Highlights from Senate vote to confirm Ketanji Brown Jackson

Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., who is pro-life, brought up abortion, asking Jackson, "Can you explain to me, on a constitutional basis, the court's decision in Roe -- and where is abortion protected in the constitution?

Jackson acknowledged abortion isn't mentioned in the Constitution. But she stressed, "Abortion is a right that the Supreme Court has recognized is one of the kinds of rights that is unenumerated."

The Supreme Court is set to take up one of the largest threats to abortion protections guaranteed by Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey with their consideration of Dobbs v. Jackson's Women's Health Organization, a challenge to a Mississippi law that bans nearly all abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy.

Jackson told Blackburn, "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 precedent."

Blackburn also asked the nominee about gender, first asking if she thinks "schools should teach children that they can choose their gender." Jackson declined to comment.

When Blackburn asked Jackson if she could define the word "woman," she replied, "Not in this context -- I'm not a biologist."

"In my work as a judge, what 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," Jackson said.

Blackburn also asked about transgender athletes, mentioning a collegiate transgender swimmer who recently won a women's 500-yard freestyle event. Blackburn said, "What message do you think this sends to girls who aspire to compete and win in sports at the highest levels?"

"I'm not sure what message that sends," Jackson said. "If you're asking me about the legal issues, those are topics that are being hotly discussed, as you say, and could come to the court."

-ABC News' Brittany Shepherd

In a light-hearted moment, when Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Calif., began his questioning, Jackson acknowledged it is his birthday.

Padilla's first question for Jackson was why she wants to join the Supreme Court.

She said, "I came to love the law starting as early as 4 years old watching my dad study when he went back to law school when I was a child."

"I would just be so honored to have the opportunity to use my time and talents in this way," she said.

Padilla asked about Jackson's clerkship experience and if she thinks there should be a more diverse pool of law clerks.

Jackson clerked for three federal judges, including Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer, whose seat she is nominated for.

As a clerk, she said, "I got to understand how judges think as they evaluate cases, which for a young lawyer is an extraordinary training opportunity."

"I know how important it is for people to see that people like me are in the judicial branch … it's been part of my practice to go to schools, to reach out to young people, to tell them about clerking, to try to get them to apply," she said. "I think it's to the benefit of us all to have as many different law students seeking clerkships as possible."

Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., asked Jackson if she believes efforts to pack the Supreme Court delegitimize it, to which Jackson responded, "I feel so strongly about ensuring that judges remain out of political debates."

Kennedy accused her of dodging the question, but Jackson said she doesn't have a strong opinion on the issue and it wouldn’t be appropriate for her to comment on it.

Kennedy kept pressing, asking Jackson if she'd be OK if the Supreme Court had 28 justices.

"If that’s Congress' determination -- yes. Congress makes political decisions like that," she said.

Kennedy also asked about what judicial restraint means to her.

Jackson said one example is adhering to precedent, which she said "is something that I do, and even in cases … in which they're not binding precedents."

"I find that the court needs to take into consideration what has previously been determined and not be a policy maker in my decisions," she said.

Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., defended Jackson after she was grilled by Republicans over sentencing, saying that "line of attack… doesn't hold water."

"I was a little insulted about the accusation that somehow, this mother of two, confirmed three times by the United States Senate, who has victim advocacy groups writing letters for … that somehow the implication that you are somehow out of the norm of other federal judges that we have confirmed …this implication that somehow your thoughtfulness on these very dense, fact-specific cases, is somehow out of norm, to me, does not hold up -- doesn't hold water," he said.

As Jackson's parents looked on, Booker said he wanted America to know more about Jackson's character and asked her to share about the values she's inherited from her parents.

Jackson got emotional as she spoke about her family, recounting how her parents were the first in their families to attend college. They "taught me hard work. They taught me perseverance. They taught me that anything is possible in this great country," she said.

She said her parents became "extraordinary public servants" because they wanted to give back to their community. And that they raised her in Washington, D.C., "on that hope and dream," "born here with an African name."

Booker also touched on Jackson's faith, asking her, "Where do you get the grit and guts to get back up and keep on going?"

Jackson responded by talking about her grandparents, who she said "didn't have it easy."

They "didn't have a lot of formal education," but "were the hardest working people I've ever known and got up every day and put one foot after the other and provided for their families and made sure their children went to college, even though they never had the opportunities," Jackson said.

"I stand on the shoulders of people from that generation," she said. "And I focus, at times, on my faith when I'm going through hard times. ... I think that's a common experience of Americans -- that when you go through difficult times you lean into family and you turn to faith."

Her voice shaking, she talked about the difficulties she's faced as a mom.

As a judge, she said, "There will be hearings during your daughters' recitals, emergencies on birthdays."

"I didn't always get the balance right," she said, adding that she hopes her daughters "can know that you don't have to be perfect in your career trajectory and you can still end up doing what you want to do."