Georgia-based lawmakers and leaders are complaining about Choose Ketanji Brown Jackson

ATLANTA, Ga. (CBS46) – Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson, sitting in front of her parents, family and friends, began day one of the hearing confirming her nomination to the United States Supreme Court.

“My parents taught me that unlike the many obstacles they grew up with, my path was clearer so that if I worked hard and believed in myself in America, I could do or be anything I wanted to be ‘ Jackson told the Senate Judiciary Committee.

When she met her husband, Dr. Patrick Jackson, taking note, he wept, smiled and nodded to Jackson along with their daughters.

Jackson went on to outline her values, which spanned nine years as a federal judge in Washington, DC, to a decades-long career as an attorney and judge, a role in which she prepared more than 500 court opinions.

“I’ve been a judge for almost a decade now and I take my duty to be independent seriously,” Jackson said.

US Senator Jon Ossoff of Atlanta is a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee. He spoke about the questions he plans to ask while also acknowledging the historic moment Jackson became the first black woman to be nominated to the US Supreme Court.

“Through your brilliance and resilience and hard work, you have already rendered great service to the nation as a federal judge. And as a black woman, you overcame deep-rooted obstacles to be nominated for our nation’s highest court,” Ossoff told Jackson.

US Senator Cory Booker also shared the excitement.

“This is not a normal day for America. We’ve never had that moment before and I just want to talk about the joy,” Booker exclaimed.

While Republican senators made no attempt to question Jackson’s qualifications on opening day, several made it clear they will ask difficult questions in the coming days when they criticize Jackson’s court records and interpretation of the Constitution.

“It’s no secret that I voted against Judge Jackson’s nomination to the district court last year, but I want to give her an opportunity to show why I should vote for her this time,” said US Senator Tom Cotton, R-Arkansas .

State Rep. Rhonda Burnough, who is following the hearings on her phone, is part of a collective of more than 300 black women who have launched weeks of support and rallies for Jackson through the Black Women’s Leadership Collective.

“One of the things they wanted was for us to have the world’s largest African American women’s watch party,” Burnough told CBS46. “It’s an exciting time for African American women. It’s an exciting time for African American girls. It’s an exciting time for brown girls… Their story is our story,” she continued.

The senators will review every part of Jackson’s legal history as an attorney and judge. Emory law professor Fred Smith said there are three main points judges consider when deciding cases.

“The court, in answering a question of law, looks at the text, the history and the precedent,” Smith said. “You will weight these differently at times, but those are the three guiding posts that the judges will use, including Judge Jackson.”

The committee will begin questioning Tuesday at 9 a.m. and continue Wednesday. Witnesses will speak on Thursday.

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