GOP Sens. Romney, Murkowski Will Vote For Supreme Court Nominee Jackson

Topline

Republican Sens. Mitt Romney (Utah) and Lisa Murkowski (Alaska) will vote to confirm Supreme Court nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson, they announced Monday night, joining Sen. Susan Collins (Maine) as the only three Republicans to back Jackson so far.

Key Facts

“While I do not agree with every decision she may make on the Court, I believe she more than meets the standard of excellence and integrity,” Romney wrote in a statement on Twitter.

“My support rests on Judge Jackson’s qualifications, which no one questions,” Murkowski wrote in a statement.

At least 51 senators have already publicly confirmed they will support Jackson, according to a tally from the Washington Post.

The Senate voted 53-47 Monday night to discharge Jackson’s nomination from the Judiciary Committee and clear the way for a confirmation vote that’s expected to take place later this week, after the committee deadlocked 11-11 several hours earlier.

Surprising Fact

Murkowski said her support for Jackson was a rejection of what she deemed the “corrosive politicization” of the Supreme Court nomination process, though she acknowledged she doesn’t agree with some of Jackson’s previous decisions and opinions.

Key Background

President Joe Biden nominated Jackson—who currently serves on the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals—in late February. If confirmed, Jackson will become the third Black justice—and first Black woman—to serve on the Supreme Court. Jackson’s nomination was essentially assured even without bipartisan support, as Democrats control the 50-50 Senate with Vice President Kamala Harris as a tie-breaking vote. Her Judiciary Committee hearings were contentious, with Republican senators including Ted Cruz (Texas), Josh Hawley (Mo.) and Lindsey Graham (S.C.) accusing her of imposing lenient sentences for child pornography offenders, a line of criticism the American Bar Association, retired federal judges and federal sentencing experts deemed to be unfair. Some Republicans have also criticized her history of representing Guantanamo Bay detainees as a public defender, though she’s argued her defense work fulfilled a “core constitutional value.”