Jackson is expected to confirm this weekend after committee fell into a partisan stalemate

Jackson nominated

The Senate Judiciary Committee is deadlocked 11-11 after it nominates Ketanji Brown Jackson to succeed Justice Stephen Breyer, who plans to retire from the Supreme Court this summer.Despite Monday’s tie, Jackson’s nomination can still make it to the Senate using a process called a discharge application And put Jackson’s nomination on the calendar by a simple majority vote. Once there, Democrats hope to confirm Jackson before the Easter recess of the Senate this weekend.

Three Republicans — Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, and Sen. Mitt Romney of Utah — announced they would vote for Jackson, This actually secures her confirmation.

After four days of contentious hearings before the Judiciary Committee last month, the committee reconvened on Monday to put the final touches on Jackson’s case. nominateThe vote came after more than three hours of speeches by committee members outlining their support or disapproval. Some Republicans have applauded Jackson’s criticism, with Utah Sen. Mike Lee describing her as “impressive credentials,” and Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, who overlapped Jackson at Harvard Law School, saying she “” Charming” and “talented” and noted that he “personally has always liked her”. But they attacked what Senator Charles Grassley of Iowa called her “lax approach to criminal law and sentencing,” especially when it comes to sentencing defendants convicted of child pornography.

Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley dismissed the argument that Jackson and other federal judges handed sentences lower than those recommended by federal sentencing guidelines, which are outdated. For example, the guidelines call for heavier sentences for defendants who use a computer to view child sexual abuse images, but many experts believe that in the digital age, enhancements associated with computer use are no longer a reliable measure of the relative seriousness of a crime.

Republicans also complained about Democrats’ past and present treatment of conservative judicial nominees. South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham lamented that Jackson was the first black woman to be nominated to the Supreme Court simply because Democrats blocked when President George W. Bush nominated her to the U.S. California Supreme Court Justice Janice Rogers Brown. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. Two years later, Brown was finally confirmed to the Washington, D.C. Circuit, where she served for 12 years before stepping down in 2017; neither President Bush nor President Donald Trump nominated her for the Supreme Court vacancy that arose during their tenures . Graham warned that if Republicans regained control of the Senate, people like Jackson “wouldn’t be in front of this committee.” “You’ll have gentler people than that,” Graham added.

Democrats countered by highlighting Jackson’s credentials and the historic nature of her nomination. Connecticut Sen. Richard Blumenthal called Jackson’s nomination a “joyful and historic moment for the whole of America” ??and argued that having Jackson on the field would make it “look more American and think more American.” Blumenthal said he was “excited” and “proud” of the nomination, but also “sad” over the party’s divisions over the “very qualified nominee.”

Senator Mazie Hirono of Hawaii countered Republicans’ downplaying of Jackson, describing him as a “mainstream judge” whose verdicts are in line with those of judges across the country nominated by presidents of both parties.

Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey — who cited Festivus, the fictional Seinfeld holiday “voice of grievance” to describe Republicans’ complaints about historical errors — pointed to two major law enforcement groups, the Police Brothers. Council and the International Association of Chiefs of Police – support Jackson’s nomination. Booker pointed out that calling Jackson a criminal extremist means the FOP is weak on crime.

The committee postponed the vote until Monday afternoon after Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Calif., was delayed back to Washington after a passenger on the flight had a medical emergency, causing the flight to stop in the week Return to Los Angeles in the evening. When the committee finally voted, all 11 Democrats voted for Jackson, while all 11 Republicans voted against.

this article is Originally Posted on Howe on the Court.