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Live updates: Supreme Court nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson's confirmation hearings begin
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WASHINGTON – Less than a month after President Joe Biden introduced her as his Supreme Court nominee, Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson took her seat in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee on Monday for the first in what will be a whirlwind week of hearings.
Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Dick Durbin quickly noted the historic nature of Jackson’s nomination. She would be the first Black woman confirmed to the Supreme Court in its 233-year history.
“You, Judge Jackson, can be the first,” Durbin said, noting that being first isn’t always easy. “Today is a proud day for America.”
Hearings will last through Thursday, with introductions on Monday, and committee questioning taking up the following two days.
If confirmed, Jackson would be the 116th justice on the nation’s highest court. While Jackson’s confirmation wouldn’t change the ideological makeup of the court, her background as a former federal public defender and a member of the U.S. Sentencing Commission may have a big influence.
But first, Jackson, a judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, has to navigate the kind of politics jurists generally like to avoid. Monday’s hearing will be all talk and no questions, with senators – and Jackson herself – offering carefully scripted opening statements that may offer some clues about how the next few days will go.
Hearing preview:What to watch for in Ketanji Brown Jackson’s hearing
Grassley: Jackson hearing will be more respectful than Kavanaugh
Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, used his opening statement to set the GOP tone for how they plan to interrogate Jackson’s legal thinking and decision making.
The ranking Republican noted how this week’s hearings will be an “exhaustive examination” Jackson’s record and views, but will be much different than the raucous tone of the hearings that confirmed Justice Brett Kavanaugh in 2018.
“We won’t try to turn this into a spectacle based on alleged process fouls,” Grassley said. “On that front, we’re off to a good start. Unlike the start to the Kavanaugh hearings, we didn’t have repeated, choreographed interruptions of Chairman Durbin during his opening statement like Democrats interrupted me for more than an hour during my opening statement at the Kavanaugh hearing.”
Grassley said since Biden announced her as his nominee for the Supreme Court, he encouraged his GOP colleagues to schedule meetings with her. He said Republicans will be asking tough questions about Jackson’s judicial philosophy, and the role judges should play in U.S. society, as Republicans are expected to discuss rising violent crime and adding justices to the high court.
“I’ve continually emphasized the need for a thorough, respectful process,” Grassley said.
– Phillip M. Bailey
Durbin defends Jackson on crime
Durbin defended Jackson against charges that have emerged from Republicans in recent days that she has handed down sentences in child pornography possession cases below U.S. Sentencing Guidelines.
“These baseless charges are unfair,” Durbin said. “They fly in the face of pledges my colleagues made that they would approach your nomination with civility and respect.”
Some Republican senators have noted that Jackson has sentenced defendants on the charges below the guidelines. But others – including some conservatives – have noted that many judges regularly sentence below the guidelines. Several independent fact check organizations have found that the claims are missing important context.
– John Fritze
Who is Jackson?: Supreme Court pick Ketanji Brown Jackson in her own words
Durbin: Jackson not a ‘rubber stamp’ for president
Sen. Dick Durbin, the Democratic chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, had a message for the critics of Supreme Court nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson: check the record.
Durbin said during opening remarks that Jackson would not be a “rubber stamp” for the president who is nominating her to the high court, pointing to thousands of pages of transcripts and hundreds of opinions the committee has reviewed during her previous confirmations to other posts.
“You’ve been faithful to the law not to any person,” he said.
– Rick Rouan
Senators settle in for hearing
The other 21 members of the Senate Judiciary Committee are listening as Chairman Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois makes his opening remarks.
Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff glanced over the press and turned to look at Judge Jackson as Durbin spoke, while Republican Sen. Tom Cotton of Arkansas bent over a piece of paper, taking notes.
– Dylan Wells
First GOP criticism from Blackburn
Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., offered a preview of the kind of criticism Republicans are likely to deliver.
“While I’m concerned that you don’t take seriously the rights of parents to choose what’s best for their children, you’ve consistently called for greater freedoms for hardened criminals,” Blackburn will say, according to excerpts of her opening statements.
Blackburn will also raise the issue of child pornography sentencing, which has emerged as a GOP taking point in recent days. Some Republican senators have said that Jackson has sentenced defendants with child pornography possession charges below the guidelines set out by the U.S. Sentencing Commission. But others – including some conservatives – have noted that many judges regularly sentence below the guidelines.
– John Fritze
‘Sherpa’ Doug Jones, guests file into hearing room
Ahead of the start of the first Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, guests are beginning to file into the room.
Former Democratic Sen. Doug Jones of Alabama, the Supreme Court sherpa guiding Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson around the Hill, has arrived ahead of the hearing.
Jones could be seen speaking to Democratic Illinois Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton, a guest of Senate Judiciary Chair Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois.
– Dylan Wells
A guide on Capitol Hil:Former Alabama Senator Doug Jones tapped as ‘sherpa’ for Biden’s Supreme Court nominee
‘KBJ, every day’
Supporters and opponents of Jackson’s confirmation have gathered outside the Supreme Court, according to several media accounts.
Chants of “Every day, KBJ” could be heard outside the court, Max Cohen of Punchbowl News tweeted.
Kimberly Robinson, a Supreme Court reporter with Bloomberg Law, tweeted a photograph that showed several dozen “protestors or and against Judge Jackson” outside the court.
The justices are hearing arguments in two cases Monday.
– John Fritze
Sentencing:Supreme Court pick Jackson could have ‘profound’ impact on sentencing
Jackson’s intro a signal to GOP
In the carefully choreographed presentation of Jackson to the Senate Judiciary Committee, even introductions matter.
And in this case, at least one of the people introducing the judge is intended to send a signal to the GOP.
Jackson will be introduced by two people: Lisa Fairfax, a law professor at the University of Pennsylvania, and former U.S. Circuit Judge Thomas Griffith. Fairfax is longtime friend and Harvard classmate of Jackson’s who will speak to her character.
Griffith is perhaps a less expected choice. A former judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, Griffith was nominated by President George W. Bush, a Republican. And so the message Jackson’s supporters hope to send is clear: She may be President Joe Biden’s nominee, but she has support from across the spectrum of judicial ideologies.
Griffith was also involved in one of the cases Republicans most often cite to criticize Jackson: A decision in which she ruled that President Donald Trump’s White House counsel, Don McGahn, was required to testify before a congressional committee that was at the time exploring impeachment. Griffith was one of two judges on a three-judge panel that overturned Jackson’s ruling in that case.
Griffith noted the disagreement in a letter supporting Jackson last month.
“However, I have always respected her careful approach, extraordinary judicial understanding, and collegial manner, three indispensable traits for success as a Justice on the Supreme Court,” Griffith wrote.
– John Fritze
Supreme Court nomination highlights lack of Black women in Senate
When Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson begins her confirmation as the first Black woman nominated for the U.S. Supreme Court, she won’t face questions from anyone who looks like her.
– Dylan Wells
Who sits on the Senate Judiciary Committee?
The Senate Judiciary Committee that presides over Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson’s confirmation hearings for the U.S. Supreme Court is split evenly with 11 Democrats and 11 Republicans.
Members include a handful of former presidential candidates and firebrands from both sides of the aisle who this week will question Jackson, the first Black woman nominated for the court.
The members of the committee are:
- Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Il., chair
- Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, ranking member
- Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt.
- Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif.
- Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I.
- Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn.
- Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del.
- Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn.
- Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii
- Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J.
- Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Calif.
- Sen. Jon Ossoff, D-Ga.
- Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C.
- Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas
- Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah
- Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas
- Sen. Ben Sasse, R-Neb.
- Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo.
- Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark.
- Sen. John Kennedy, R-La.
- Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C.
- Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn.
– Rick Rouan
Poll: Majority of Americans support Jackson
A majority of Americans believe Jackson should be confirmed to the Supreme Court, but nearly half don’t know enough about her to assess her qualifications, according to a Monmouth University Poll released on Monday.
More than two-thirds of Americans feel it is important for the high court to reflect the nation’s diversity, the Monmouth poll found. About 2 in 10 believe that having a Black woman on the court will have a real impact on how cases are decided.
The results are consistent with other polling since President Joe Biden announced Jackson as his nominee about a month ago. Just more than half of voters in a Wall Street Journal poll earlier this month said the Senate should confirm Jackson to the court. About a third said they are opposed. Just under 20% said they had no opinion or didn’t know.
– John Fritze
Profile:Who is Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson? For starters, she clerked for Breyer
What does bipartisanship look like?
When the Senate confirmed Associate Justice Stephen Breyer in 1994, the vote was 87 to 9, with more than two dozen Republicans backing President Bill Clinton’s nominee.
How times – and politics – have changed.
Breyer, who is retiring this year, was the last Supreme Court nominee from a president of either party to win substantial bipartisan support. These days, a bipartisan confirmation means a nominee is lucky to pick up three or four senators from the other party.
When Associate Justice Samuel Alito came along a dozen years later, the vote was far more narrow, 58-42, with only four Democrats breaking ranks. He was nominated by President George W. Bush. Associate Justice Sonia Sotomayor did slightly better in 2009, picking up nine Republicans. Associate Justice Elena Kagan, arguably one of the least controversial nominees in modern times, pulled in five GOP votes. Sotomayor and Kagan were both Obama appointees.
And then came President Donald Trump, whose three nominees were cleared on very thin margins. Associate Justice Neil Gorsuch got three Democrats; Associate Justice Brett Kavanaugh received one Democratic vote – West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin – and Associate Justice Amy Coney Barrett became the first justice since the 19th Century to win confirmation without a single vote from the party opposing the president.
What does this mean for Jackson? There’s little reason to think the trend will change: In the current political landscape, Biden will be able to claim victory – and the mantle of bipartisanship – if only two or three Republicans wind up supporting her. If recent history is any guide, that’s about the best she can hope for.
– John Fritze
Who is Ketanji Brown Jackson?
Biden’s decision to nominate Jackson for a lifetime appointment to the Supreme Court wasn’t much of a surprise. In many ways, she was the safest bet.
That’s because Jackson, who Biden nominated to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit last year, has already been confirmed three times before. The Miami native and Harvard-educated lawyer had formerly served as a U.S. District Court judge and on the U.S. Sentencing Commission. Both of those jobs required Senate approval.
Jackson, 51, clerked for the man she would replace, Associate Justice Stephen Breyer. And President Barack Obama not only nominated her to the federal bench in 2012 but he considered nominating her to the Supreme Court back in 2016.
Bio:What to know about Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson, Biden’s Supreme Court pick
Religion:Jackson would add another Protestant voice to Supreme Court
Jackson has served on the D.C. Circuit since June and so has written only three opinions there. Of her two majority opinions, one dealt with whether a defense contractor could sue Iraq. In the other, Jackson wrote for a unanimous court that sided with federal unions in a dispute over labor negotiations.
But she has a deep record from the federal trial court, writing hundreds of opinions. In her most often-cited decision, Jackson ruled in 2019 that President Donald Trump’s former White House counsel, Don McGahn, had to testify as part of a congressional impeachment inquiry. But she’s also crafted opinions that sided with the Trump administration, including on immigration and his border wall.
– John Fritze, Kevin McCoy, Nick Penzenstadler
A look at Ketanji Brown Jackson’s family
Growing up in a largely Jewish community in South Miami, Florida, Jackson, who is Protestant, was a nationally ranked orator on her high school speech and debate team. At Harvard, actor Matt Damon was one of her scene partners in a drama course. But it was another relationship she developed at Harvard that would shape her life.
She and her husband, Dr. Patrick Jackson, met as Harvard undergraduates. They married later, as she went to Harvard Law School and he went to Columbia University’s College of Physicians and Surgeons. Patrick Jackson is now a surgeon on staff at MedStar Georgetown University Hospital in Washington, D.C.
Jackson and her husband have two daughters, Talia, a college student, and Leila, a high schooler. After Associate Justice Antonin Scalia died in 2016, Leila Jackson, then in middle school, wrote a letter asking Obama to consider her mother as Scalia’s successor.
“She’s determined, honest and never breaks a promise,” Leila wrote, “even if there were other things she’d rather do.”
– John Fritze, Kevin McCoy, Nick Penzenstadler
Agenda for Jackson’s hearing
The Senate Judiciary Committee, evenly divided between Democrats and Republicans, will hold four days of hearings to consider Jackson for the Supreme Court, which is consistent with past nominees in modern times.
Starting at 11 a.m. ET Monday, the first day’s hearing will be like an appetizer, with committee members delivering 10-minute opening statements. Jackson will also get 10 minutes to give an opening pitch to the senators. The statements will likely offer some clues about the lines of questioning Democrats and Republicans will pursue.
The main event begins on Tuesday, when members of the committee will each get 30 minutes, in order of seniority, to question Jackson. The questioning will continue Wednesday with another round, with each senator receiving 20 minutes.
The final day of hearings, Thursday, will be an opportunity for outside groups and experts, such as the American Bar Association, to offer their thoughts on Jackson.
– John Fritze
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Travel
Razzies royally torch 'Diana' musical and 'Space Jam 2,' show love to Oscar favorite Will Smith
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In its proclamation of the worst films of 2021, the Razzies lambasted a critically reviled Princess Diana musical and LeBron James’ “Space Jam” sequel, but spread love instead of hate for Will Smith.
The Golden Raspberry Awards, annually announced the day before the Academy Awards, bestowed five dishonors on Netflix’s “Diana: The Musical,” a filmed production of the recent Broadway show that closed after 33 performances. “Diana” beat out “Infinite,” “Karen,” “Space Jam: A New Legacy” and “The Woman in the Window” for worst picture, plus picked up worst screenplay and worst actress for star Jeanna de Waal.
“New Legacy,” the live-action/animated hybrid basketball comedy featuring James hooping it up with Bugs Bunny and Co., earned three Razzie awards. James was named worst actor and also was saddled with worst screen couple – which went to James and “Any Warner Cartoon Character (or WarnerMedia Product) He Dribbles On” – while the movie snagged worst sequel.
How to watch the 2022 Oscars:Everything you should know about Sunday’s Academy Awards
“House of Gucci” star Jared Leto lost his Screen Actors Guild race for best supporting actor but nabbed the Razzie for worst. And Bruce Willis does so many VOD movies now that he received his own special category (worst performance by Bruce Willis in a 2021 movie) that, to no one’s surprise, he won – for “Cosmic Sin.”
Smith, who’s expected to win the best actor Oscar Sunday for “King Richard,” received this year’s Razzie Redeemer Award for previous Razzie honorees who’ve come back with quality efforts. Recent winners include Ben Affleck, Sylvester Stallone, Melissa McCarthy and Eddie Murphy.
The full list of this year’s Razzie “winners”:
Worst picture: “Diana: The Musical”
Worst actor: LeBron James, “Space Jam: A New Legacy”
Worst actress: Jeanna de Waal, “Diana: The Musical”
Worst supporting actress: Judy Kaye, “Diana: The Musical”
Worst supporting actor: Jared Leto, “House of Gucci”
Worst performance by Bruce Willis in a 2021 movie: Bruce Willis, “Cosmic Sin”
Worst screen couple: LeBron James and Any Warner Cartoon Character
(or WarnerMedia Product) He Dribbles On, “Space Jam: A New Legacy”
Worst remake, rip-off or sequel: “Space Jam: A New Legacy”
Worst director: Christopher Ashley, “Diana: The Musical”
Worst screenplay: “Diana: The Musical”
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Business
As more marijuana dispensaries get targeted by robbers, SAFE Banking Act lingers in Congress
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A bill that could allow electronic transactions at weed dispensaries nationwide is again make its way through Congress but the SAFE Banking Act might not be the cure-all that supporters envision.
In over a decade of operating cannabis shops in Washington, Shea Hynes never once worried about his stores getting robbed at gun point – until recently: In a span of three weeks, his stores were robbed three different times at gun point.
Reports of armed robberies at cannabis dispensaries like Hynes’ have nearly doubled in the first quarter of this year compared with all of last year, according to data maintained by the Craft Cannabis Coalition. The group, which represents more than 50 stores in Washington, has recorded more than 65 armed robberies so far this year, compared with 35 in 2021 and 29 in 2020.
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CHICAGO — In a ridiculous coincidence, the Saint Peter’s Peacocks wrote NCAA Tournament history on National Peacock Day with a thrilling upset of Purdue.
The mid-major became the first-ever No. 15 seed to reach the Elite Eight, outdoing previous No. 15 seeds Oral Roberts (2021) and Florida Gulf Coast (2013). Exactly 0.8% of people picked the Peacocks to get this far, with the school from Jersey City, New Jersey, defying all odds. Is Saint Peter’s the best Cinderella of all time?
Meanwhile, the ACC is sitting pretty with three teams – Duke and now North Carolina and Miami (Fla.) – in the Elite Eight on the same day the Big Ten saw its last team go down.
A look at three key takeaways from Friday:
Saint Peter’s writes NCAA history
Coach Shaheen Holloway has this team playing inspired basketball, and now the Peacocks (22-11) are just one win from the Final Four. The best Cinderellas of the last two decades to reach Final Fours – George Mason in 2006, VCU in 2011, Loyola-Chicago (2018) all were double-digit seeded mid-majors. But none was as highly seeded as this Saint Peter’s team that’s now beaten No. 2 seed Kentucky, No. 7 Murray State and No. 3 Purdue.
WINNERS, LOSERS:Poised Saint Peter’s keeps the dream alive; bye-bye, Big Ten; hello, ACC
OPINION:Saint Peter’s embodies wackiness and uncertainty of this NCAA Tournament
ANALYSIS:Purdue’s loss leaves Big Ten shut out of Elite Eight. We could see this coming.
MORE:Legendary Arkansas coach Nolan Richardson: Coach K’s farewell tour ends Saturday
OPINION:Houston is leaving Phi Slama Jama in the 1980s for good
While other bracket-busting NCAA Tournament darlings of yesteryear have had flair (FGCU’s “Dunk City”) or a lovable fan (Loyola’s Sister Jean), this team from the MAAC is doing it with defense, namely with nine steals. In spite of being undersized against the Boilermakers, the Peacocks used aggressiveness and hustle to outduel their seemingly superior opponent behind 6-8 freshman Clarence Rubert and 6-7 junior Hassan Drame. Daryl Banks III (14 points) is the go-to scorer for Saint Peter’s, but Mr. Clutch has been guard Doug Edert (10 points) off the bench. One stat to note: a 19-for-21 clip from the free-throw line. What’s been most impressive is the Peacocks’ ability to stay hungry and poised under pressure, winning close games in all three NCAA Tournament matchups.
Blue-bloods show title potential
Duke and Villanova advanced on Thursday, and fellow blue-bloods Kansas and North Carolina will now join them in the Elite Eight. And yes, if both the Blue Devils and Tar Heels win Sunday, we could see them meet in the Final Four.
Ever since North Carolina embarrassed Duke in coach Mike Krzyzewski’s final home game at Cameron Indoor Stadium, the Heels have been red-hot – knocking out No. 1 Baylor in the previous game in overtime. That continued against a UCLA team that reached the Final Four last year and seemed destined to get back. Caleb Love was brilliant again, finishing with 30 points off six three-pointers. Armando Bacot’s tip-in with 22 seconds left sealed the win in another impressive outing for coach Hubert Davis’ resilient team.
The last remaining No. 1 in the NCAA Tournament, Kansas stayed alive, escaping Providence by five points. It’s coach Bill Self’s ninth trip to the Elite Eight with Kansas and 11th of his career, as the Jayhawks (31-6) are one win from the Final Four. They’ve now won eight in a row and are looking like a title contender after entering the NCAA Tourney having won the Big 12 tournament.
The secret weapon for Kansas has been guard Remy Martin. For the third consecutive tournament game, Kansas got a jolt off the bench from the fiery Martin (23 points), the Arizona State transfer who has erupted in these NCAAs after playing a reserve role throughout 2021-22.
ACC > Big Ten
Despite garnering nine NCAA Tournament bids on Selection Sunday – the most of any conference – the Big Ten is out following Purdue’s stunning exit vs. Saint Peter’s. The league tanked in the first two rounds, with No. 5 Iowa – the conference tourney champ – getting upset by Richmond in the first round. No. 3 Wisconsin, No. 4 Illinois, No. 7 Michigan State and No. 7 Ohio State all lost in the second round. And now, with Michigan’s loss to Villanova, the overall underachievement is on full display. That’s a 9-9 finish in the tournament.
No Big Ten team has cut down the nets since 2000 (the Spartans), and it’s a depressing outlook for the league that posted the second-best NET score in 2021-22 and showcased several teams with Final Four potential.
The ACC, which finished with the sixth-worst NET score as a league, has Duke, North Carolina and Miami all in the Elite Eight. That’s after the Tar Heels, Hurricanes and Notre Dame were all bubble teams in early March. The NCAA Tournament is about matchups and pathways. No matter how well the Big Ten did in the regular season, much like the Pac-12’s surprising finish last year, the ACC is well-positioned with three teams still alive and two of them title contenders.
Follow college basketball reporter Scott Gleeson on Twitter @ScottMGleeson.
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