President Joe Biden’s Supreme Court nominee, Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson, has sparked backlash for refusing to define what a woman is.
Former Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-Hawaii) issued a tweet slamming Jackson, saying, “In order to have a Supreme Court committed to protecting the rights of all Americans, including women, every justice needs to understand there is such a thing as a woman, as distinct from a man.”
She added, “Yet when asked to define the word ‘woman,’ Supreme Court nominee … Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson said, ‘I don’t know.’ The hypocrisy and absurdity of this is that she was nominated by President Biden in large part because she is a woman.”
(2/2) … Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson said, “I don’t know.” The hypocrisy and absurdity of this is that she was nominated by President Biden in large part because she is a woman.
— Tulsi Gabbard 🌺 (@TulsiGabbard) March 24, 2022
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) responded to Gabbard’s tweet, adding, “Exactly right. The fact Judge Jackson was unable to answer the question ‘What is a woman?’ is unbelievable.”
Exactly right.
— Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) March 24, 2022
The fact Judge Jackson was unable to answer the question “What is a woman?” is unbelievable. https://t.co/GYlOxUOhsc
On Wednesday, Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) asked Jackson to provide a definition for the word woman, as IJR reported.
“I can’t,” Jackson replied.
Blackburn then asked, “You can’t?”
Jackson added, “Not in this context I’m not a biologist.”
The senator went on to tell Jackson the “fact that you can’t give me a straight answer about something as fundamental as what a woman is underscores the dangers of the kind of progressive education that we are hearing about.”
Republicans grilled Jackson on a variety of issues over the past few days, including her record on child sex abusers, race, gender, guns, and abortion.
Cruz asked Jackson “to take the opportunity to explain to this committee and the American people why in 100 percent of the cases you have people with vile crimes, and you have language saying they are vile crimes, but then you sentence them to very, very low sentences.”
Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) took issue with Republicans’ style of questioning and praised Jackson.
“I want to tell you when I look at you, this is why I get emotional,” Booker said.
He continued, “I’m sorry — you’re a person that is so much more than your race and gender.”
Booker suggested Jackson “faced insults here that were shocking to me — well, actually not shocking,” adding, “But you are here because of that kind of love, and nobody is taking that away from me.”
The Senate Judiciary Committee is expected to vote on Jackson’s nomination on April 4.