Ketanji Brown Jackson hearings won't be a 'spectacle' like the Kavanaugh hearings, Sen. Grassley says
The confirmation hearings for Supreme Court nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson will not be "a spectacle" like the hearings for Justice Brett Kavanaugh, Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) said Monday.
"I've continually emphasized the need for a thorough, respectful process by the committee," said Grassley, the ranking member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, in his opening remarks.
"Now I want to talk a bit about what everyone watching should expect from this hearing and what they shouldn't expect at the hearing," he continued. "We will conduct a thorough, exhaustive examination of Judge Jackson's record and views. We won't try to turn this into a spectacle."
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
During the 2018 Kavanaugh hearings, protesters and Democratic senators repeatedly interrupted Grassley, who chaired the Judiciary Committee at the time, as he attempted to deliver his opening statement, Vox reported.
"Good news on that front: we're off to a very good start," Grassley said Monday. "Unlike the start to the Kavanaugh hearings, we didn't have repeated choreographed interruptions of Chairman [Sen. Dick] Durbin [(D-Ill.)] during his opening statements like Democrats interrupted me for more than an hour during my opening statement on the Kavanaugh hearings."
Grassley was referring to interruptions by Sens. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), and Cory Booker (D-N.J.) as well as then-Sen. Kamala Harris, all of whom called for the Kavanaugh hearings to be postponed to give them more time to review 42,000 pages of documents they'd received the previous night. Several protesters also shouted over Grassley before being removed from the chamber.
Two days later, Grassley interrupted Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) after she used her opening statement to criticize Grassley for failing to introduce Christine Blasey Ford — who accused Kavanaugh of sexually assaulting her in high school — earlier in the hearing process, according to CNN.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Grayson Quay was the weekend editor at TheWeek.com. His writing has also been published in National Review, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Modern Age, The American Conservative, The Spectator World, and other outlets. Grayson earned his M.A. from Georgetown University in 2019.
-
‘The nonviolence resulted from the organizers’ message’Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
NY attorney general asks public for ICE raid footageSpeed Read Rep. Dan Goldman claims ICE wrongly detained four US citizens in the Canal Street raid and held them for a whole day without charges
-
Trump’s huge ballroom to replace razed East WingSpeed Read The White House’s east wing is being torn down amid ballroom construction
-
Proposed Trump-Putin talks in Budapest on holdSpeed Read Trump apparently has no concrete plans to meet with Putin for Ukraine peace talks
-
Bolivia elects centrist over far-right presidential rivalSpeed Read Relative political unknown Rodrigo Paz, a centrist senator, was elected president
-
Madagascar president in hiding, refuses to resignSpeed Read Andry Rajoelina fled the country amid Gen Z protests and unrest
-
Sanae Takaichi: Japan’s Iron Lady set to be the country’s first woman prime ministerIn the Spotlight Takaichi is a member of Japan’s conservative, nationalist Liberal Democratic Party
-
Israel, Hamas agree to first step of Trump peace planSpeed Read Israel’s military pulls back in Gaza amid prisoner exchange
-
Israel intercepts 2nd Gaza aid flotilla in a weekSpeed Read The Israeli military intercepted a flotilla of nine boats with 145 activists aboard along with medical and food aid
-
Japan poised to get first woman prime ministerSpeed Read The ruling Liberal Democratic Party elected former Economic Security Minister Sanae Takaichi
-
Israel and Hamas meet on hostages, Trump’s planSpeed Read Hamas accepted the general terms of Trump’s 20-point plan, including the release of all remaining hostages
