>>> THE HISTORIC CONFIRMATION
HEARINGS FOR THE FIRST BLACK
WOMAN SUPREME COURT NOMINEE,
THERE WERE MOMENTS OF GRACE,
LIKE THIS POWERFUL MOMENT WITH
SOMEONE WHO KNOWS WHAT IT MEANS
TO BE AMONG THE FIRST, THE FEW,
OR THE ONLY.
CALIFORNIA'S FIRST LATINO
SENATOR, ALEX PADILLA.
>> WHAT WOULD YOU SAY, JUDGE
JACKSON, TO ALL THOSE YOUNG
AMERICANS, THE MOST DIVERSE
GENERATION IN OUR NATION'S
HISTORY, WHAT DO YOU SAY TO SOME
OF THEM WHO MAY DOUBT THAT THEY
CAN ONE DAY ACHIEVE THE SAME
GREAT HEIGHTS THAT YOU HAVE?
>> I WOULD TELL THEM TO
PERSEVERE.
>> JOINING ME NOW IS CALIFORNIA
SENATOR ALEX PADILLA, MEMBER OF
THE SENATE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE.
SENATOR PADILLA, WELCOME BACK TO
"THE SUNDAY SHOW."
THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE.
>> THANK YOU, JONATHAN.
GOOD TO BE BACK WITH YOU.
>> SO, SENATOR PADILLA, TELL ME
ABOUT THAT MOMENT BETWEEN YOU
AND JUDGE JACKSON.
>> SO GLAD YOU'RE RAISING THIS
AND THAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT IT,
BECAUSE IT NEEDS TO BE
AMPLIFIED.
I SAW DAY AFTER DAY AFTER DAY
AND YOU COVERED THIS IN YOUR
PRIOR INTERVIEWS, SORT OF THE
TWO HEARINGS THAT WERE TAKING
PLACE.
ONE, PREDOMINANTLY DEMOCRATS
FOCUSED ON ISSUES OF LAW,
QUESTIONS OF JUDICIAL PHILOSOPHY
AND THE QUALIFICATIONS THAT WE
WOULD ALL HOPE TO HAVE IN A
SUPREME COURT JUSTICE.
AND ON THE REPUBLICAN SIDE,
ATTACK AFTER ATTACK, UNDERMINING
HER RECORD, TAKING ITEMS OUT OF
CONTEXT.
SHE DESERVES BETTER.
THE COUNTRY FRANKLY DESERVED
BETTER THAN WHAT WE SAW LAST
WEEKEND, KNOWING SHE IS NOT JUST
MORE THAN IMMINENTLY QUALIFIED
TO BE A SUPREME COURT JUSTICE,
BUT IS ON THE VERGE OF MAKING
HISTORY.
WHAT IT TAKES FOR SOMEONE LIKE
JUDGE JACKSON, SHE TOLD THE
STORY HERSELF, GROWING UP IN
MIAMI, GRADUATING FROM PUBLIC
SCHOOLS, HAVING THE AUDACITY TO
APPLY FOR AND GO TO HARVARD
COLLEGE, TO GRADUATE FROM
HARVARD LAW SCHOOL, HER PUBLIC
AND PRIVATE SECTOR EXPERIENCE AS
AN ATTORNEY BEFORE BECOMING A
JUDGE, HAVING MORE EXPERIENCE AS
A JUDGE THAN FOUR OTHER SUPREME
COURT JUSTICES COMBINED WHEN
THEY WERE NOMINATED, ONLY TO BE
SUBJECTED TO THE ATTACKS FROM MY
REPUBLICAN COLLEAGUES, IT WAS
INFURIATING AND HAVING BEEN
THROUGH SIMILAR STRUGGLE.
I JUST COULDN'T HELP BUT RELATE,
I COULDN'T HELP BUT TO CONNECT
WITH JUDGE JACKSON, HEART TO
HEART, AND I FIGURED SHE
DESERVED TO HAVE THAT PLATFORM
TO RESPOND TO THAT WITH THE
GRACE THAT SHE DID WITH THAT
QUESTION AND THE GRACE SHE
DEMONSTRATED THROUGHOUT THE
HEARINGS LAST WEEK.
>> YOU KNOW, ONE OF THE THINGS
THAT WAS AMONG MANY THAT WAS
OFFENSIVE ABOUT THE LINE OF
QUESTIONING FROM SOME
REPUBLICANS ON THE -- ON THE
COMMITTEE WAS THAT IT -- THEY
WERE SORT OF BESIDE THE POINT.
THEY HAD NOTHING REALLY TO DO
WITH JUDGE JACKSON, HER
QUALIFICATIONS, HER PHILOSOPHY
OR ANYTHING AND EVERYTHING TO DO
WITH THEIR POTENTIAL CANDIDACIES
FOR PRESIDENT.
THAT'S THE WAY IT CAME ACROSS TO
ME, SITTING AT HOME, OR IN MY
OFFICE, WATCHING IN THE
HEARINGS.
YOU WERE IN THE ROOM.
WAS THAT THE ELEPHANT IN THE
ROOM, THAT THESE JOKERS WERE
REALLY RUNNING FOR PRESIDENT, ON
THE BACK OF A BLACK WOMAN
SUPREME COURT NOMINEE?
>> YEAH, LOOK, IT WAS PALPABLE,
JONATHAN.
WHAT WE GOT FROM JUDGE JACKSON
WAS GRACE, GRACE, GRACE.
WHAT WE GOT FROM SEVERAL OF OUR
REPUBLICAN COLLEAGUES WAS
GRIEVANCE, GRIEVANCE, GRIEVANCE.
AND I THINK IT WAS ACTUALLY ONE
OF THE REPUBLICANS, SENATOR
SASSE, WHO CALLED HIM OUT FOR --
I WON'T USE HIS -- THE
TERMINOLOGY HE USED, BUT HE
CALLED OUT THAT, I THINK, THEIR
OBJECTIVE, A CAMPAIGN VIDEO AS
AN OUTCOME OF THIS, WHICH IS A
DISSERVICE, DISRESPECT TO THE
PROCESS.
THIS IS A CONFIRMATION HEARING
FOR A SUPREME COURT NOMINEE.
SOMEONE WHO HAS THE CREDENTIALS
AND CAN SERVE ON THE HIGHEST
COURT IN THE LAND FOR DECADES TO
COME.
AND SO WE GOT TO KEEP BRINGING
THE FOCUS BACK THERE.
THE -- FOR ALL THE REPUBLICANS
WHO SAID I HAVE NO QUESTIONS
ABOUT YOUR RECORD, NO QUESTIONS
ABOUT YOUR QUALIFICATIONS, BUT
THEN TO PIVOT AND TRY TO MAKE A
POLITICAL STATEMENT, IT WAS
INFURIATING, BUT THE LONGER
JUDGE JACKSON WAS IN THE HOT
SEAT, THE BETTER SHE LOOKED IN
MY OPINION IN HOW SHE ANSWERED
TO THE QUESTIONS, THE
TEMPERAMENT SHE DISPLAYED, AND I
WANT TO EMPHASIZE THIS,
JONATHAN, AFTER SEEING ALL THAT,
REVIEWING HER RECORD, SEEING HER
GRACE UNDER PRESSURE, IF SHE
CANNOT GET BIPARTISAN SUPPORT
FROM COMMITTEE AND THE FULL
SENATE TO BE CONFIRMED, IT IS A
SAD STATEMENT IN AMERICA AND
SENDS A HORRIBLE MESSAGE TO THE
COUNTRY ABOUT THE, YOU KNOW IF
YOU'RE CONCERNED ABOUT THE
POLITIZATION OF THE SUPREME
COURT, ABOUT WHERE WE ARE.
>> ACTUALLY, ON THAT POINT, REAL
QUICKLY, SENATOR, YOU RAISE A
GOOD POINT, JUDGE JACKSON
DOESN'T GET A SINGLE REPUBLICAN
VOTE, WHAT DOES THAT SAY ABOUT
OUR POLITICS?
BUT I'M REMINDED THAT NOW
JUSTICE AMY CONEY BARRETT DIDN'T
GET A SINGLE DEMOCRATIC VOTE.
SO SHOULD JUDGE JACKSON, SHOULD
YOU BE EXPECTING A REPUBLICAN
VOTE, A REPUBLICAN VOTE FOR HER
GIVEN THAT THERE WERE NO
DEMOCRATIC VOTES FOR AMY CONEY
BARRETT?
>> SO, FIRST OF ALL, THIS IS THE
FIRST SUPREME COURT CONFIRMATION
HEARING I'VE BEEN A PART OF, I
JUST JOINED LAST YEAR, SO I
WASN'T THERE FOR THE PRIOR ONES.
WHAT I AM SAYING IS THIS.
WE WANT TO SET THE HIGHEST
STANDARD FOR SOMEBODY WHO IS
NOMINATED TO SERVE IN THE
HIGHEST COURT IN THE LAND.
JUDGE JACKSON HAS MORE THAN MET
THAT STANDARD, SHE PURR PASSSURP
THAT STANDARD AND BRINGS MORE TO
THE TABLE GIVEN HER DIVERSE
BACKGROUND, NOT JUST AS THE
FIRST BLACK WOMAN, BUT BY ITSELF
THAT IS INCREDIBLY IMPORTANT AND
POWERFUL, BUT BEING THE FIRST
PERSON TO BRING A PUBLIC
DEFENDER EXPERIENCE TO THE
ADMINISTRATION OF JUSTICE IN THE
HIGHEST COURT OF THE LAND,
INCREDIBLY HELPFUL AND
IMPORTANT.
BUT, OF COURSE, AS A WORKING
MOM, AS A WORKING PARENT MYSELF,
WE KNOW HOW MUCH THAT INFLUENCES
OUR LANDS AND OUR OUTLOOK, AND
SO SHE HAS EARNED IT, SHE HAS
EARNED THE SUPPORT, BIPARTISAN
SUPPORT, IN MY OPINION, AND
ANOTHER QUESTION IS TO MY
REPUBLICAN COLLEAGUES, WILL THEY
LOOK AT IT ON THE MERITS, THE
QUALIFICATIONS, AND VOTE
ACCORDINGLY OR FALL INTO THE
POLITIZATION, THE POLITICAL
FORCES ON THE REPUBLICAN SIDE.
>> WE'RE GOING TO BE TALKING
MORE ABOUT JUDGE JACKSON'S
NOMINATION HEARINGS IN THE NEXT
HOUR, INCLUDING NBC NEWS POLL
JUST OUT THIS MORNING THAT SHOWS
THAT SHE IS THE MOST POPULAR
SUPREME COURT NOMINEE SINCE --
LOOK, YOU SEE IT RIGHT THERE,
36% SUPPORT HER AND THE LEAST
OPPOSED AT 17%.
SO ROCK STAR NOMINEE WITH
SUPPORT OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
SENATOR PADILLA, WE HAVE TO LET
IT GO.
WE'RE TWO MINUTES OVER.
REAL QUICK --
>> ONE LAST QUICK THING.
SHE DESERVES BIPARTISAN SUPPORT.
SHE'S GOTTEN BIPARTISAN SUPPORT,
NOT ONCE, NOT TWICE, THREE
TIMES.
>> THREE TIMES.
>> WITH BIPARTISAN SUPPORT.
>> RIGHT.
INCLUDING A VOTE FROM SENATOR