judge jackson i have no doubt will continue our work to strive for justice, to act with justice as one of the great hymns tells us.s she would do all of this as she discharges her duty as justice jackson. i look forward to voting for her to serve as an associate justice on the supreme court of the united states of america. madam president, i would yield the floor. >> i i rise today in strong support of judge jackson to be the 116th justice of the supreme court of the united states. as a senator one of the most important responsibility i have under the constitution is whether to provide my consent to a presidents nomination to the supreme court, the highest court in our land.

the framers carefully designed our constitution using a system of checks and balances. the framers designed the third branch of government, the judiciary, to be an independent branch from the political branches of government, the legislature and executive branch. judgespr were given the unusual production, unlike congress and the president, to a lifetime tenure and to hold their offices during good behavior. judges therefore do not have to fear retribution or loss of their office or diminution of their paycheck if youun make an unpopular decision. so while the supreme court must show a healthy respect for the other coequal branches of government it must at the same time preserve its own independence and ultimately interpret the laws and constitution of the united states. a critical part of the supreme court's role is to preserve and protect the constitution and to make sure that all americans are

treated equally under the law. the marble entrance of the supreme court has etched above it the promise of equal justice under the law for all persons who enter. the supreme court must vigorously uphold the civil rights and civil liberties of all americans, and pay special attention to safeguarding and enforcing the constitutional rights guaranteed in our system of government. as we know from our history the supreme court is not always protected, all-americans and indeed in the past has treated some americans as less equal than others simply due to their race, religion or gender, among other factors. so let us remember the preamble of the constitution which declared thate we the people of the united states in order to form a more perfect union establish justice, they certainly not a perfect union but i do believe in the words of

dr. martin luther king, jr. that the ark of the moral universe is long but it bends toward justice. americans don't that the supreme court makes her final decisions every day that impacts the lives of people across this country. the supreme court regularly tackle so manyol other controversials issues of the day that involved issues such as zoning rights, criminal justice, labor rights, environmental protection and many, many more. turning a specifically to judge jackson's nomination. she will replace justice stephen breyer on the court who fittingly she had clerked for after graduating from law school.at judge jackson has an extremely impressive background and legal credentials and now sits as a judge on use court of appeals for the district of columbia circuit, often called the nation's second highest court. the bar associations standing committee on the federal judiciary gave judge jackson unanimously r well-qualified rating for the supreme court which is its highest rating.

the committee notes that to receive this highest rating a supremeom court nominee must met preeminent member of the legal profession having outstanding legal ability and exceptional breadth of experience and meets the very highest standards of integrity, professional competence and judicial temperament. judge jackson passed all these tests with flying colors during her senate confirmation process. i had the privilege of sharing judge jackson's first senate confirmation hearing in 2009 when president obama nominated to serve on the sentencing commission. i didn't have the opportunity to visit with the judge jacksor this month prior to her confirmation hearing. it was a real pleasure to speak with her. i am familiar with her background r and many of her rulings. she's also a former maryland resident. we had much to talk about as she had many connections to my state. her brother served both as an

infantryman and officer in the maryland armyng national guard n which he was twice deployed overseas. and he also served as an undercover narcotics recovery officer in the baltimore city police department. judge jackson is eminently qualified. in our meeting we talked about her personal experience and a commitment to equal justice under the law e especially for those that typically have accessing our legal system. she discussed her work as a public defender and providing defense free of charge to most vulnerable members of our society. in this work judge jackson carried out the mandate of the sixth amendment of the constitution which provides in all criminal prosecutions the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and t public trial ando have the assistance of counsel for its defense. she talked about her outreach to our next generation in terms of talking to students and high school and college as well as our next generation of lawyers in law school. i am often reminded of the words

of my dear friend the late congressman elijah cummings of baltimore. that our children are the living messages we send to a future we will never see. i don think judge jackson is having an important and ongoing conversation about democracy with our students. i frankly think she will a powerful role model for so many that will follow in her footsteps, in particular women and women of color that c judge jackson break yet another barrier class ceiling at the supreme court. these students can believe that yes, they belong even in the highest court in the land and the most elite corridors of power in our nation's. we discuss the important an independent judicial branch of government and protecting the rights of individuals against powerful special interest that abuse their power. i was impressed with judge jackson's the rope -- our conversation. judge jackson xon implies the american story and experience. her parents were public school

teachers and judge jackson said she was inspired to go into law by watching her father study when he was in law school. raised in miami, florida, she attended florida public schools. she then went on to earn her magna cum laude from harvard university and later her j. d. cum laude from harvard law school. she went on to clerk for three different federal judges, judge patti thurston in the district of massachusetts, judge bruce sallee of the first circuit court of appeals and then justice stephen breyer in the supreme court of the united states. after working in private practice you join the u.s. sentencing commission as an assistant special counsel before serving as an assistant federal public defender in washington. judge jackson then return to private practice again before being nominated in 2009 by president obama to serve ase a commission and later vice chair of the u.s. sentencing commission. as i noted earlier in the

privilege to chair this confirmation hearing for judge jackson after which she was unanimously confirmed by voice vote in the senate in 2010. and this will i noted judge jackson often worked to find common ground with her fellow commissioners that brought very different backgrounds and perspectives to the commission. in particular judge jackson made significant strides to make our criminal justice system and sentencing policy more fair and just. for example, she worked on a bipartisan basis to effectively implement the fair sentencing act which addressed the 100 to one disparity regarding crack cocaine and powder cocaine which had led to disproportion and discriminatory treatment of minorities in our criminal justice system. i am hopeful that judge jackson to use the same skills of finding common ground with individuals from different backgrounds and build a consensus as a justice on the supreme court. in 2013 president obama

nominated judge jackson to serve as the used as a judge for the district of columbia and again unanimously confirmed her nomination by voice vote. as a district court judge judge jackson wrote more than 500 opinions and considered a wide array of issues that would come before the supreme court. r she has ae real breadth of experience here including cases involving constitutional, civil rights and national security issues, administrative issues involving federal agencies, environmental issues, criminal law and procedural issues, and matters involving government transparency. on the bench her record clearly demonstrate that judge jackson and partial applies the law and president of the facts in a fair and impartial matter regardless of her own personal views on the subject. judgeor jackson took special cae to make sure the parties before understood her approach to deciding cases, and she issued clearly reasoned decisions.

as a f judge jackson set in her confirmation hearing for the district court circuit, when i work with clients as a defender most of my clients didn't really understand what was happening to them.in no one really explained to them what they were supposed to expect so they did not know where things might have gone wrong. therefore, as a judge, judge jackson said she will take extra time to communicate with the parties. i speak to them directly and not just their lawyers. use their names. i explain every stage of the proceeding because i want them to know whathe is going on. in reviewing her record i noticedis that judge jackson analysis and decision-making has led her to rule both for and against the government in different cases. both for and against employers and workers, for and against the criminal defendant and prosecutors, based on the merits of the case and her application of the law to the facts of that particular case. in her confirmation hearing and

written answers to questions for the record judge jackson pledged to support and defend the constitution and for the pledged to role without fear or favor or prejudice or passion, consistent with her judicial oath. she indicated she understood the limits of the judicial role and the importance of adhering to president of the court. and just last year president biden elevated judge jackson to the u.s. court of appeals for the district of columbia circuit. the cynic and from judge jackson to this position by a bipartisan vote of 53 voting in favor in an evenly divided senate. in that confirmation hearing judge jackson against stress the importance of courts having a duty of independence from political pressure meaning that judges must resolve cases and controversies in in a mannert is consistent with the law, requires come despite the judges own personal views on the

matter, and this is even when respective cases and controversies that pertain to controversial lyrical issues. she's committed to carrying out her oath as a judge. she particularly noted that she does not pay attention to who was in the administration when rolling on cases which is consistent with her case record rolling both for and against trump administration in different cases. judge jackson did a superb job during the recent confirmation hearings as our presiding officer knows. and consistently impressed me with herd talents. not only was she eminently qualified, we already knew that about her outstanding qualifications, not only was she in the command of all the legal subjects. we knew that she would excel in discussing the law and her job as a judge. but her demeanor in the face of repeated outrageous assault by republican members of the senate truly set her apart. she maintained her judicial temperament about this weeks hearing and showed why she would be a major factor on the supreme

court. judge jackson's confirmation hearing reinforced to me how critical it will be to have her on the supreme court. members of the committee unsuccessfully tried to distort judge jackson's sentencing record. the record clearly rebuffed these charges as judge jackson sentences are well within the judicial mainstream and judge jackson often follow the recommendations made by the probation office. the aba standing committee debunked several of these myths when they analyze judge jackson's record as part of their review process before her confirmation hearing. the aba testified at.b the hearg that we did speak to various prosecutors and defense counsel for judge jackson. none of them felt that she demonstrated bias in any way. one prosecutor said i did -- i did not observe any advice in the judge was fair to all sites

in connection with sentencing in all aspects. we asked pointed questions as it relates to bias whether it be to defendants, whether peter government, and we found no bias. that was the aba. in terms of the allegations that judge jackson saw from cry the aba test like that we heard consistently for metal defense counsel but prosecutors how unbiased judge jackson the weird phrases like doing things by h e book. for example, one prosecutor described the sensing hearing involving a very high profile sensitive national security matter of whenh- she said was it was classic judge jackson. what really impressed this prosecutor was that after oral argument, judge jackson took a recess, went back to her chamber and when she resumed the bench came out with the sensing that was more inor favor of the government. what more impressed this prosecutor was that the judges ruling including arguments that it been made by both the defense and prosecutors during oral

argument. it's not as if she came into the hearing with her mind made up. she listened to what counsel on both sides it and came up with a sense that the prosecutor was quite happy with. several prominent law enforcement organizations support judge jackson's nomination, fraternal order of police wrote from our analysis judge jackson's record in some of her cases would believe she has considered the facts and applied the lawon consistently d fairly on a range of issues. there is little doubt that she has the temperament, intellect, legal experience and family background toav have earned this appointment. were are reassured that should e be confirmed she would approach or future cases with an open mind and treat issues related to law enforcement fairly and justly. and the international association of chiefs of police support judge jackson's nomination. they wrote, when the i acp choose to support individual we do not take it lightly and we

take it into careful consideration the background, experience and previous opinions issued as the relates to law enforcement and criminal justice issues. during time as a judge she has displayed her dedication to ensuring that our communities are safe and the interest of justice are served. we believe judge jackson's years of experience has shown she has the temperament and qualifications to serve as the next associate justice on the supreme court. that was the international association of chiefs of police. judge jackson has an unusual broad range of support from law enforcement groups, crime victims and survivors, business associations and civil rights groups. former d.c. circuit judge thomas griffith introduced judge jackson at her confirmation hearing. judge griffith of president george w. bush appointee vouched for her careful approach,

extrajudicial understanding and collegial manner.ac judge jackson had demonstrated record of excellence and i believe based on the work as a trial judge when i served on the court of appeals that o she will adjudicate based on the facts of the law and not in a partisan manner. and then former fourth circuit judge mitchell levick, a president george h. w. appointee has offered a similar a choice that when he wrote that she's eminently qualified to serve on the supreme court and is highly credentialed and experienced in the law as any nominee in recent history. our colleagues had given her the highest ratings to those that know her best, those who have worked with her. it gives us all great confidence in her qualifications and ability to serve on the supreme court. a group of conservative lawyers many of whom certain previous

republican administrations wrote in strong support of judge jackson and said some of us might take different concerning particular position shela has taken as a judge we are united in our view that she is exceptionally well-qualified given her breath of expense demonstrated ability and personal b attributes of intellt and character. indeed we think herra confirmatn on a consensus basis would strengthen the court and the nation in important ways. madam president, it's long past time for the supreme court seat of a highly qualified black female attorney as a member. as we strive to provide equal justice under under the ll americans, she would be only the six woman out of 116th serve on the supreme court. on the supreme and only the second woman of color and the first black woman. a justice jackson will bring sorely needed diversity to the

supreme court, both demographically and professionally. as the leadership conference on civil and human rights noted, this professional diversity is another critical step in ensuring our courts look more like america. judge jackson will be the first justicent with any significant criminal defense defensd since retirement of justice thurgood marshall in 1991. and she would be the only supreme court justice to let serve as a public defender. public defenders play a critical role in our legal system, yet they are vastly underrepresented on the federal bench. at all levels of our judiciary there . nearly six times as many former prosecutors on the federal bench then former criminal defense lawyers, , just over 5% of the federal appellate judges have experience as a public defender. our highest court should reflect the diversity of the legal profession, and judge jackson's meaningful experience is greatly needed on our supreme court. i believe that judge jackson will faithfully uphold her

judicial oath which contains a special provision by were judges promised to administer justice without respect to persons, and to do equal rights to the poor and to the rich. i believe that she respects the separation of powers and checks and balances in our system, and the she is committed to uphold the civil rights and civil liberties of all americans. i will probably vote to confirm judge jackson so she will become justice jackson. with that, madam president, i'd yield the floor. >> second important topic in front of us right now and that is judge jackson's nomination to be an associate justice of the supreme court. i enthusiastically support the nomination of judge jackson. i supported it at a recent committee hearing, and our committee vote on monday. as a member of the senate judiciary committee i've had the opportunity to spend a lot of time with the judge in my office for nearly an hour, and