one kavanaugh decision illustrates the point on check of presidential power directly. he wrote the opinion in homdon versus the united states, a case that challenged the bush administration's military commission, prosecution of an associate of osama bin laden. this conviction was very important to the bush administration but judge kavanaugh who had been appointed to the d.c. circuit by president bush and had worked in president bush's white house ruled that the conviction was unlawful. as he explained during the hearing, quote, we don't make decisions based on who people are or their policy preferences at the moment. we base decisions on the law.