Senator Mitt Romney (R-Utah) announced that he will conduct a "much deeper dive" into Supreme Court nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson after opposing her appointment to the DC Court of appeals.
When asked about the tone and tempo of Jackson's hearing, Romney said he felt some of his Republican colleagues addressed respectful questions to Jackson.
Mitt Romney Appears To Back Ketanji Brown Jackson's Nomination
Romney voted against Ketanji Brown Jackson's appointment to the District of Columbia Court of Appeals during a Senate vote last year. Only three Republican senators voted in favor of Jackson: Lindsey Graham, Susan Collins, and Lisa Murkowski, according to The Hill.
Jackson will be confirmed to the Supreme Court without Republican support if every member of the Senate Democratic caucus votes in favor, which appears to be the case, and Vice President Kamala Harris breaks a tie. The Supreme Court nominee 's chances of receiving Republican support are unknown. If Democrats can secure GOP support, they will be able to portray the confirmation as a bipartisan victory.
During Jackson's confirmation hearings, Democrats stressed the historic aspect of her candidacy, pointing out that she would be the first Black woman to serve on the Supreme Court. Democrats have also claimed that her expertise and breadth would provide an important and distinct viewpoint to the Supreme Court.
Republicans, on the other hand, have criticized and raised alarm about Jackson's record, claiming that she is soft on crime and has been too lenient in sentencing child pornography cases, claims that the nominee and Democrats have refuted.
When Jackson appeared before the Senate last year, just three Republican senators voted in her favor. Because Collins and Murkowski are not members of the Senate Judiciary Committee, they were unable to question the candidate during the hearings.
Graham, a member of the Judiciary Committee, grilled the candidate with harsh and critical questions, appearing to indicate that he will not support her candidacy, as per CNN.
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Supreme Court Nominee Faces Questions About Sentencing Decisions
Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) pressed Jackson on her sentence judgments in instances involving sex offenders, accusing her of going against prosecutors' recommendations in cases he highlighted.
Mitt Romney appeared to leave open the prospect of supporting Jackson's candidacy even though she looks to have the necessary support in the form of Sen. Joe Manchin's (D-W.Va.) remark. He did not vote to confirm her to her present job, which he justified by stating that he needed to conduct into the study.
In 2020 and 2021, he voted to impeach former President Donald Trump, but he has consistently voted with his party on a wide range of issues, Daily Mail reported. Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., questioned Romney on Tuesday about a sentence Jackson gave in the case United States v. Hawkins, in which she sentenced the 18-year-old defendant to three months in jail.
The sentence was much less than the government's proposal of two years in jail and far less than the federal sentencing guideline of at least 97 months in prison. Other federal judges approved by Republicans have issued sentences that are lighter than the guidelines, Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee pointed out during the hearings. Senator Chris Coons, D-Del., estimated that more than 70% of federal judges are women.
According to the Washington Post, Romney was unimpressed by claims made by some of his Republican colleagues, which ignored critical context such as the fact that prosecutors suggested penalties that were lower than the recommendations.
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