A notable conservative judicial activist urges Republicans to compare how advocates present Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson with the high court candidate’s “real record,” ahead of next week’s Senate Judiciary Committee proceedings.
President Joe Biden is “seeking to replace a centrist liberal justice with a radical liberal justice,” Judicial Crisis Network President Carrie Severino stated.
I sought a nominee for the Supreme Court with exceptional credentials, unimpeachable character, and an unwavering dedication to the rule of law. Meet my nominee, Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson. pic.twitter.com/OndIJaGE74
— President Biden (@POTUS) March 7, 2022
A Living Constitution
Following Jackson’s nomination last year to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, Severino addressed Texas Sen. Ted Cruz’s line of inquiry on a “living Constitution.”
This is the concept the Constitution may change and have relevance beyond its original language.
The thing about Justice Thomas though is that he's a true constitutionalist, and he's fearless in defending the Constitution. Bullying tactics don’t work against him.
That's why he's a national treasure. /6https://t.co/fF3ZQoCZo5
— Carrie Severino (@JCNSeverino) March 12, 2022
In her prior tenure as a district judge, Jackson noted she had no cases that “forced” her to establish an opinion on “constitutional reading of a text in the manner the Supreme Court has talked about tools of translation.”
Severino added, “That, to me, is a pretty worrisome answer for a person who has been on the federal court for eight years as a life-tenured federal judge.”
Interestingly, Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham and Democrat Rep. Jim Clyburn earlier endorsed South Carolina federal Judge Michelle Childs as Biden’s Supreme Court choice.
This is despite her having previously said “no” to a question about whether the Constitution is alive.
Nearly all the Republican senators on the panel backed Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell’s commitment to evaluating Jackson’s “judicial ideology” before her hearings on March 21.
To show bipartisan support, the White House highlighted numerous famous retired conservative judges who have endorsed the Biden administration’s appointment of Jackson.
A letter signed by 59 former US attorneys and Justice Department officials, lauding Jackson’s skills as a defense lawyer and her “deep grasp of our criminal justice system” was addressed to Senate Committee Chairman Dick Durbin on Wednesday.
The Democrats
“At the end of the day, they want to be capable of following the Democrat line and doing a number of these things,” Severino said of moderate Democrats like West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin and Arizona Sen. Kyrsten Sinema opposing Biden’s high court pick.
The party’s small 50-50 Senate majority with the vice president’s tie-breaking vote and Jackson’s position on the nine-member court wouldn’t affect the current 6-3 conservative supermajority, as both are known to Republicans.
According to a Senate Judiciary Committee inquiry, the D.C. Circuit overturned ten of Jackson’s 578 rulings as a judge of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.
“It overwhelmingly reversed her order, stating she lacked jurisdiction,” Severino said. “One of the court’s most liberal judges, Judge Sri Srinivasan, was on that panel.”
Severino said ahead of Jackson’s Senate hearings, “I think it’s going to be a problem to maintain focus on what part of this is spin and what portion of this has facts behind it.”
No matter the narrative that is being pushed, the fact remains that ample qualifications must be considered for the position.
