world. ambassador samantha power, thanks for patients tonight, thanks for joining us, i appreciate it. >> thanks chris. >> that is all in on this tuesday night, the rachel maddow show starts now with ali velshi, good evening, ali. chris, thank you, and have yourself a good night. thank you at-home for joining us this hour, i'm joining new tonight from warsaw, poland, it's a big day in the news tonight. both in the war in neighboring ukraine, and at home in the united states, for the confirmation hearing a certain supreme court he nominee ketanji brown-jackson are still underway. we're gonna be dipping into. the hearing live in a bit. i want to start tonight by talking about some really expensive boats. now, the thing about buying a super yacht is that it is a pretty difficult purchase to hide. this one, that you are looking at, it is called the exam. it's believed to be the largest yacht in the entire world. this one, the outside, is owned by the sultan of oman.

stephen spielberg owns one called the seven seas. if you run down the list of the world's most biggest and lavish mansions of the sea, they all have super rich, super well connected owners. heck, they all have owners, period. except for one yacht. this is the charade, it is more than 450 feet long, it is more than $700 million, look at it, it's got six floors multiple swimming pools -- while it waits to unload more guests. it's checked out with a piano that plays itself, and a pool table that is on some kind of tilting device, so it reduces the impact of the waves. the most bizarre thing about this yacht is that no one is quite sure who owns it. the vessel has no publicly registered owner.

right now it's just chilling out of port in italy. as western countries start to race to round up all the super yachts that are owned by russian billionaires, to sanction them and seize their assets for their support of russia's invasion in ukraine, journalists have been trying to figure out to whom this charade might belong. and now, after a lot of speculation, we seem to be much closer to an answer. these two russian anti corruption activists have just released an incredibly detailed report which they say proves that the owner of this mystery super yacht is not just any russian billionaire, but vladimir putin himself. the activists obtained documents that show the names, passport numbers, and of the crew that works on this yacht, except for the captain, every single person who works on the boat's russian. which is not unusual in and of themselves, but many of them are employed by russia's

federal protective services, the effort so, which is essentially russia's version of the secret service, the people who have this yacht happen to be the same people who are listed as vladimir putin security guards, and his personal staff. now, imagine if it turned out that a ministry boat off the coast of delaware was teeming with sir secret service agents, who also happened to be on president biden security detail. well, the logical assumption would be that that was biden's boat. that is the same case that these activists are making. these activists have done this kind of exposé before, on vladimir putin, and people close to him. take a look on the neon sign hanging behind them. it says, navalny, as an alexa navalny. russia's primary opposition leader who is poisoned and almost murdered by the russian government. alexei navalny is currently serving a prison sentence on bogus charges. his original sentence was about three years, it was meant to

expire next year. well today, a russian judge added nine more years to ascendance. again, based on trumped up charges, meant to silence him. this new sentence allows officials to move him to a more remote, high security prison, which will make it more difficult for him to communicate with his family and his lawyer, and his supporters, who are legion. and yet here are navalny's fellow pro democracy advocates doing the diligent work of uncovering corruption in the russian government. because, at this point, it doesn't really matter how long putin keeps navalny in jail, these activists ended the video by saying, quote, subscribe to this channel, we tell the truth here, free navalny. when navalny started has led to deep roots, the anti-putin, anti-corruption, anti-war movement in russia is strong and growing even with its strongest leader behind bars. today, russia toughened its

so-called fake news law, the one that makes it illegal for anyone inside russia to criticize the ukraine invasion. russia also launched a criminal investigation into a journalist who committed the high crime of posting online about the russian bombing of ukrainian maternity hospitals. these fresh crackdowns on free speech, and the opposition movement in russia. it's hard to see that anything but putin trying to control the message within his borders, at a time when his invasion into neighboring ukraine is very much not going the way he had hoped. today, ukrainian officials say they have really gain control of a town, about 30 miles west of kyiv, called makkari. after the invasion began, russian officials had fought hard enough to take over that town, but now ukraine has taken over it back. officials say they really have the blue and yellow flag over the town, defense department officials say russia's advance towards ukraine's capital

remains completely stalled, russian troops are still more than nine miles beyond the northwest part of kyiv, and more than 18 miles from the eastern edge of the capitol. which is basically exactly where they were a week ago. there are reports of russian soldiers suffering from frostbite, because they have not been outfitted with the proper gear. the pentagon said today that the russian military has lost more than 10% of the combat forces that were set to invade ukraine u.s. officials say that for the first time russian forces have begun shelling the port city of mariupol not from the ground, but from the water. which is a sign that their ground forces continue to struggle to gain and maintain new ground. and so, for the people in ukraine trying to beat back russia's assault on their nation that is the good news. but for the people who are still in ukraine every day is a repeat of the same nightmare. nbc's gabe gutierrez has this report, tonight.

>> it seems unreal, it's become a good bleak existence. this is a dark frigid basement where a dozen families crowd together each night huddled by candlelight, fueled by defiance. >> when the bombing is going, you never know where it will drop. >> victoria votes about works for a charity in chernihiv, that's in northern ukraine near belarus. russian troops outside of the city, but it's hanging on. so are other cities like mariupol in kharkiv. >> this is not a war between ukraine and russia, this is a war between light and darkness between goodness and evil we are determined to protect our land, and to stay here. >> many others have not stayed more from ravaged cities in lviv arriving today, natalie is from kyiv, surrounding russian

troops on three sides she decided to get out with her family before it's too late. others are making the remarkable choice to return. >> a humanitarian corridor opened up today, and this train has been loaded up with supplies and people who are heading back east, to pick up loved ones. >> this woman is coming back from poland to care for her sipped father in eastern ukraine. this mother is returning with her young daughter. this is my country, she says firmly. refugees now top three and a half million, as a volunteer train conductor sergei has seen a lot of them, defiance in places like mariupol weighs heavily on him. >> right now, it's a stronghold of freedom, it's a stronghold of all democracy. >> stronghold of all democracy in the world, nbc's gabe gutierrez reporting tonight from ukraine. today, the french government announced that there is still appear to be no cease fire going in place that could halt

the fighting in ukraine. russia ratcheted up tension today, saying the country refuses to rule out the use of nuclear weapons. as long as it is facing but it is vaguely defining, as an existential threat the u.s. national security adviser warned today that, the war would not and easily are rapidly which is becoming more and more apparent every day, as we close out day 27 of this brutal war. joining us now live from lviv is nbc correspondents ali arouzi. all, you thank you for being up at this hour with us, it seems like ukrainian troops are pushing back against russian forces in certain areas of the country, even though russia continues to bomb by the cities and cause heavy damage, what are you hearing about where things are tonight? >> that's right, ali, that's in the suburbs of kyiv, some of the russian troops have made advances and occupy small parts of summers in kyiv and in northwest, in bucha, but in

other parts in the west of the city, russian troops had made advances, but the cranes fought back hard as, as you mentioned in your report. and took back certain areas in the eastern parts of kyiv. that's because, ali, kyiv is a city on a heel, it's heavily fortified, it's streets and roads are very net narrow, making it very hard for russian tanks and heavy armor to maneuver their way around their. of course, because they've been held met by fierce resistance by the ukrainian forces trying to defend their capital, where president zelenskyy is still standing, and putting out these very strong messages to his armed forces and to the people. despite a big push by the russians trying to encircle kyiv, they haven't been able to do it. that is one of their main objectives, to take the capital, and other major strategic places like mariupol. >> let's talk about where you

prefer a second, the images that we have seen this evening out a mariupol, and literally for the last several days, make the place look like hell on earth. you've recently spoke with someone who's made it out of there just in the last few days. >>. >> that's right, mariupol is the most hard hit and destroyed city in ukraine, they have taken the brunt of the russian artillery, missiles, and bombs. because it's such a strategic place for the russians. it would create a land corridor to the donbas region, if they were to take mariupol, it would connect russia to crime area, and that would be a huge victory for the russians. they haven't been able to capture mariupol, and that has made russian commanders resort to medieval siege and starvation tactics. and they've caused a humanitarian crisis and where

you pull, incredibly, they blamed the ukrainian people for the humanitarian crisis, because they wouldn't commit she late and give up their city. the people of mariupol are without food, without electricity, without running water, without heating, without gas. all the people we have spoken to paint a horrifying picture of what is going on in that city. i spoke to a young lady who managed to escape mariupol a couple of days ago, let's take a listen to what she had to say. >> when i was going to sleep, i was crying and having nightmares every night, because i was afraid that i would just die here. we were even discussing with my family, hoping that if we die it will be fast and not painful. we hope not to die. from hunger, because it would be much easier to die a mediately.

my sister told me that if we run out of food, we will commit suicide together. >> it was really difficult to listen to that interview with her, ali, it was really heartbreaking. she told me that when they were escaping mariupol, they were met by russian checkpoints, the russian soldiers taunting them, laughed at them, to what they had done in their city, she managed to escape with a pair of trainers and her laptop, to get out of that city, and some of her family members. but for others there who remain in that city, it's a devastating situation, and the feeling is that the russians are going to continue their relentless bombing of that city. making little distinction between the military forces there, and the civilian population that is still trying to hold on to their city. not least of all because it is so financially important to this country.

all of ukraine's coal, corn, and steel is shipped across the world from mariupol. if they're not going to be able to do that, that's all going to economically strangle the city. so, i devastating situation, not only from a humanitarian point of view, but from a financial point of view for this country, as well. >> ali, what a thing to hear them make a suicide pact if they didn't think they would make it out of the city. thank you for your amazing reporting. ali arouzi is live for us in lviv, this late night. in just a minute, i'm going to be talking live with someone who just escaped from mariupol with his family, that interview will be after this. first, i want to get some thoughts from a military analyst on what we witnessed today on day 27 of russia's invasion of ukraine. joining me now is rob lee, he's a former marine corps infantry officer, and an expert on russian defense policy. he is currently a senior fellow at the foreign policy research institute, mister lee, thank you for joining us, it's good to see this evening.

i want to ask you about a senior pentagon official telling reporters, today, that the russian military has lost more than 10% of its combat power that was sent into ukraine, there is no indication that reinforcements are been brought in from russia. we do know that they've been trying to recruit people into the military. talk to be about this idea of losing 10% of your fighting force. in military terms, that's actually a turning point. >> yeah, it's significant because -- he wants to see cities, he wants to circle cities, probably odessa, and they want to further degrade the ukrainian military. in every single, white rushes facing attrition, and the more it sets, and the more limitations they have. can they actually take big cities of kyiv which would require additional casualties. the figures we're seeing are been backed up by open source information on the nimble of

destroyed or captured vehicles, walls indicating that russia is going to really struggle in further operations, for weeks and weeks at a time. and we're facing a number of limitations at this point. >> the kremlin does a report on how many russian troops have died, they do give out numbers, but they tend to be very low, we get much higher numbers on the ukrainian government. we had a very middle of the road estimate from u.s. intelligence. yesterday, a pro kremlin news outfit briefly reported that 10,000 soldiers have been killed. suddenly back reference was quickly removed by the website. what do you make of that? these numbers sound really remarkable for a major, long standing army like the russian army. >> yeah, it's hard to tell. it could be just a hack, it could be an influence operation for the ukrainians, who obviously know what they're doing in terms of intelligence. or it could've just been a

mistake and the actual factual information that was published, it's hard to tell. we know the russian military is taking the heavy casualties, we can see this from destroyed vehicles, from destroyed convoys. -- it's not something they face in the -- in 2014 2015 ukraine, it was -- after week in ukraine this time, is greater than the last three wars combined. that was weeks ago, and now the figures are obviously much greater. so even if that figure, i don't know the veracity of it, but it's somewhere in the ballpark of what the actual casualty figures are. we talk about that, that's a substantial share of the russian invasion force. not kind of attrition, it really affects wet russian forces can do at this point, to limit the goals they can achieve. >> let me ask you about air

support, and air force. the ukrainians do have an air force, they do have trained pilots, the new york times had some interesting reporting about the ukrainian air force, and how it's operating in, quote, but the times says, near total secrecy. one of the pilots they spoke to said, quote, in every fight with russian jets, there is no equality, they always have five times more planes in the air. despite being outnumbered, ukrainian paul pilots have been successful at preventing wider bombings. they've intercepted some missiles. talk to me about this, they are vastly outnumbered by russian ships, how is the outlook for the air force in ukraine? >> so, that's one thing, it's not fully known, it's kind of hard to tell from the sources. partially because i think they wanted that way. but they're making life difficult for russia. in terms of invasion, for russia, they want to have their supremacy, where they have fire aircraft, bomber aircraft, operating over ukrainian forces at all times, being able to bomb, them the reconnaissance, all this kind of things.

and we can't do that effectively are now, because ukraine's air defenses still attacked. also because ukrainian air force is still operating, and still contesting the environment. all that makes it more difficult for russian air force, and really key part of this is that introduction missions, a really key mission that the russian air force would like to take part, it would include preventing ukrainians from reinforcing locations, resupply in cities, all this kind of things. it's clear that not able to do that very effectively. probably likely part of this is because ukrainians are still operating, and still making the environment contested, and making life difficult for russian air force, which is still part of the reason why ukraine is resisting still today, and why they're still having success. >> rob, thank you for your analysis, we appreciate it, probably is a former marine corps infantry officer, we appreciate your time tonight, we're also keeping an eye tonight on the senate confident hearings for ketanji brown-jackson, there is still underway. we will have more on that just ahead in just a minute,, we are

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fend off russian attempts to take control of the besieged southeastern city of mariupol, but it is coming at a great cost. russian forces have stepped up their attacks on the city, take a look at this drone video showing the explosions as bombs were dropped on an industrial compound. a week ago, city officials had at least 2300 people have been, killed the number likely much much higher, the city council says weeks of bombardment are turning variable into the, quote ashes of a dead land. today, a senior u.s. official said that in past 24 hours, russian forces have likely been firing into the city from ships that are in the sea of azov. mariupol are in a -- between crimea, which russia has illegally annexed, and russia itself. if the area around it were

seized, russia would have a land bridge linking all of the ukrainian territory is that it controls. many have fled, but as russia ramps up its devastating attacks, 100,000 people remain trapped, with no safe place to leave. those who have managed to make it out of mariupol are now sharing their cities of devastation and survival. sky news's sally lockwood spoke to one of them in lviv. >> alina managed to escape, five days ago. >> there are lots of people in mariupol, now, you cannot even imagine how many children are there. they brought a six-day old and a three months old in the shelter, there are so many of them. in the neighboring house, too little orphans became orphans, and watch their father dying. -- because they cannot leave. >> alina only learned her apartment had been bombed after seeing this image online.

the fourth floor from the top was her home until a few days ago. >> my next guess also decided to leave that city with his family, after their home was destroyed by the russians. joining us now is arturo shevchenko, he's a programmers escape the city mariupol to western ukraine on friday, with his family. mr. shevchenko, thank you for making time to be with us tonight. i don't know what this must meet feel like to you, looking at these images, hearing these stories of your home town, and your home been destroyed. >> i, thank you for having me. this is true, it's terrible to see, what is happening. >> tell me about how you got out, and what that experience was like, how did you make the decision, how did you actually do it? this is a city that does have power, water, and electricity, and tell me about the journey out. >> we had no electricity at all,

no water, etc, so it was our only choice -- there is no humanitarian corridor,'s russia refused to make them. the only choice was to drive from the city by car, no buses. >> and, as you were leaving, were able to get out, did you see russian troops? >> yeah, there were a lot of russian troops on the way. there were a lot of different nationalities. -- there were a lot of other nations, not slavic, on the troops. >> tell us about your home in mariupol, what happened to it? >> our neighbors were killed, 4

am in the morning do -- the rocket hit their window. my flat was without any windows, as well as other flats. i left mariupol four days ago. i don't know what's there, possibly, the houses are burned down. >> we've been hearing from people from mariupol who are not able to be in contact with those people they have left behind, their friends in their family, because as you said they are out of electricity and gas. have you been able to speak to anybody, obviously, you've got friends and family who are still in that city? >> yeah, actually, today, my friend called me. he was in a district where a lot of russian troops who were. it was very scary, and at this moment the only choice he had was to walk by foot through

this shelling area, to get to the c district -- it is really dangerous to. >> what do you think it's going to happen to that city? the russians have not succeeded in taking control of it, yet, but they have devastated it, and they continue to keep selling it. >> i guess it will burn down, to ashes, because the first days without the russians, they wanted to invade the city, to have a victory over people inside. but, at the latest, i understood that they just wanted to destroy it. >> what do you plan to do now? you got out with your family, what happens next? >> it is hard to tell because, we had a lot of information

about the troops, possible invasion, and in this case it will be harder for ukraine. i have even my family, really i don't know what will be next. no idea. >> how is your family doing? >> they are good. we have apparent with us, we took her with us to this trip out of the city. i have here my grandfather his 80 years old, he is disabled so he cannot walk. it was really tough trip, it's because 1000 kilometers. >> wow, arturo, thanks for joining, us it is a middle of a night for you in western ukraine. we hope you and your family stay safe, and i'm sorry for what you've had to go through,

artur shevchenko is a programmer who's escape the city mariupol of this family, we appreciate your time tonight. coming up, we are gonna go to the senate, where the supreme court justice nominee ketanji brown jackson has been carrying questions from republicans for the last 12 hours. that is next. s next qunol coq10 along with your statin medication. the brand i trust is qunol.

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(swords clashing) -had enough? i'll-no... arthritis.otel. here. aspercreme arthritis. full prescription-strength? reduces inflammation? thank the gods. don't thank them too soon. >> on day two of her kick pain in the aspercreme. confirmation hearing, judge could naji brown, jackson president biden's nominee for the supreme court, descriptive

judicial methodology that she uses as a guide while she's on the bench. she gave that answer today in response to questions from senators on the judiciary committee yesterday about her judicial philosophy. by going to -- going on to outline the three steps in her methodology, she offered the senators a pretty thorough understanding of her approach to any case before her as a judge. a useful way for america to get to know judge jackson who could eventually be the first black woman on the supreme court. so, it was notable, if not entirely surprising, when a couple of republicans senators decided to veer into this line of questioning. >> did you know that joe biden actively filibustered janice rogers brown? >> i did not know that. >> did you know that he told face the nation, if bush nominates her for the supreme court, i can assure you that would be a very, very, very

difficult fights, and she probably would be filibustered. is that news to you too? >> yes. >> did you notice that people from the left were pretty much cheering you on? >> a lot of people were cheering me on, senator. >> that's true, that's true. did you know a lot of people from the left were trying to destroy michelle childs? did you notice that? >> senator, a lot of people were supporting various people for this nomination. >> so you're saying you didn't know there was concerted effort too disqualify judge chiles from south carolina because she was a union busting, unreliable republican in disguise? you didn't know that all those people were -- judge chiles? >> i did not. >> senators lindsey graham of south carolina, or senator lindsey graham from south

carolina used his time today to ask judge jackson about the other black tourists who were not sitting before them. one republican senators determined to her actual judicial record, they fixated on her time representing guantánamo prisoners and her decisions and child pornography cases. she denied the charge that she had been lenient in those cases. but they're a lot of questions about republican accusations about her sentencing decisions. the relevance of her time as a public defender. i know who to ask about them. joining us now is janai wilson, president and director counsel of the naacp defense an education fund. miss nelson, thank you for being with us tonight. i am puzzled by senator graham and senator john cornyn of texas was line of questioning today. which is asking judge jackson to offer her opinions about the treatment and the process that other black jurist's went through. what is the point of that line

of questioning? >> it was assumed to be the playbook for many of the republican senators during that hearing, and that was to air their grievances about either previous hearings or about other potential nominees that the perhaps would've supported more than they support the very eminently qualified ketanji brown jackson. either way, it was an appalling display of disrespect to ask her to a pine on the treatment of other black women in the process. in many ways, it was pitting black women against one another and asking her to offer her opinion about the treatment or the vetting process. and she really had no responsibility for it. and they wrongly characterized an assault on these two individuals. however, it turned out, in terms of whether they moved forward or didn't, had nothing to do with the qualifications of ketanji brown-jackson. which was the only subject that

was relevant at today's hearing. so what we saw was a very nasty exercise in trying to create discord among professional, highly qualified women, black women, who should not be maligned in any way. and it was very disappointing to see them try to play that tactic. and certainly inappropriate for a hearing of the sort. >> let me ask you about senator ted cruz's decision to ask her -- ask judge jackson, about a reference to nicole hannah jones's piece of journalism, called the 16 19 project. he was holding up books from a georgetown school on which he's a board, a private board, of which is a member of the board, and he was trying to pin her down on critical race theory. tell me about what you extend observed in that exchange. >> it seems that he thought that we would all be impressed by the theater and the promise

that he brought in to try to link her to this 19 project and to the renowned acclaimed award winning journalist, and i should say ldl climate, nikole hannah-jones. i think that judge jackson explained quite clearly -- it's part of the zeitgeist around issues of race currently, and she raised it in a speech to students who would clearly be interested in net. we know that the 16 19 project is a very popular project and text because of the number one times bestseller that's occupied the front for many weeks. she referenced the author, the actual organizer of the project, nikole hannah-jones, but that has nothing again, to do with her qualifications as a judge. it has nothing to do with the decisions that she wrote or any

of the judgments that she's issued, or any of her professional work. it's not to say that it's off limits to questions someone's speech or oratory writings outside of third judicial background. but to ascribe a negative intention to it, or but or to a scribe of particular viewpoint to it was again, beyond the pale, and completely unjustified. what we saw today was an attempt to assail the character of ketanji brown jackson because her record itself is so good, they're grasping at straws, they're trying to find some way to make her seem unqualified and the failed miserably. >> may i ask you to stay with us, i want to dip into these hearings right now. they are still continuing. senator marsha blackburn of tennessee is now questioning judge ketanji brown-jackson. if you don't mind staying with

me. let's listen. >> she's a mom and grandma mom, and she is -- this is a question that is important to her, to look at life. and senator feinstein talked about that issue with you a little earlier today. you've also said today that it would be an appropriate for you to show your views on political issues are issues that may become -- may come before the court, like abortion. but i want to go to you on something you said when you were in private practice. you made your views on pro-life and the pro-life movement very clear. in fact, you attacked pro-life women. and this was in a brief that you wrote. you describe them, and i am quoting, hostile, noisy crowd of in your face protesters. and quote.

and you advocated against these women's first amendment right to express their sincerely hailed views regarding the sanctity of each individual live. i'm a pro-life woman. 79% of the american women support restrictions of some type on abortion. and so, i find it incredibly concerning that someone who is nominated to a position with life tenure on the supreme court holds such a hostile view toward a view that is held as a mainstream belief that every life is worth protecting. so, how do you justify that

incendiary rhetoric against pro-life women? >> thank you senator. the brief you are referring to was a brief that i filed on behalf of clients who were clients of my law firm. this is in i believe, goodness, 1999 or 2000 -- maybe 2000 or 2001. i was an associate at a law firm and i had a pallet experience because i had just finished my supreme court law clerk position, and in the context of my law firm, i was asked to work on a brief concerning a buffer zone issue in massachusetts at a time there were laws protecting women who wanted to enter

clinics, and there was a first amendment question about the degree to which there had to be room around them to enter the clinic. >> i understand all of that. i am asking about the rhetoric. >> senator, i drafted a brief along with the partners in my law firm who reviewed it. and we filed it on behalf of our clients. to advanced our clients arguments that they wanted to make in the case. >> let me ask you this, when you go to church, knowing they're pro-life women there, do you look at them thinking of them in that way, that they are noisy, hostile, in your face? do you think of pro-life women like me in that way? >> senator, that was a

statement in a brief made for my argument, it's not the way that i think of or characterize people. thank you for the clarification, on that because i think even zealous advocacy doesn't allow that type of rhetoric on a free speech issue. roe v. wade, let's talk a little bit about that. it's come up a touch today. in my opinion, that was an awful act of judicial activism, and it has cost the lives of over 63 million unborn children. nearly 50 years later, the shameful ruling remains binding precedent, but the battle is being fought in the courts. as you know, and as we discussed when we visited the supreme court, it's reconsidering whether the constitution protects the right to an abortion in dobbs. and, if you are confirms, you

will be in a position to apply the court's decision in dobbs. whatever that decision is going to be, and you've talked about following precedent, and what the court decides. do you commit to respecting the courts decision if it rules that roe was wrongly decided, and that the issue of abortion should be sent back to the states? >> senator, whatever the supreme court decides in dobbs will be the precedent of the supreme court, it will be worthy of respect in the sense that it is the precedent, and i commit to treating it as i would any other president. >> there's one other thing, one of the central issues in the dobbs case is about whether the constitution protects the right

to an abortion. let's talk about that. can you explain to me, on a constitutional basis, the courts decision in row and where is abortion protected in the constitution? >> senator, abortion is a right that the supreme court has recognized in -- its one of the kinds of rights that is an enumerated, it is in the same category of writes that the same supreme court has recognized -- >> but the text of the constitution does not mention abortion. >> that is true. >> correct, so you agree that the constitution does not mention the right side of pushing, and yet through one of the most brazen acts of judicial activism, our supreme

court created the rights, through roe v. wade. this is why americans, this is why it's so many women who have talked to are really concerned about who sits on the federal bench, we need injustice who will adhere to the text of the constitution. we've talked a little bit about that today, as you've talked about the historical context, i don't want justices who are going to invents writes out of whole cloth, to serve a political in trust. let's move on, when you are at harvard, your thesis entitled the hand of oppression, plea bargaining processes. in that piece, you argued that judges have, and i'm quoting, personal hidden agendas that influence how they decide places. so what's personal hidden

agendas do you harbor, or do you think other judges harbor? >> thank you senator, that lined to the extent that it appears in my thesis, was written by someone who had not gone to law school, and by his senior in college, who had spent a summer at an internship working and making observations in the context of criminal justice internship. it is not a view that i hold. >> we'll lead you to that belief? >> i am thinking back, it's been 30 years -- but the summer before my senior year, i interned at a public defenders office in new york, and i was part of a team of

lawyers and interns on this team, and they were handling misdemeanor cases. >> so, it was from an internship experience. >> before i became a lawyer. >> let's go to something else. senator cruz was discussing with you, and i think this is important, it's something that parents all across the country are worried about, and that is the progressive indoctrination of their children, and the pushing of critical race theory in the schools. you told senator cruz that as a board member of the georgetown de school, you didn't have any control over what was taught at the school. no control over curriculum, and you weren't aware and that the school was pushing crt. but, i would think that there would have been parents that came to you and said, have you seen these books, are you aware that this is being taught?

being on that school board. >> i'm, no senator. georgetown day school is a private school, it's not a public school. >> i'm fully aware. and you mentioned that you said, that you thought he meant that critical race theory isn't being taught in public schools, correct? but, we know that's not the case. we know that critical race theory is been pushing our k through 12 schools, and i've got a letter here, mister chairman, that senator tuberville and i wrote last year to the national education association on this issue, i'd like to submit that to the record, because it's relevant to our discussion. >> without objection. >> we had i manage the ante a for adopting crt materials

during their annual organizing meetings, and proposing to spend $127,000 impeachers dues to combat opponents of critical race theory. there are countless reports of crt being pushed in the public school system, and a lot of parents that i work with every day, every week, don't have the funds to send their child to a private school. they are relying on the school systems, the public school systems, and it is important to them to have a supreme court that is going to protect parental rights to teach these children, as parents see fit to have their children taught. i will tell you, too, with georgetown de school, i found it astounding that it teaches

kindergartners, five-year-old children. i've got grandchildren, and they teach them that they can choose their gender. so is this why you were praising, when you applauded, and i'm quoting you, transformative power of georgetown de schools progressive education. do you believe our school should teach children that they can choose their gender? >> senator, i'm not remembering exactly what quote you are referencing, but georgetown de school. >> it was in a book, and you gave the quote. >> georgetown de school, is a private school. >> i'm asking if you agree that schools can teach children that

they can choose their gender. >> senator, i'm not making comments about what's schools can teach. >> let me ask you this then, united states versus virginia, the supreme court struck down vmas mail only admission -- just as you ginsburg stated, supposed inherent differences are no longer accepted as a ground for race or national origin classifications. physical differences between men and women, however, are enduring. the two sexes are not fungible, i community made up exclusively of one sex is different from a community composed of both. do you agree with justice ginsburg, that there are physical differences between men and women that are enduring? >> senator, respectfully, i'm

not familiar with that particular quote or case, so it's hard for me to comment -- >> all right, i'd love to get your opinion on that, and you can submit that. do you interpret justice ginsburg's meaning of men and women as male and female. >> i again, because i don't know the case, i don't know how i interpret, i need to read the whole thing. >> can you provide a definition for the word woman. >> can i provide a definition? i can't. >> you can't? >> not in this context, i'm not a biologist. >> the meaning of the word win it is so unclear and controversial that you can't give me a definition? >> senator, in my work as a judge, but i do is i address

disputes. if there is a dispute about a definition, people make arguments, and i look at the law, and i decide. >> well, the fact that you can't give me a straight answer about something as fundamental as when a woman's, and underscores the dangers of the kind of progressive education that we are hearing about. just last week, an entire generation of young girls, watched as our taxpayer funded institutions permitted a biological man to compete and beat a biological woman in the ncaa sewing championship. what message do you think this sends to girls, who aspire to compete and win in sports at the highest levels? >> >> senator, i'm not sure

what message that sense, if you're asking me about the legal messages associated with, it those are topics that are being hotly discussed, as you say, and could come to the court. so i'm unable to -- >> i think it helped tells other girls that their voices don't matter, i think it tells them that they are second-class citizens, and parents want to have a supreme court justice who is committed to preserving parental autonomy, and protecting our nations children. so, let's move on, i want to go to the child porn issue. i know that it's, we discuss this today on several different times, what is troubled to me is your consistent pattern of sentencing these predators below these sentences recommended by the government,

and the sentencing guidelines. senator cruz, senator hawley. >> senator marshall blackburn of tennessee is questioning judge can congee brown jackson is part of the two of the hearings, which are not over yet. we still continue, we have been listening to some of the unusual line of questioning today, this isn't really questioning, she was asking her about judge jackson about whether she can define when a woman is, there's been a lot of concentration on trend's gendered people there's been lots of attention to critical race theory and matters like that, that is more of what we can expect this evening as it continues tomorrow. for now, that does it for us, we are going to see you again tomorrow, but now it's time to hand it over to lawrence o'donnell for the last word. >> good evening, ali. and i've been watching the hearing all days are gonna be discussing that. joy reid is going to join us because she didn't get enough time during her hour to give her reactions to what she has seen and the hearing will be over in just a few minutes. se