Durbin: Hawley criticism of Jackson ‘inaccurate and unfair’

Senate Judiciary Chair Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) said on Sunday that Republican Sen. Josh Hawley’s (Mo.) recent criticism of Supreme Court nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson was “inaccurate and unfair.”

During an appearance on ABC’s “This Week,” moderator George Stephanopoulos asked Durbin about Hawley’s recent tweets suggesting that Jackson was soft on child pornography. 

“Well, I’m not sure what it signals. But as far as Sen. Hawley is concerned, here’s the bottom line — he’s wrong. He’s inaccurate and unfair in his analysis,” Durbin told Stephanopoulos.

“Judge Jackson has been scrutinized more than any person I can think of. This is her fourth time before the Senate Judiciary Committee. In three previous times, she came through with flying colors and bipartisan support, the last time as soon as just last year.” 

Durbin also said Hawley is making charges “that came out of nowhere.”

“The independent fact checkers like The Washington Post and CNN have discredited his claims already. They should have. There’s no truth to what he says,” Durbin told Stephanopoulos.  

“And he’s part of the fringe within the Republican Party. This was a man who was fist-bumping the murderous mob that descended on the Capitol on January 6th of the last year. He doesn’t have the credibility he thinks he does,” Durbin concluded. 

Jackson’s confirmation hearing is set to begin this  week, where if she is confirmed she would be the only public defender to sit on the high court.