Graham announces he won’t vote for Ketanji Brown Jackson’s Supreme Court nomination
By Clare Foran and Ali Zaslav, CNN
Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina announced Thursday that he will not vote for President Joe Biden’s Supreme Court nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson, despite supporting her nomination to a previous Senate-confirmed position last year.
“I will oppose her and I will vote no,” Graham said in a speech on the Senate floor.
He went on to say, “My decision is based upon her record of judicial activism, flawed sentencing methodology regarding child pornography cases and a belief Judge Jackson will not be deterred by the plain meaning of the law when it comes to liberal causes.”
Graham added that he finds Jackson “to be a person of exceptionally good character, respected by her peers and someone who has worked hard to achieve her current position. However, her record is overwhelming in its lack of a steady judicial philosophy and a tendency to achieve outcomes in spite of what the law requires or common sense would dictate.”
Graham’s opposition does not endanger the nomination as Jackson is already on track to be confirmed, but it is notable because the South Carolina senator was one of only three Republicans who voted in favor of Jackson last year when the Senate confirmed her to the influential US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit. The other two Republican senators were Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska.
As of now, Jackson appears on track to be confirmed by the full Senate as soon as next week. Senate Democrats can confirm Jackson to the high court even without Republican support if every member of their caucus votes in favor, which appears on track to happen, and Vice President Kamala Harris breaks a tie. Jackson’s nomination has already attracted at least one GOP vote, however, with Collins announcing earlier this week that she will vote in favor of confirmation.
Graham, who is a member of the Judiciary Committee, has been signaling he would likely vote against the Supreme Court nomination and directed highly critical questions at the nominee during her confirmation hearings before the panel.
The-CNN-Wire
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