Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., spoke against Supreme Court nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson during her Senate confirmation vote on April 7.
“Her judicial record is full of cases where Judge Jackson ruled like a policymaker, implementing personal biases, instead of a judge following the text wherever it led,” McConnell said.
McConnell referred to the regular Republican criticism that Jackson was lenient in sentencing, particularly in child sex abuse cases, and that she often fell far from federal sentencing guidelines. He described her record overall as “aggressive judicial activism frequently focused on treating convicted criminals as gently as possible,” saying she had a history of “passion for softening up criminal sentencing.”
Fact checks from media outlets throughout Jackson’s confirmation hearings disputed that framing. An analysis from the Associated Press found that in “most” of the cases where her sentences were lighter than federal guidelines, those sentences were requested by prosecutors or others representing the Justice Department.
Jackson was nominated by President Joe Biden in February to replace retiring Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer. If confirmed, Jackson will be the first Black woman on the high court.
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