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Taking part in his first confirmation hearing as ranking member on the Judiciary Committee, Sen. Jeff Sessions on Tuesday gave an early preview of the tack he might take with a nominee to the Supreme Court.

The Alabama Republican grilled Judge Gerard Lynch, President Obama's nominee for the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, announcing at the start his concerns that Lynch would "harbor activist tendencies and legislate from the bench." Sessions went on to press Lynch on his handling of a child pornography case from seven years ago in which he planned to inform the jury about the minimum sentence the defendant would face if found guilty.

Sessions accused Lynch of inserting his personal feelings into the case with his proposed jury instructions, which were overturned after prosecutors filed an emergency stay. "This forced prosecutors to either choose appeal or buckle under," Sessions said. "On this particular question, you went beyond the normal role of a judge, wouldn't you agree?"

Lynch didn't agree, asserting that his decisions at the time were appropriate. He also emphasized that his colleagues on the bench and in government hold him in high esteem. "They would be unanimously of the view that I am a fair judge, I do not threaten prosecutors, I don't play games and tricks, I'm a straight-shooter, that I tell a prosecutor what I plan to do," Lynch said.

When asked by Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., about how he defines judicial restraint, Lynch's remarks seemed addressed to Sessions as well. "Judges are to decide only the issues that are before them, quite apart from the legislator," he said. He added that "Congress is not only a co-equal branch, but it's the branch that speaks for the people."