a pro bono religious freedom case, representing a jewish synagogue in maryland. they won the case. vindicating the right of the congregation to build a place of worship in their neighborhood. let me just begin with this, before i begin, judge, i'd like to ask you to keep your answers concise as you can, so i can get to as many of them as time allows. some of my colleagues have suggested that president trump nominated you because he thought you'd rule in his favor, should certain issues come before the court. suppose you had a case involving president trump or an issue near and dear to the president. what assurances can you provide that you will not allow the president's personal views on a case or personal interest to impact your decision? >> senator, i'm an independent judge. for 12 years, i've been deciding cases based on the law and the