Sen. Ted Cruz ripped Democrats over their prior treatment of Supreme Court nominees picked by then-President Donald Trump as hearings began on Monday for President Joe Biden’s nominee, Judge Kentanji Brown Jackson.
Cruz tore into Democrats’ treatment of Justice Brett Kavanaugh’s confirmation hearings in 2018, which he called “one of the lowest moments” in the Senate Judiciary Committee’s history.
“Your hearing will feature none of that disgraceful behavior,” Cruz said to Jackson during his opening remarks. “No one is going to inquire into your teenage dating habits or ask ‘do you like beer,’” Cruz said, referencing the still-unproven allegations Democrats brought up against Kavanaugh during his hearing.
The Texas Republican told Jackson that her hearings will focus solely on her record and questioning will hone in on ascertaining “what kind of justice” she would be.
“It is no longer the case that Supreme Court confirmation hearings are merely about qualifications… our Democratic colleagues have abandoned that standard long ago,” Cruz said.
“Our Democratic colleagues want the Supreme Court to be anti-Democratic. Our Democratic colleagues get frustrated with the Democratic process. When they can’t pass gun-control laws because the American people don’t support them, they want elected judges to mandate those same laws instead,” Cruz added.
“Law after law after law that they cannot get to the democratic process, the Democrats have decided it’s much simpler to convince five lawyers in black robes than to try to convince 330 million Americans,” he noted.
“That is why Supreme Court confirmation hearings have become so contentious, it’s because the Supreme Court has arrogated to itself a responsibility the Constitution doesn’t give it, which is to make contested policy decisions and take them away from the American people,” he added.
WATCH:
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) refers to sexual assault allegations against Justice Brett Kavanaugh as “teenage dating habits.”
— The Recount