Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson’s second day of questioning by senators took on a nastier, more partisan tone as Republicans grilled the Supreme Court nominee again on her handling of child pornography cases, The Hill reports. Jackson started to show signs of exasperation on Wednesday as two potential White House hopefuls, Sens. Ted Cruz (R-TX) and Josh Hawley (R-MO), and others repeatedly hammered her over the sentences in those cases, The Hill reports. She wiped tears off her face after Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) accused Republicans of treating her unfairly and expressed his own personal joy and confidence that she would become the first Black woman on the Supreme Court.
The harshest questions came from Cruz and Hawley, who pressed Jackson over the disturbing details of pornography cases, as well as Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC). Graham set the tone by going well over his allotted time to challenge what he characterized as Jackson’s lenient sentencing. Jackson reminded Graham that judges strive to reduce “unwarranted disparities” in sentences, even for “horrible” crimes. Her explanations drew a rebuke from Graham, who said, "I think you’re doing it wrong. And every judge who is doing what you’re doing is making it easier for children to be exploited” As Jackson tried to explain the methodology for sentencing defendants, Graham interrupted her to say he hoped offenders go to jail for 50 years if they troll online for explicit images of children. His brusque treatment of the nominee left little doubt he’s likely to oppose her nomination. There was also a pervasive sense of Democratic Senators’ almost chilling unwillingness to go to the mat for their nominee, with the exception of Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ), reports Slate.