busy lives were such a blessing. I will never forget their gentle and sincere concern.

I can’t speak to Judge Kavanaugh’s judicial philosophy, his respect for precedent or his legal qualifications.

I can, however, speak to Brett Kavanaugh’s character. He is a thoughtful leader, a champion of others, and exactly the type of person you hope would be nominated to the position of associate justice. I encourage our senators to vote in support of his nomination this fall.

Sarah Day is a former White House staff member. She lives in Yarmouth with her husband and two children.

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