CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Both of West Virginia’s U.S. senators issued neutral statements about President Joe Biden’s Supreme Court pick following the president’s announcement Friday.
Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., and Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., did not indicate their feelings regarding the selection of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson, with each senator saying they look forward to meeting with Jackson and evaluating her judicial qualifications.
Biden named Jackson to replace Associate Justice Stephen Breyer on the nation’s high court. Jackson once clerked for Breyer.
Jackson, a current judge on the Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, would be the first Black woman to serve on the Supreme Court if the Senate confirms her nomination.
“Her opinions are always carefully reasoned, tethered to precedent, and demonstrate respect for how the law impacts everyday people,” Biden said at the White House. “It doesn’t mean she puts her thumb on the scale of justice one way or the other, but she understands the broader impact of her decisions.”
Jackson served as the district judge for the District of Columbia from 2013 to 2021. The Senate confirmed her nomination to the appellate court last June in a 53-44 vote; Manchin backed the nomination, while Capito opposed confirmation.
Manchin and Capito separately said they take the responsibility of confirming a Supreme Court nominee seriously, and they would evaluate Jackson’s judicial record before announcing how they will vote.
“Just as I have done with previous Supreme Court nominees, I will evaluate Judge Jackson’s record, legal qualifications and judicial philosophy to serve on the highest court in the land,” Manchin said.
The senators also plan to talk with Jackson about her philosophy.
“Now that President Biden has selected Judge Jackson as his nominee for the Supreme Court vacancy, I plan to meet with her in-person and carefully consider her nomination according to her experience and ability to make unbiased decisions based on the text and original meaning of our Constitution,” Capito said.
Manchin’s vote is important as the Senate begins considering the nomination. The Senate changed its rules in 2017 to allow a simple-majority vote on nominations. Democrats control the 50-50 chamber with Vice President Kamala Harris serving as a tie-breaker when needed.
Manchin noted last month on “MetroNews Talkline” he could support a justice with more liberal positions than his own, noting the pick would likely not change the court’s 6-3 conservative makeup.
“It’s not too hard to get more liberal than me, so it would not bother me to support a person who was sound in their thought process [and] who was sound in their disbursement of justice and the rule of law,” Manchin said. “When I was governor, I put a lot of robes on judges, and they were much different from me ideologically.”
Capito told reporters she wants a candidate who understands the law.
“I’m going to ask for any preconceived notions on judgments that would be made,” she added. “Because for me, that’s a red flag. I think we need someone who is going to adhere to our Constitution strictly and is not going to be put on the bench to make the law.”
The Senate Judiciary Committee will hold hearings on the nomination. Chairman Dick Durbin, D-Ill., called Jackson “an extraordinary nominee,” and the committee will begin to move the nomination forward with “the careful, fair, and professional approach she and America are entitled to.”