Turley: Judge Jackson will do ‘quite well’ in the confirmation hearings
George Washington University Law Professor Jonathan Turley reacts to Sen. Josh Hawley probing Ketanji Brown Jackson’s sentencing record.
Fox News contributor Jonathan Turley on Monday called out "bizarre" remarks on MSNBC about Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., questioning the sentencing decisions of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson.
"According to MSNBC, the fact that Hawley asked about her sentencing record, he was accused … of trying to have her killed which I wrote about on my blog as being just perfectly bizarre," the George Washington University constitutional law professor told "The Faulkner Focus,"referring to author Elie Mystal's comments defending President Biden's Supreme Court nominee.
SENATE CONFIRMATION HEARINGS TO BEGIN FOR BIDEN'S SUPREME COURT PICK JUDGE KETANJI BROWN JACKSON
"She can easily answer these sentencing questions. I think she will have a nimble response and substantive response to Senator Hawley's concerns, but this commentator thought this was a literal threat on her life to raise these questions," he added.
"What Josh Hawley is doing. Let's be very clear. What Josh Hawley is doing when he tries to do this is he's trying to get her killed. He is trying to get violence done against a Supreme Court nominee," Mystal said on MSNBC's "The Cross Connection with Tiffany Cross."
Turley penned a blog post reacting to the accusation.
Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson speaks after President Biden announced Jackson as his nominee to the Supreme Court in the Cross Hall of the White House, Friday, Feb. 25, 2022, in Washington. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster) (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
"Hawley and others have criticized the record of Judge Jackson as soft on crime, including child pornography. He noted that she recommended eliminating the five-year minimum sentence for child pornography. Hawley was criticized for conflating all sexual offenders with the issue on the sentencing of child pornography defendants. However, Jackson can easily address any such generalization in her own testimony," Turley wrote.
Turley explained that Mystal saw "not senatorial interest but homicidal intent in such questions," which led him to declare on MSNBC that Hawley is "trying to get [Judge Jackson] killed."
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Turley said that Jackson is an "extremely capable person and very likable." He noted that her background as a trial court judge is a perspective that is often missing on the Supreme Court. He added that her experience as a federal public defender makes her stand out because most of the justices don’t have that type of experience.
He also said he expects Jackson to get a fair hearing and vote, which he said Senate Democrats denied to Trump nominee Judge Amy Coney Barrett last year.
"That's a good thing, it's just that the hypocrisy is so high here you'd need waders to get through it," he said, describing a "circus environment" for Barrett.