According to speculations, Justice Stephen Breyer would retire, allowing Biden the opportunity to choose his replacement, and President Biden's commitment to name a Black woman to the Supreme Court has received additional attention.
Almost as soon as news of Breyer's retirement broke on Wednesday, Democrats urged Biden to choose a candidate who would honor his campaign promise to the people.
Biden vows to nominate a Black woman
Biden pledged to nominate the first Black woman to the Supreme Court of the United States on the campaign trail. He also stated that he had developed a list of Black women who may be considered for the position.
According to the book "Lucky," House Minority Whip James Clyburn (D-S.C.), a close ally of Biden and one of the most powerful Black members in Congress, had asked Biden to bring up the notion of nominating a Black woman to the Supreme Court during the February discussion.
In an interview with Bloomberg TV last September, Clyburn said he felt it was important to bring up the issue with Biden and remind him that this is a simmering issue in the African American community, that Black women believe they have the same right to sit on the Supreme Court as any other woman, and that none had been considered until that point, according to The Hill.
Besides having four women on the bench, it would be the first time an African-American woman has served as a Supreme Court justice. On every level of the court, black women are underrepresented as judges, and only a few of those women will have the history, age, and credentials to be a nominee. As a result, Biden's shortlist becomes even shorter, and at the moment, two people stand out: Ketanji Brown Jackson and Leondra Kruger.
The fact that the White House is aware that she can enlist the help of Republicans is a plus for Jackson. Three Republicans, Senators Lindsey Graham, Susan Collins, and Lisa Murkowski, voted in her favor when the Senate approved her to fill a seat on a District of Columbia appellate court in June.
Before publishing, Newsweek reached out to Graham, Collins, and Murkowski to see whether they would endorse Jackson for the opening of the Supreme Court.
Possible Supreme Court nominees
Because of the high stakes, their support isn't assured at a confirmation hearing. Kruger might have as much or more Republican support than Jackson, according to Deepak Gupta, the head of the legal firm Gupta Wessler and a Harvard professor.
Kruger worked as an assistant to President Barack Obama's attorney general before joining the California Supreme Court. She knows the interaction between attorneys and the court since she has argued before the Supreme Court. However, because she was not the Attorney General and the buck stops there, it may be tough to criticize her opinions, Newsweek via MSN reported.
Ketanji Brown Jackson, a Washington, DC, appeals court judge; Leondra Kruger, a Supreme Court justice in California; Michelle Childs, a South Carolina district court judge; Leslie Abrams Gardner, a Georgia district judge; civil rights attorney Sherrilyn Ifill; and even Vice President Kamala Harris have all been mentioned as possible candidates.
The most probable candidate is 51-year-old Michael Jackson. She has served as a judge on the District of Columbia's US Court of Appeals. In 2013, she served as a judge on the US District Court for the District of Columbia, where she had previously served as a judge. She also worked for Breyer as a clerk and was a former public defender.
A number of Supreme Court justices have used the DC Circuit as a springboard for their careers. The late Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Antonin Scalia, as well as John Roberts, Clarence Thomas, and Brett Kavanaugh, all served on the DC Circuit.
Sens. Susan Collins (Maine), Lindsey Graham (S.C.), and Lisa Murkowski (AK) voted with Democrats to confirm Jackson to her present position in a 53-44 vote (Alaska). In 2013, the Senate unanimously confirmed Jackson to her old position on the US District Court.
Former House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) may be in the audience for Jackson's Senate confirmation hearing if Biden nominates her. After all, the judge's spouse, Patrick Johnson, is the twin brother of Ryan's brother-in-law William Jackson, and the two are related, as per HuffPost.
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