"I don't think she's the kind of judge that will really do the kind of work that I think needs to be done by the court," he said on ABC's "This Week."
AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana
Sen. Roy Blunt on Sunday said that he would not vote to confirm Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court, while at the same time all but conceding that she would receive the necessary votes in the upper chamber to be approved.
Blunt — the retiring Missouri Republican who had been seen as a potential swing vote — said during an interview on ABC's "This Week" that Jackson was "certainly qualified, but added that he had concerns about her judicial philosophy.
"I think she's got a great personality ... I think will be a good colleague on the court. But the judicial philosophy seems to be not the philosophy of looking at what the law says and the Constitution says and applying that, but going through some method that allows you to try to look at the Constitution as a more flexible document, and even the law. And there are cases that show that that's her view," he told host George Stephanopoulos.
He continued: "I think she's certainly going to be confirmed. I think it will be a high point for the country to see her go on the court and take her unique perspective to the court, but I don't think she's the kind of judge that will really do the kind of work that I think needs to be done by the court."
Blunt last month told Politico that he wanted to support the groundbreaking nomination, but would ultimately make his decision based on judicial temperament.
"My early inclination was: I'd really like to vote for the first Black woman to go on the court," Blunt told the publication, but added that his views would come down to her "view of what the court does and their view of what the law is all about."
While on "This Week," Blunt said that despite his "no" vote, he recognized the significance of Jackson's milestone.
"I won't be supporting her, but I'll be joining others in understanding the importance of this moment," he told Stephanopoulos.
Jackson, who last year was confirmed as a judge on the US District Court for the District of Columbia, was nominated by President Joe Biden to the high court in February after Justice Stephen Breyer announced that he would step down from the Supreme Court at the end of the current term.
So far, virtually every Democrat has indicated that they will support Jackson, and with 50 votes, plus the backing of Republican Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, the judge is set to be confirmed later this week.
