Tim Kaine roots for Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson, end of the filibuster

Sen. Tim Kaine told an audience at Virginia Theological Seminary on Monday he was excited about the prospect of four women justices on the Supreme Court if, as expected, federal Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson is confirmed this week for the high court.

He also argued for severe limitations on the Senate’s filibuster rules, asserting that other than treaty ratification and impeachment of federal officeholders “everything else should be by simple majority.”

The prospect of Judge Jackson’s confirmation was at the top of Mr. Kaine’s list of priorities.

“When I was in law school, there were no women on the Supreme Court,” said the Virginia Democrat. “None. We will have four women on the Supreme Court. And to go from zero ever to four in the life of one lawyer’s practice-life does show that while there’s a lot of stuff we still have to do, we are making progress in areas that are really important. The prospect of four women on the Supreme Court really excites me.”

Senate Democrats have lined up the votes to confirm Judge Jackson in a vote that could come as soon as Thursday. Democrats could confirm her in a party-line vote in the 50-50 split chamber, but at least one Republican is also expected to support confirmation.  

Mr. Kaine — introduced as one of only 30 Americans in history to have served as a city mayor, state governor and U.S. senator — said his “biggest disappointment” of the last two years in the Senate was having a razor-thin majority and not being able to accomplish the party’s agenda under President Biden.

Mr. Kaine said he also hoped for a greater balance in state politics, noting that while Virginia is “obviously a very competitive state” when it comes to elections, which was a reference to his party losing the top three statewide offices in 2021 as well as the House of Delegates to Republican control.

“I don’t think we’re in danger of being a one-party state anytime soon,” he said.

The senator, who described himself as having “lived pro-life my whole life” without wanting to impose that on others, argued for finding commonality between pro-abortion and pro-life camps on the issue of maternal mortality, which he said is at “unacceptably high rates” in this country.

“We’re really out of whack with other countries,” he said. “Why couldn’t people who are like the most pro-choice, NARAL, and the most pro-life, the Susan B. Anthony [List], say, ‘Now here’s something we can agree on. Let’s get maternal mortality down to super low. And let’s eliminate any racial disparity in the maternal mortality space.’ That would be an issue.”