We’re off to the races with Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson’s confirmation hearings, where the worst of the worst Republicans senators (why do they all have to be on this committee?) will prove their reputations. Today all 22 members of the Senate Judiciary Committee—11 Democrats and 11 Republicans—will make their five [sob] ten-minute opening statements.
Jackson will be introduced by retired Judge Thomas Griffith, a conservative George W. Bush nominee who served on the D.C. Circuit, and Lisa Fairfax, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School and a lifelong friend of Jackson’s. Then Jackson makes her opening statement. Questions will be in Tuesday’s hearing, outside witnesses Wednesday.
You can stream the hearing from the committee site or major cable news site, C-SPAN, or PBS.
Monday, Mar 21, 2022 · 3:05:38 PM +00:00 · Joan McCarter
Chair Dick Durbin gavels in the hearing. Sen. Marsha Blackburn already showed how awful she’s going to be, with a video about her upcoming questions, including Griswold (do we have the right to use birth control) and the decision that upheld the Affordable Care Act.
Monday, Mar 21, 2022 · 3:14:42 PM +00:00 · Joan McCarter
Durbin reminding Republicans as well that KBJ is one of the most examined nominees before them, having been through 4 other Senate confirmations. He’s rebutting the main complaints from Rs—Grassley on not having enough info, McConnell on how the “dark money” groups are behind her, the “soft on crime” dogwhistles.
Monday, Mar 21, 2022 · 3:17:52 PM +00:00 · Joan McCarter
Now Grassley. He’s setting out what Rs are going to do—thorough, exhaustive examination. Won’t try to turn it into a spectacle. Right. Now bitching about Kavanaugh hearings and how Dems were mean to him in his opening statement.
Monday, Mar 21, 2022 · 3:27:40 PM +00:00 · Joan McCarter
Grassley still complaining that they didn’t get every scrap of paper from when she was on the Sentencing Commission. That was his ploy to delay the hearings. Like we’ll forget the thousands of Kavanaugh docs that were withheld by the former guy. And the non-existent FBI investigation of his alleged sexual abuse of several women.
Monday, Mar 21, 2022 · 3:40:07 PM +00:00 · Joan McCarter
Leahy: “Judge Jackson, with your presence here today, you are writing a new page in the history of America—a good page.” I do hope that these Democrats won’t dance around the edges of Republican racism, that they won’t allow the supposed tradition of comity and respect of the hearing room to slap them down. They’re going to need to be tough and unified on this, and not do what they usually do—grandstand for the cameras.
Monday, Mar 21, 2022 · 3:44:04 PM +00:00 · Joan McCarter
Sen. Lindsey Graham might just be drunk. Anyway, we’re getting a litany of grievances from him about the conservative Black and Latino judges the Democrats blocked. He just told Hawley to cut loose on the QAnon stuff. Now he’s bitching about Soros and the dark money and the attacks from the left on his pick, Childs.
Monday, Mar 21, 2022 · 4:00:57 PM +00:00 · Joan McCarter
What Elie Mystal says on Cornyn (R-TX): “He's talking about how many confirmation hearings he's been a part of. I honestly feel like Cornyn has never once added anything to these proceedings. He... basically can't keep up. He doesn't know the law well enough.”
Monday, Mar 21, 2022 · 4:12:30 PM +00:00 · Joan McCarter
Whitehouse is so great. “You weren’t groomed in a partisan Petri dish” but here through a real vetting process. He’s hitting the Federalist Society and the vast dark money and what’s that done to the courts and the Senate. He’s got an amazing grasp on the network behind the right on this, and has done some very good work on it.
Monday, Mar 21, 2022 · 4:15:58 PM +00:00 · Joan McCarter
Now Mike Lee (R-UT) again starting out politely. Acknowledges her experience. Goes on again about respect and how mean Democrats were to Kavanaugh (“personal attacks”) without naming names. They are also so proud of putting an alleged sexual assaulter on the court.
Monday, Mar 21, 2022 · 4:29:54 PM +00:00 · Joan McCarter
One part of Klobuchar’s statement is important—highlighting Jackson as a working mom. It was such a HUGE deal to Republicans on Barrett, to try to defang her crazy fundamentalist anti-abortion religious thing. They don’t get to monopolize the sanctity of motherhood. Anyway. Klobuchar the first to bring up the threat to voting rights the Court is posing right now.
Monday, Mar 21, 2022 · 4:37:03 PM +00:00 · Joan McCarter
Now would be a good time to do the drinking thing, if you’re doing it. Ted Cruz (R-TX). Lecturing. Saying that the Supreme Court changed in the 60s and 70s when it started ignoring Congress and making policy. Gee, suppose he’s talking about civil and voting rights? He’s such a puke.
Monday, Mar 21, 2022 · 4:40:03 PM +00:00 · Joan McCarter
Asshole uses this to plug “my weekly podcast.” Now he’s going on and on and on about grievances. Once again invokes Robert Bork and once again ignoring the fact that he got a vote on the floor and Republicans voted against him. And also invoking Clarence Thomas and Brett Kavanaugh and how Democrats were so mean PRETENDING THAT THE TWO OF THEM ARE NOT NOW SITTING ON THE GODDAMNED COURT.
Monday, Mar 21, 2022 · 4:53:08 PM +00:00 · Joan McCarter
We’re really getting the Jackson resume reiteration here from Coons. Yeah, she knows all this stuff that she’s done. As do we. Not a particularly effective use of time, but at least he’s talking about the outside supportive letter about her they’ve received.