US Supreme Court: Black woman nominated for Supreme Court

US Supreme Court: Black woman nominated for Supreme Court

During the election campaign, Joe Biden promised to nominate a black woman for a US Supreme Court justice if he got the chance. It’s a historic moment for the Supreme Court.

For the first time in the US, a black woman could become a judge on the Supreme Court. US President Joe Biden nominated lawyer Ketanji Brown Jackson for the vacant post on the Supreme Court.

The 51-year-old is one of the “smartest lawyers in our country and will be an extraordinary judge,” said Biden. She is a “historic candidate”. Jackson has been traded as a top candidate for the post for weeks. The Senate must confirm their nomination. Biden wants to officially introduce the candidate to the White House on Friday afternoon (local time).

Jackson has served as a judge on the District Court of Appeals for the Capital District of Columbia since 2021. The court is considered particularly important in the US because of its jurisdiction over the US Congress and many government agencies. She was born in the US capital Washington and grew up in Florida. Jackson studied at the elite Harvard University and worked as a lawyer.

The White House said Biden was looking for a candidate who advocates for equality before the law and understands the impact of Supreme Court decisions on the lives of the American people.

With its decisions on particularly controversial issues such as abortion, immigration or same-sex marriages, the US Supreme Court repeatedly sets the course for society. In January, 83-year-old Liberal Justice Stephen Breyer announced his resignation. His departure allows Biden to fill a seat on the politically contested Supreme Court for the first time since taking office. Jackson has worked for Breyer in the past. Biden had promised to nominate a black woman and at the same time a bipartisan candidate.

Justices of the Supreme Court are appointed for life. Their selection is therefore a highly competitive political process. The Senate must approve Biden’s nomination. Biden’s Democrats only have a wafer-thin majority in the House of Representatives. Two Republicans and one Republican also voted in favor of Jackson’s appeal to the Circuit Court last year. One of them was Lindsey Graham. He now wrote on Twitter that the nomination shows that “the radical left has won over President Biden again.” Republicans had previously attacked Biden for his promise of a black woman.

For Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, Jackson’s nomination is “an important step in ensuring that the Supreme Court reflects the nation as a whole.” He announced that he would work in the Senate for a “fair, timely and expeditious process”. He assumes that Jackson will once again receive bipartisan support in the Senate. Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell said: “The Senate must thoroughly and exhaustively review Judge Jackson’s nomination to the Supreme Court.”

The personnel does not change the conservative majority at the court, but is politically of great importance. Ex-President Donald Trump was able to place three judges on the Supreme Court, which is why six of the nine judges are currently considered conservative. The current Supreme Court is Clarence Thomas, an African American, and Sonia Sotomayor, a Latina.

Source: Stern

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