Ketanji Brown Jackson is the first black woman elected to the US Supreme Court

In a Twitter message, Biden called Jackson “one of the brightest legal minds” and said he would be an “exceptional judge.”

The 51-year-old has long been considered a leading candidate for the position, especially after Biden lifted her from a lower court last year to the Washington Court of Appeals, which is seen as the second highest court after the Supreme Court.

Jackson is popular with liberal lawyers who want to replace Breyer with a judge willing to fight ideologically against conservatives who now have a massive six-person majority on the court.

The White House quickly took action to reassure the public that Jackson had a great background. “Because of her diverse and broad public service, Judge Jackson has a unique experience, so it is important for the justice system to be a fair and impartial judge. Since many of her family are law enforcement officers, she understands the importance of very good court rulings,” the White House wrote in Announcing Jackson’s nomination.

There is no doubt that liberals will love Jackson. In 2019, she was a sharp advocate of the court rejecting then-President Donald Trump’s request, So that he does not have to reveal the details of his political actions in Ukraine. “Simply put, the main conclusion from the last 250 years of American history is that presidents are not kings,” Jackson wrote at the time, rejecting Trump’s right to prevent his subordinates from testifying.

Just two months ago, Jackson voted in favor of a landmark court decision rejecting Trump’s efforts to prevent disclosure of White House files while he presided before a House investigative committee. The storming of the Capitol on January 6, 2021

Born in Washington and raised in South Florida, Jackson would – if approved by the US Senate – become the third black person to sit on the Supreme Court. Her candidacy also fulfills Biden’s campaign promise to elect an African American woman.

Jackson emerged as Biden’s top pick during a month-long search that was said to have included the president’s conversations with at least three women judges: Jackson, South Carolina federal judge Michelle Childs, and California Supreme Court Justice Leondra Krueger.

Chairman of the Senate Committee for the Judiciary. Dick Durbin, who will oversee the hearings to approve the selection of Jackson, strongly supported Biden’s decision. Durbin, who has previously said he wants hearings in about three weeks and a vote by mid-April, has pledged the election will run smoothly.

Leader of the Senate Republican Minority. Mitch McConnell responded to the White House ad by ridiculing Jackson’s credentials and painting it as revenge for liberals angry at the conservative bias of the Supreme Court. – She voted against Judge Jackson’s approval of her current position less than a year ago. Since then, she’s realized that she’s published a total of two opinions, in the past few weeks, and that one of her previous rulings had just been overturned by a panel of her current colleagues in court, McConnell said.

A graduate of Harvard College and Harvard Law School, Jackson shares school pedigrees common to every member of the Supreme Court except for his newest member. Judge Amy Connie Barrett. Liberals also love her resume because Jackson has spent a lot of time in her career dealing with criminal law or matters of public interest.

After serving on Judge Breyer’s team, Jackson held a variety of legal positions, including as an assistant federal defense attorney in Washington, and as a counsel on a special pardon committee. President Barack Obama nominated her to the Washington District Court in 2012.

Jackson will likely have to respond during the US Senate’s confirmation process about her rulings that were overturned by the Court of Appeals, including her decision to reject Trump’s attempt to speed up deportation of immigrants and executive orders limiting the powers of state labor unions.

However, the US Senate’s approval for Jackson to become a Supreme Court justice is highly likely, with both Republicans and Democrats getting 50 votes there. If the vote for and against Jackson is split along party lines, Vice President Kamala Harris will cast a casting vote.

In recent years, these votes have already been made according to party allegiance, but Jackson may be able to win some Republican votes. He has family ties with the former Speaker of the US House of Representatives on behalf of the Republican Party, Paul Ryan. Her twin brother-in-law is Ryan’s brother-in-law, who would be a congressman and supported her appointment as a district court judge.

Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer announced last month that he would retire in June or July. (U.S. Supreme Court justices are elected for life.) Breyer, 83, has been pressured by liberal legal activists for some time to make way for a junior judge who could serve the coming decades on the bench of the Supreme Court.