What are banned from DC buses? Catholic Christmas ads.

U.S. Supreme Court nominee Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson is sworn-in during her confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee in the Hart Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill March 21, 2022 in Washington, DC. Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson, President Joe Biden’s pick to replace retiring Justice Stephen Breyer on the U.S. Supreme Court, will begin four days of nomination hearings before the Senate Judiciary Committee. / Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

Washington D.C., Mar 21, 2022 / 17:29 pm (CNA).

Twenty-two senators delivered opening statements on the first day of confirmation hearings for Supreme Court nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson, where they signaled interest in the judge’s legal view on topics including abortion and religious liberty. 

March 21 marked the first of four days of hearings led by the Senate Judiciary Committee for Jackson, the federal judge nominated by President Joe Biden to replace retiring Justice Stephen G. Breyer.

Jackson said that she hoped to carry on the spirit of Breyer, whom she clerked for in 1999 and 2000, in her opening statement on Monday. While her initial remarks were brief, Jackson is expected to begin answering questions from lawmakers in-depth on Tuesday.

Senators aligned with their respective parties in their statements, which indicated the direction of their upcoming questions. Democrats focused on Jackson’s legal experience, the historic nature of her nomination as a Black woman, and the Senate’s bipartisan support for her in the past. Republicans wanted to know her judicial philosophy, the role of “dark money” in her nomination, and her position on court packing, among other things. 

Republicans also stressed conducting themselves without the “theatrics” that they said characterized the hearings of current Justices Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett.

“The most recent Supreme Court nominee was subjected to repeated accusations that were nothing more than unfiltered religious bigotry against her,” Republican Senator Ben Sasse of Nebraska said during his remarks. “The nominee before her was accused of serial rape.”

Both Republicans and Democrats expressed interest in questioning Jackson about abortion.

Democratic Senator Dianne Feinstein of California emphasized that the Supreme Court, in its current term, is deciding cases “on issues that are foundational to who we are as a country.” That included, she said, “a woman’s fundamental right to control her own body and make her own health care decisions.”

Her comments came as the Supreme Court prepares to issue a ruling this year in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, a case that directly challenges the court’s 1973 decision in Roe v. Wade, which legalized abortion nationwide. 

Republican Senator John Cornyn of Texas wanted to know “why pro-abortion dark money groups like Demand Justice and anti-religious liberty groups are pouring millions of dollars into a public campaign” in support of Jackson. Demand Justice, a progressive group which does not disclose its donors, supports “reforming” and “expanding” — or adding more justices to — the Supreme Court.

Also from Texas, Republican Senator Ted Cruz outlined a list of issues to ask Jackson about: free speech, the 2nd Amendment, school choice, rising crime rates, and religious liberty as well as “the right to life.”

“Will a justice protect the rights of the people, the rights of state legislatures to enact laws protecting innocent life, protecting unborn life, stopping abominations like partial-birth abortion,” he asked, “or will a justice view her job as a super legislator, striking down all such rights?”

Pro-life leaders have expressed concern with Jackson’s past in regards to abortion. In addition to having the support of abortion groups for her nomination, Jackson co-authored an amicus brief in 2001 in support of a Massachusetts law that created a “buffer zone” preventing pro-life sidewalk counselors from approaching women outside of abortion clinics, according to the Susan B. Anthony List. Jackson’s past clients include pro-choice groups such as NARAL and the Abortion Access Project of Massachusetts.

Jackson also clerked for Breyer when he issued an opinion in Stenberg v. Carhart, which struck down a Nebraska law banning “partial-birth” abortion, other Catholic and pro-life leaders have warned.

For his part, Republican Senator Tom Cotton of Arkansas emphasized that, among other things, “I’m looking for a justice who will protect the right to life of innocent infants instead of caving to the abortion lobby, creating whole new swaths of law out of whole cloth.”

Following the hearings, the Senate committee will hold a vote that, if approved, will send the Jacksn’s nomination to the larger Senate for consideration. Democrats want to finish the confirmation process before April 11, when Easter recess begins.

The chairman of the Judiciary Committee, Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois, and ranking member Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa opened the hearings on Monday.

“There may be some who claim, without a shred of evidence, that you’ll be a rubber stamp for this president,” Durbin stressed. “For these would-be critics, I have four words: Look at the record.”

He pointed to her experience, and the historic nature of her nomination.

Biden elevated 51-year-old Jackson to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit in 2021. But Jackson first became a federal judge in 2013, serving the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia as a President Barack Obama appointee.

Jackson also received her undergraduate and law degrees from Harvard, before working as a federal public defender. Her resume includes serving as vice chair and commissioner on the U.S. Sentencing Commission, which establishes sentencing policies and practices for federal courts and advises both Congress and the executive branch.

If confirmed, Jackson would be the first Black woman to sit on the bench of the nation’s highest court. Biden first announced that he would nominate a Black woman to the Supreme Court on the campaign trail.

As at her nomination ceremony, Jackson publicly acknowledged her own faith by thanking God during the first day of her hearings. 

“It is faith that sustains me at this moment,” she said. 

Jackson previously served on the inaugural advisory board for a Christian school in Rockville, Maryland, from 2010-2011. The school backed Christian beliefs on marriage, gender, and human life. During her confirmation hearings last year, she commented on her time at Montrose Christian School, which she described as a now-defunct K-12 private school. 

“I was aware that Montrose Christian School was affiliated with Montrose Baptist Church,” she said. “I was not aware that the school had a public website or that any statement of beliefs was posted on the school’s website at the time of my service.”

When asked by Republican Senator Josh Hawley of Missouri about the First Amendment, Jackson responded at the time, “I do believe in religious liberty,” calling it a “foundational tenet of our entire government.”

On Monday, she promised senators a commitment to transparency, adherence to precedent, and a neutral posture. 

“If I am confirmed, I commit to you that I will work productively to support and defend the Constitution and this grand experiment of American democracy,” she concluded, adding later that “I hope that you will see how much I love our country, and the constitution, and the rights that make us free.”

[…]

San Angelo, Texas, Sep 14, 2017 / 03:01 am (CNA/EWTN News).- In the 1620s, while the pilgrims were landing on Plymouth Rock and having the first Thanksgiving, the Jumano tribe in Texas (before it was Texas) were allegedly having mysterious encounters w… […]

CNA Staff, Jun 25, 2020 / 04:00 am (CNA).- Three state legislatures have passed new restrictions on abortion: a heartbeat-based abortion ban in Tennessee; a 24-hour waiting period on abortion in Iowa; and a ban on abortion due to race, sex or genetic anomaly of the unborn child in Mississippi.
 
The Tennessee Senate passed a ban on abortion 30 minutes after midnight on June 19 by a 23-5 party line vote, after it was previously passed in the House of Representatives, the The Tennessean reports.
 
Marjorie Dannenfelser of the Susan B. Anthony List praised the bill, saying “Tennessee’s landmark new law includes some of the strongest protections in the nation for unborn children and their mothers.”
 
The legislation bars abortion after the point at which a fetal heartbeat can be detected, as early as six weeks into pregnancy. It bars abortion if a woman is known to be seeking an abortion because of the unborn child’s sex or race, or because of a diagnosis of Down syndrome. The law bars abortions for juveniles in the custody of the state’s Department of Children’s Services, and removes the ability to petition a judge for permission for an abortion.
 
The law would allow abortion if a woman’s life is in danger but not if the unborn child is conceived in rape or incest.
 
Under the law, a doctor must determine the gestational age of the unborn child and inform the mother, allow the woman to hear the fetal heartbeat and explain the location of the unborn child in her uterus, conduct an ultrasound and display the images to the mother. The abortionist must provide an explanation of the unborn child’s size and explain which external body parts and internal organs are present and visible.
 
A heartbeat-based abortion ban passed the Tennessee House last year but Republican Lt. Gov. Randy McNally did not support it in the Senate.
 
Similar laws in Mississippi, Ohio and other states have been struck down in court.
 
If the courts strike down Tennessee’s heartbeat-based abortion ban, the legislation would automatically enact a ban on abortion at ten different gradations: eight, 10, 12, 15, 18, 20, 21, 22, 23 and 24 weeks into pregnancy.
 
A doctor who performs an illegal abortion would face a Class C felony, should the bill become law.
 
Due to the novel coronavirus epidemic, the bill was thought to be shelved. It appeared to have revived in last-minute negotiations between the House and Senate, The Tennessean reports. The Senate rules were suspended when the bill was passed and no members of the public were present.
 
Ashley Coffield, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood Tennessee and North Mississippi, charged that the bill’s passage violated the spirit of democracy as Planned Parenthood brought litigation against the bill.
 
“In the dead of night, Tennessee politicians hellbent on chipping away at abortion access blocked citizens from entering the state Capitol while they used this draconian abortion ban to pass the state budget,” she said. “While Tennesseans are concerned about their health and safety during a pandemic, politicians used women’s lives as a bargaining chip to push their political agenda.”
 
Planned Parenthood, the American Civil Liberties Union, and the Center for Reproductive Rights filed a lawsuit against the bill, charging that it was unconstitutional.
 
Under the legislation, abortion clinics must post a sign saying that it is possible to reverse a chemical abortion, or face a $10,000 fine.
 
Similar Arizona legislation, passed in 2015, was repealed in 2016 after legal challenges. The State of Arizona had to pay Planned Parenthood and other abortion providers more than $600,000 in attorney fees and other costs spent fighting the law, the Associated Press reported.
 
In Iowa, the House and Senate passed a 24-hour waiting period requirement for abortion early June 15, KCCI News reports. The legislation also requires a woman to view ultrasounds of the unborn child and to receive information on adoption.
 
The legislation was passed amid a partisan battle.

Rep. Shannon Lundgren, R-Dubuque, said the passage of the bill showed her party is “always thinking ahead and thinking about how we can advance the life movement in the state of Iowa.” Sen. Jim Carlin, R-Woodbury, another supporter, said the legislation showed consistency in “our commitment to humanity.”
 
Democratic lawmakers objected to the bill, charging that Republican lawmakers exploited the coronavirus epidemic to advance the legislation.
 
Rep. Jo Oldson, House Democratic Whip, said the bill was released on a Saturday night so that legislators wouldn’t have to hear from voters.
 
“It’s time for Iowa Republican lawmakers to be more transparent and stop the relentless attacks on the rights of Iowa women,” she said.
 
Planned Parenthood charged that legislators “prioritized their personal ideologies at the expense of our sexual and reproductive health freedom.”
 
On June 23 abortion backers Planned Parenthood and the ACLU filed a court challenge against the bill, seeking a temporary injunction to block the law from taking effect July 1.
 
Erin Davison-Rippey, Iowa executive director of Planned Parenthood North Central States, said the legislation could in practice delay abortion “by weeks,” and called the bill “a political ploy to create barriers to sexual and reproductive health care in Iowa.”
 
Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds has not yet signed the bill but she is strongly pro-life and is expected to sign the bill into law.
 
In 2018, the Iowa Supreme Court voted 5-2 to reject a 72-hour waiting period for abortion. For the first time, the court ruled that the Iowa state constitution guarantees a right to abortion. The decision strongly entrenched the place of abortion in state law.
 
Reynolds has since appointed four Supreme Court justices, causing some to think a different decision could result from the litigation, the Des Moines Register reports.
 
In Mississippi, the legislature backed a bill to ban abortion based on race, sex or genetic anomalies. Supporters said it would bar abortion for conditions including Down syndrome.
 
On June 23 the Mississippi House of Representatives passed the bill by 91 to 25, after the Senate gave strong approval to the bill, the Associated Press reports.
 
Sue Liebel, state policy director for Susan B. Anthony List, praised the bill.
 
“Abortions carried out because of a baby’s sex, race, or potential disability, such as Down syndrome, constitutes modern-day eugenics,” she said.
 
Beth Orlansky, advocacy director for the Mississippi Center for Justice, was a critic.
 
“This unconstitutional restriction adversely affects poor women who do not have the means to seek assistance elsewhere,” she said.
 
Violation of the law could mean up to 10 years in prison for a doctor or other health care worker. The law specifically states that the woman seeking the abortion would not be punished. The ban allows abortion in cases of medical emergencies.
 
Mississippi Republican Gov. Tate Reeves is expected to sign the bill, but pro-abortion rights groups are expected to file a legal challenge.

[…]