Republican Tennessee Senator Marsha Blackburn blasted President Joe Biden for announcing his nomination of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court in the middle of the crisis in Ukraine.
In a twitter thread Friday, Blackburn, who serves on the Senate Judiciary Committee, which oversees the approval of judicial appointments, took Biden to task for attempting to pivot away from the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and caving to the progressive wing of the Democratic Party.
“President Biden’s announcement just days after an unprovoked full scale invasion by Russia is extremely inappropriate,” Blackburn tweeted. “Once again, Biden is putting the demands of the radical progressive left ahead of what is best for our nation.”
President Biden’s announcement just days after an unprovoked full scale invasion by Russia is extremely inappropriate. Once again, Biden is putting the demands of the radical progressive left ahead of what is best for our nation.
— Sen. Marsha Blackburn (@MarshaBlackburn) February 25, 2022
“It is an attempt to hide that for over three months Biden refused to levy sanctions against Russia or send military assistance to Ukraine,” Blackburn added. “However, I cannot hold President Biden’s failure to lead our nation against his nominee.”
It is an attempt to hide that for over three months Biden refused to levy sanctions against Russia or send military assistance to Ukraine. However, I cannot hold President Biden’s failure to lead our nation against his nominee.
— Sen. Marsha Blackburn (@MarshaBlackburn) February 25, 2022
“I do plan on meeting with the President’s nominee in person, and thoroughly vetting her record to determine if she is a person of high character. A Supreme Court nominee must be committed to upholding the rule of law and Constitution as written,” Blackburn continued.
I do plan on meeting with the President’s nominee in person, and thoroughly vetting her record to determine if she is a person of high character. A Supreme Court nominee must be committed to upholding the rule of law and Constitution as written.
— Sen. Marsha Blackburn (@MarshaBlackburn) February 25, 2022
“We must not blindly confirm a justice to serve as a rubber stamp for a radical progressive agenda.”
We must not blindly confirm a justice to serve as a rubber stamp for a radical progressive agenda.
— Sen. Marsha Blackburn (@MarshaBlackburn) February 25, 2022
Blackburn’s criticism of the announcement came shortly after Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), who also serves on the Judiciary Committee, issued a statement of his own lamenting the nomination of Jackson as Biden caving to his Left flank. Graham had previously championed the cause of federal District of South Carolina Judge J. Michelle Childs to fill the vacancy left by the upcoming retirement of Associate Justice Stephen Breyer.
“If media reports are accurate, and Judge Jackson has been chosen as the Supreme Court nominee to replace Justice Breyer, it means the radical Left has won President Biden over yet again,” Graham tweeted Friday morning. “The attacks by the Left on Judge Childs from South Carolina apparently worked.”
If media reports are accurate, and Judge Jackson has been chosen as the Supreme Court nominee to replace Justice Breyer, it means the radical Left has won President Biden over yet again.
The attacks by the Left on Judge Childs from South Carolina apparently worked.
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) February 25, 2022
“I expect a respectful but interesting hearing in the Senate Judiciary Committee. The Harvard-Yale train to the Supreme Court continues to run unabated,” he added.
I expect a respectful but interesting hearing in the Senate Judiciary Committee.
The Harvard-Yale train to the Supreme Court continues to run unabated.
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) February 25, 2022
President Joe Biden announced Jackson as his pick to fill Breyer’s seat Friday morning. The Daily Wire reported:
Jackson was born in Washington, D.C., raised in Florida, and graduated from Harvard Law School. She also clerked for Breyer during the 1999-2000 Supreme Court term. Jackson became Biden’s first confirmed appellate judge in 2021.
Of strong importance to Biden and fellow Democrats, however, is that Jackson has been twice confirmed by the Senate in the past.
“She has also been twice confirmed by the Senate, including last year, when three Republicans voted yes in a 53-to-44 vote to approve her elevation to the powerful U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, a traditional proving ground for potential justices. The three Republicans who voted to confirm her — and who will be under pressure from Democrats to do so again in the evenly divided Senate — were Senators Susan Collins of Maine, Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska,” The New York Times noted.
Breyer announced his upcoming retirement from the Supreme Court on January 26.
Source: Dailywire
