Sen. Blunt says he’s a no vote on Ketanji Brown Jackson for Supreme Court
Sen. Roy Blunt on Sunday became the latest Republican to come out in opposition to Ketanji Brown Jackson’s nomination to the Supreme Court, saying he disagrees with her judicial stance.
“My sense is that the president certainly had every good intention and every, every right in the campaign to talk about putting the first black woman on the court. I think it’s time for that to happen,” the Missouri Republican said on ABC’s “This Week.” “I was hoping that I could be a part of that.”
But he said he found in conversations he had with Jackson on Capitol Hill last week that while the DC federal circuit court judge was “certainly qualified” and has a “great personality,” her judicial views gave him pause.
“The judicial philosophy seems to be not the philosophy of looking at what the law says and the Constitution says and applying that, but going through some method that allows you to try to look at the Constitution as a more flexible document and even the law, and there are cases that show that that’sher view,” Blunt said.
Still, the senator said he thinks she will “certainly” be confirmed and that it will be a “high point” for the country to see her elevated to the Supreme Court.
“But I don’t think she’s the kind of judge that will really do the kind of work that I think needs to be done by the court, and I won’t be supporting her. But I’ll be joining others and understanding the importance of this moment,” Blunt said.
While the Senate Judiciary Committee, which Blunt does not sit on, is expected to vote Monday on Jackson’s confirmation, the full Senate has yet to schedule a vote.
All 11 Democrats on the panel are expected to vote for her, while all 11 of Republicans are expected to oppose her.
So far, only one Republican, Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, has come out in support of Jackson.
Collins was one of three GOP senators who voted to confirm Jackson to the DC Circuit Court of Appeals last year, along with Sens. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska.
Graham, a member of the committee, said he would oppose her confirmation, but Murkowski hasn’t publicly said where she stands on the nomination.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell also said he is a no vote on Jackson.
Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), a member of the House Judiciary Committee, said she still has questions about Jackson, whom she famously asked to define what a “woman” is at the confirmation hearing.
“I have some serious concerns about how [Jackson] has had some rulings that are soft on child pornographers. She has allowed hardened criminals to be let go on compassionate release,” Blackburn told host John Catsimatidis on his WABC radio show.
“On top of that, she had difficulty answering questions about CRT, the impact of that on children, children choosing gender. … I’ve got some serious concerns about her going to the Supreme Court. That is a lifetime appointment,” she said.
CRT refers to critical race theory, or the idea that racism is embedded in such things as the court system and US policies.
With Collins’ backing, Democrats appear to have enough votes to confirm Jackson in the 50-50 divided chamber.
Biden nominated Jackson in February to replace Justice Stephen Breyer, who said he would be stepping down from the high court this summer.
Jackson would not alter the court’s 6-3 conservative majority.
