“Judge Jackson is poised now to make American history and to demonstrate to our fellow Americans and to the world what this country stands for at its very best,” Sen. Ossoff said ahead of the vote
Washington D.C. — U.S. Senator Jon Ossoff, a member of the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, voted today to advance Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson’s nomination to the Supreme Court.
Judge Jackson’s nomination will be voted on by the full U.S. Senate later this week.
“Judge Jackson is poised now to make American history and to demonstrate to our fellow Americans and to the world what this country stands for at its very best. She has earned the respect of the nation through her exemplary conduct throughout this process. She will be a superb addition to the U.S. Supreme Court, and I look forward to enthusiastically voting to move her to the floor today and supporting her on the floor,” Sen. Ossoff said ahead of the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee vote.
Sen. Ossoff announced his support for Judge Jackson last week following his review of her record, his private meeting with her, and his nearly one hour of public questioning.
During the Senate Judiciary Committee Nomination Hearing last month, Sen. Ossoff engaged in a substantive discussion with Judge Jackson about key Constitutional protections, including the separation of powers and limits on government power, First Amendment protections of speech, press, assembly, and the free exercise of religion, Fourth Amendment search and seizure cases as emerging technologies present new facts and circumstances, and the Sixth Amendment right to counsel.
Click here to watch Sen. Ossoff’s confirmation hearing remarks.
Please find a transcript of Sen. Ossoff’s remarks below:
SEN. OSSOFF: “Thank you, Mr. Chairman and Ranking Member Grassley, and thank you Mr. Chairman for convening and leading, and at times moderating, these proceedings. It has been a real honor on behalf of my constituents in Georgia to participate in this process. And there are few nominations as significant, or as deserving, of seriousness of purpose, due diligence, and hard work on our part as senators than a lifetime appointment to the U.S. Supreme Court.
“I have approached these proceedings acutely, conscious of the gravity of our obligation to do our constitutional duty, as my constituents in Georgia expect. And I entered this process with an open mind. I met at length with the nominee in private. My staff and I reviewed her record and writings, and qualifications in detail.
“I had the opportunity to ask questions of Judge Jackson for nearly an hour in the several days of public proceedings that we held here in the Committee. And, you know, as a new member of the Committee, Mr. Chairman, I’ll confess that some of the back and forth about process and precedents dating back decades was new for me. And it’s clear that there are some hurt feelings, some grudges that members of the Committee may be nursing. And I understand that.
“But we’re tasked with something extraordinarily important here. And, at its best, these proceedings should be a pinnacle for the Senate: a moment when we come together in public and we grapple with some of the basic principles of Constitutional law. We subject a nominee for the highest court in the land to tough but fair questioning about their qualifications and their approach to the law. And so again, I want to thank you, Mr. Chairman, for consistently working to elevate these proceedings to their highest purpose.
“While she was testifying before the Committee, I asked Judge Jackson about her approach to freedoms of speech, of assembly, to her understanding of the historical roots and significance of the First Amendment protection of the free exercise of religion. I engaged with Judge Jackson to understand her approach to the Fourth Amendment: protections against unreasonable searches and seizures, and how she would approach such cases, as new technologies present the court with new facts and circumstances. I engaged with the nominee about the Sixth Amendment right to counsel, the Gideon v. Wainwright decision, and her experience as a federal defender. We discussed the separation of powers, her understanding of the Constitutional history, and her approach to questions of the constraint of governmental and executive power.
“Throughout this process, I have been deeply impressed by Judge Jackson’s professionalism, by her depth of knowledge, by her deep understanding of relevant case law, and by the seriousness with which she approaches her duties as a judge.
“Her record is one where she’s ruled for labor, and she’s ruled for management. She’s ruled for the Trump Administration. She’s ruled against the Trump Administration. She’s ruled for business, and she’s ruled for environmentalists. She’s ruled in ways that would make liberal members of Congress happy and ruled in ways that would make conservative members of Congress happy.
“Without regard for her personal preferences, she has applied the law and she walked us through the methodology, by which she ensures that she arrives at neutral, fair, and impartial decisions. She conducted herself with great poise, and strength, and grace while under heavy questioning and, at times, attacks that, in my view, were cruel and unfair.
“And we had the opportunity, thanks to you, Mr. Chairman, to question independent, nonpartisan investigators from the American Bar Association (ABA), who testified under oath that in the course of interviewing her colleagues from the bench and the bar folks she had worked with throughout her life — undertaking a systematic review of her writings and decisional history — that they found no derogatory information whatsoever that raised concerns about her integrity, her impartiality, her credibility, and, in fact, that she has a sterling reputation with colleagues, whether they were arguing against her, whether she ruled for them or against her throughout a legal career, where she has built impeccable qualifications.
“She’s worked as a federal defender. She’ll bring that unique perspective to the Supreme Court. She’s worked in private practice as a litigator. She’s served as a federal judge at the district and appellate levels. And throughout her career, she has not just favorably impressed, but demonstrated superb and exceptional professionalism and capabilities, and that came through in the work that the ABA investigators did in reviewing her record.
“Mr. Chairman, Judge Jackson is poised now to make American history and to demonstrate to our fellow Americans, and to the world, what this country stands for at its very best. She has earned the respect of the nation through her exemplary conduct throughout this process.
“She will be a superb addition to the U.S. Supreme Court, and I look forward to enthusiastically voting to move her to the floor today and supporting her on the floor. And I thank you again, Mr. Chairman, for the privilege of being a part of these proceedings.”
