complex legal problems, the better. >> jackson also pushed back when republican senator john cornyn specifically asked about the role her race plays in her professional life. >> i don't think that race plays a role in the kind of judge that i have been and that i would be. i've experienced life in perhaps a different way than some of my colleagues because of who i am. and that might be valuable. >> even before jackson became a judge, she tackled inequities in the criminal justice system. as vice chair on u.s. sentencing commission, jackson and six other members decided unanimously to lower federal judge sentences. >> i said, justice demands this result. >> reporter: the reductions had wide ranging impact. they were retroactive, meaning 30,000 federal prisoners got their sentences lowered. >> she has the big law firms as part of her résumé, but she also has this very professional interest in serving those who often are more marginalized before the law, being a public defender, working on the u.s. sentencing commission.