Trump attacked Ketanji Brown Jackson for being 'disrespectful' to GOP senators who 'nicely' asked questions at Supreme Court confirmation hearings

Advertisement
Trump attacked Ketanji Brown Jackson for being 'disrespectful' to GOP senators who 'nicely' asked questions at Supreme Court confirmation hearings
Former President Donald Trump, left, and Supreme Court nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson.Getty Images
  • Trump accused Ketanji Brown Jackson of being "disrespectful" to GOP senators at her confirmation hearings.
  • Trump said that Republican lawmakers asked Jackson questions "really nicely."
Advertisement

Former President Donald Trump criticized Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson for how she responded to Republican senators' questions during her Supreme Court confirmation hearings this week, the Independent reported.

Speaking at a rally in Commerce, Georgia, on Saturday, Trump claimed that President Joe Biden's first Supreme Court nominee responded to GOP lawmakers with "disdain" and "hatred" during four tense days of questioning.

"Judge Jackson was unbelievably disrespectful to Republican Senators that in many cases were really nicely asking questions," Trump said. "She had total disdain and even hatred for them."

If confirmed, Jackson would make history as the first Black woman on the Supreme Court.

Republican senators aggressively interrogated Jackson, leading to media outlets describing the hearings as "hyperpartisan," "poisonous," and "offensive."

Advertisement

On Wednesday, Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin had to intervene in a back-and-forth between Sen. Lindsey Graham and Jackson after the South Carolina Republican kept interrupting the judge as she answered questions, Insider reported.

Durbin also intervened during Sen. Ted Cruz's grilling of Jackson, banging the gavel and repeatedly asking him to follow the rules, after the Texas Republican pressed her on her sentencing of child pornography offenders and Critical Race Theory.

Sen. Josh Hawley also accused Jackson of "going soft" on child pornography offenders. Fact-checkers have deemed these allegations of leniency as misleading and say the criticism echoes conspiracy theories from QAnon.

During Trump's rally, he claimed that Jackson was "very proud" of previously ruling against him.

"I understand the fact that she's very proud of the fact that she never once voted to support President Trump on anything, she always voted against me, and she brags about it," he said. "'I always voted against Trump.' How about that? Is that nice?"

Advertisement

In November 2019, Jackson rejected claims that former White House counsel Donald McGahn could assert absolutely immunity from a subpoena to testify before the House of Representatives about Trump. The primary takeaway "from the past 250 years of recorded American history is that Presidents are not kings," Jackson wrote.

The Senate Judiciary Committee will vote on Jackson's nomination on April 4.

{{}}