Sen. Ben Sasse said on Friday that he wouldn't vote to confirm Judge Jackson to the Supreme Court because she didn't have a firm judicial philosophy.
The Nebraska Republican, who questioned Jackson about her legal background and cases during the Supreme Court confirmation hearings earlier this week, concluded that he would not be able to support the full nomination.
He said in a statement that he was unable to vote for the confirmation of Judge Jackson because he disagreed with his judicial philosophy.
He said that Judge Jackson has a deep knowledge of the law, but at every turn this week she refused to claim originalism as her judicial philosophy. Although she explained originalism and textualism in some detail to the committee, Judge Jackson refused to embrace them or any other precise system of limits on the judicial role.
The hearings were not helpful to the overall process, but they signaled that Jackson would have the votes to join the high court.
The Supreme Court confirmation process is broken and doesn't build trust in either the Senate or the Supreme Court. Unfortunately, neither of those things happened.
I am grateful for Judge Jackson's service and wish her and her family the best as she takes her seat on the Court, but I am unable to consent to the nomination.
Jackson, who was confirmed as a judge on the Washington, DC federal appeals court last year, was nominated to the high court in February after Justice Stephen Breyer announced that he would step down from the Supreme Court at the end of the current term.
With 50 votes, Democrats can confirm Jackson with the tiebreaking vote of Vice President Harris, if no Republicans show up. Jon Tester of Montana and Joe Manchin of West Virginia declared their support for Jackson.
President Joe Biden and former senator Doug Jones are the only Republicans who have indicated that they will support Jackson. Two of the most likely GOP votes for Jackson would be from Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska.
Most Republicans on the Judiciary Committee panel, which include Ted Cruz of Texas, Josh Hawley of Missouri, and Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee, asked pointed questions regarding her handling of sex-related cases, critical race, will likely not support Jackson.
Lindsey Graham criticized Brown's sentencing in several sex-related cases while cutting off Brown during his questioning. Jackson was confirmed to the DC appeals court by three Republican senators.
McConnell, who blocked Garland's nomination to the high court, stated that he could not back Jackson's nomination.
Dick Durbin, the chairman of the Judiciary Committee, said that he was disappointed but not surprised by McConnell's opposition.
The full Judiciary Committee is split evenly between Democrats and Republicans. A tie vote on the Senate floor would add another hurdle to the nomination.
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