Politics

Marsha Blackburn Lectures First Black Woman Nominated to Supreme Court on ‘So-Called’ White Privilege

The Republican from Tennessee suggested to Ketanji Brown Jackson that it's merely a coincidence that only 2 of America's 114 Supreme Court justices have been Black

March 21, 2022

Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) speaks during a confirmation hearing for Supreme Court nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson before the Senate Judiciary Committee, on Monday, March 21, 2022, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, Pool

The confirmation hearings for Ketanji Brown Jackson began on Monday and, as expected, Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee were a little concerned about President Biden’s pick to replace Stephen Breyer on the Supreme Court. Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) went so far as to suggest to Jackson, a Black woman, that white privilege doesn’t exist in America, a country where of the 114 justices to have been confirmed to sit on the highest court in the land, only two have been Black.

“You serve on the board of a school that teaches kindergartners, five-year-old children, that they can choose their gender, and that teaches them about so-called white privilege,” Blackburn said after bashing the “radical left.”

Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) accuses Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson of sitting on the board of a school that teaches students about “so-called white privilege.” pic.twitter.com/Ms4azyVEmc

— The Recount (@therecount) March 21, 2022

Blackburn continued to drill down on critical race theory, the GOP’s culture-war topic du jour. “You have praised the 1619 Project, which argues the U.S. is a fundamentally racist country, and you have made clear that you believe judges must consider critical race theory when deciding how to sentence criminal defendants,” she said. “Is it your personal hidden agenda to incorporate critical race theory into our legal system?”

Blackburn: Is it your personal hidden agenda to incorporate CRT into our legal system? pic.twitter.com/V0x3xd8EEr

— Acyn (@Acyn) March 21, 2022

Blackburn wasn’t the only Republican to touch on race on Monday. Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) spent most of his opening statement whining about Democrats’ treatment of Justice Brett Kavanaugh after they wanted to question the then-nominee after he was credibly accused of sexual assault, but he also echoed widespread GOP concern that Jackson’s skin color had more to do with her nomination than her credentials. “I want the Supreme Court to look more like the country, but I want it to operate within the confines of the Constitution,” he said.

The Washington Post pointed out on Sunday that, if confirmed, Jackson would be the only active Supreme Court justice to have attended an Ivy League law school, clerked for a Supreme Court justice, served as a public defender, served on the sentencing commission, served as a U.S. District Court judge, and served as a U.S. Court of Appeals judge.

She seems to be qualified.