Legal experts and interest groups weighed in on Ketanji Brown Jackson in the final hours of the four-day marathon of Senate Judiciary Committee hearings on her historic nomination to become the first black woman on the US Supreme Court.
Members of an American Bar Association panel that gave Ms Jackson its highest professional rating for the Supreme Court said reviewers found no evidence she’s soft on crime as Republicans charged at her confirmation hearings.
“Notably, no judge, defence counsel, or prosecutor expressed any concern in this regard, and they uniformly rejected any accusations of bias,” D Jean Veta, a co-lead evaluator on Jackson’s "Well-Qualified" review told the Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday.
Ms Jackson forcefully defended herself against Republican accusations over two days of questioning, facing myriad questions and accusations on her sentencing record, particularly of those accused of child pornography charges.
The Supreme Court nominee on Wednesday also fended off Republican accusations that she was soft on crime, a theme the party will likely pursue during the midterm elections later this year.
Standing committee reviewers interviewed 250 judges, lawyers, and others who they said had first-hand knowledge of how Jackson conducted herself on the bench. The ratings noted her integrity, even-handed nature, and exceptional competence.
The reviewers said they found no evidence of bias toward defendants or the prosecution, including her handling of child pornography cases.
A number of experts have labelled claims that she favoured defendants in certain cases —pursued aggressively by senators Josh Hawley and Ted Cruz, among others — as misleading.
But Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell pressed the issue in floor remarks on Thursday, echoing the comments of others that he was not satisfied with Ms Jackson’s responses to questions on her sentencing record and said he will vote against confirmation.
"Judge Jackson refuses to reject the fringe position that Democrats should try to pack the Supreme Court," Mr McConnell said.
Nonetheless, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said the chamber was "on track" to confirm the federal appellate judge to the lifetime job before its expected break for Easter on April 8.
Republicans also pressed Ms Jackson on her legal advocacy defending terror suspects detained at Guantanamo Bay, her thoughts on critical race theory and her religious views.
Democrat Dick Durbin, chairman of the committee, at one point slammed down his gavel when Republican Ted Cruz refused to yield after his time to question Ms Jackson expired.
“You can bang it as long as you want,” Mr Cruz snapped, shouting that he only wanted Ms Jackson to answer his question.
“At some point, you have to follow the rules,” Mr Durbin shot back.
But not all Republicans indulged in the party's line of attacks.
Ben Sasse, in an apparent shot at Mr Cruz and Lindsey Graham, who repeatedly interrupted Ms Jackson, said “cameras change human behaviour".
“I think we should recognise that the [expletive] we often see around here is partly because of people mugging for short-term camera opportunities,” he said.
Mitt Romney, who is not on the committee, told The Washington Post that Republicans' attacks on her were “off course".
Democrat Cory Booker used his time to assure Ms Jackson that she was suitable for the job.
“I know what it’s taken for you to sit here in this seat,” he said. “You have earned this spot.”
With Democrats holding a narrow majority in the Senate, Ms Jackson's confirmation seems all but certain. If confirmed, she would serve as the 116th justice on the Supreme Court.
Agencies contributed to this report
Company%20Profile
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more from Janine di Giovanni
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MATCH INFO
Champions League quarter-final, first leg
Tottenham Hotspur v Manchester City, Tuesday, 11pm (UAE)
Matches can be watched on BeIN Sports
MO
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FIXTURES
UAE’s remaining fixtures in World Cup qualification R2
Oct 8: Malaysia (h)
Oct 13: Indonesia (a)
Nov 12: Thailand (h)
Nov 17: Vietnam (h)
ROUTE%20TO%20TITLE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERound%201%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Beat%20Leolia%20Jeanjean%206-1%2C%206-2%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ERound%202%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EBeat%20Naomi%20Osaka%207-6%2C%201-6%2C%207-5%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ERound%203%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EBeat%20Marie%20Bouzkova%206-4%2C%206-2%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ERound%204%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Beat%20Anastasia%20Potapova%206-0%2C%206-0%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EQuarter-final%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EBeat%20Marketa%20Vondrousova%206-0%2C%206-2%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESemi-final%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EBeat%20Coco%20Gauff%206-2%2C%206-4%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFinal%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Beat%20Jasmine%20Paolini%206-2%2C%206-2%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The specs
Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel
Power: 579hp
Torque: 859Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh825,900
On sale: Now
GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh149,900
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
FIXTURES
Monday, January 28
Iran v Japan, Hazza bin Zayed Stadium (6pm)
Tuesday, January 29
UAEv Qatar, Mohamed Bin Zayed Stadium (6pm)
Friday, February 1
Final, Zayed Sports City Stadium (6pm)
57%20Seconds
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Rusty%20Cundieff%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EJosh%20Hutcherson%2C%20Morgan%20Freeman%2C%20Greg%20Germann%2C%20Lovie%20Simone%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2%2F5%0D%3Cbr%3E%0D%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Stage 5 results
1 Tadej Pogacar (SLO) UAE Team Emirates 3:48:53
2 Alexey Lutsenko (KAZ) Astana Pro Team -
3 Adam Yates (GBR) Mitchelton-Scott -
4 David Gaudu (FRA) Groupama-FDJ 0:00:04
5 Ilnur Zakarin (RUS) CCC Team 0:00:07
General Classification:
1 Adam Yates (GBR) Mitchelton-Scott 20:35:04
2 Tadej Pogacar (SlO) UAE Team Emirates 0:01:01
3 Alexey Lutsenko (KAZ) Astana Pro Team 0:01:33
4 David Gaudu (FRA) Groupama-FDJ 0:01:48
5 Rafał Majka (POL) Bora-Hansgrohe 0:02:11
The drill
Recharge as needed, says Mat Dryden: “We try to make it a rule that every two to three months, even if it’s for four days, we get away, get some time together, recharge, refresh.” The couple take an hour a day to check into their businesses and that’s it.
Stick to the schedule, says Mike Addo: “We have an entire wall known as ‘The Lab,’ covered with colour-coded Post-it notes dedicated to our joint weekly planner, content board, marketing strategy, trends, ideas and upcoming meetings.”
Be a team, suggests Addo: “When training together, you have to trust in each other’s abilities. Otherwise working out together very quickly becomes one person training the other.”
Pull your weight, says Thuymi Do: “To do what we do, there definitely can be no lazy member of the team.”
SPECS
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EEngine%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202-litre%204-cylinder%20turbo%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPower%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E268hp%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETorque%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E380Nm%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFrom%20Dh208%2C000%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EOn%20sale%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ENow%0D%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Ruwais timeline
1971 Abu Dhabi National Oil Company established
1980 Ruwais Housing Complex built, located 10 kilometres away from industrial plants
1982 120,000 bpd capacity Ruwais refinery complex officially inaugurated by the founder of the UAE Sheikh Zayed
1984 Second phase of Ruwais Housing Complex built. Today the 7,000-unit complex houses some 24,000 people.
1985 The refinery is expanded with the commissioning of a 27,000 b/d hydro cracker complex
2009 Plans announced to build $1.2 billion fertilizer plant in Ruwais, producing urea
2010 Adnoc awards $10bn contracts for expansion of Ruwais refinery, to double capacity from 415,000 bpd
2014 Ruwais 261-outlet shopping mall opens
2014 Production starts at newly expanded Ruwais refinery, providing jet fuel and diesel and allowing the UAE to be self-sufficient for petrol supplies
2014 Etihad Rail begins transportation of sulphur from Shah and Habshan to Ruwais for export
2017 Aldar Academies to operate Adnoc’s schools including in Ruwais from September. Eight schools operate in total within the housing complex.
2018 Adnoc announces plans to invest $3.1 billion on upgrading its Ruwais refinery
2018 NMC Healthcare selected to manage operations of Ruwais Hospital
2018 Adnoc announces new downstream strategy at event in Abu Dhabi on May 13
Source: The National
J%20Street%20Polling%20Results
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