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President Biden is nominating Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court, making good on a campaign promise to pick the first Black woman for the nation’s highest court.
Brown Jackson, 51, is a judge for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia.
“I’m proud to announce that I am nominating Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to serve on the Supreme Court,” Biden wrote in a Friday morning tweet confirming his pick. “Currently serving on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, she is one of our nation’s brightest legal minds and will be an exceptional Justice.”
Biden will make the announcement on Friday, marking the first Supreme Court pick of his presidency after Justice Stephen Breyer, 83, announced his retirement last month.
Brown Jackson has faced heightened scrutiny over a judicial record that includes high-profile rulings later overruled by higher courts.
President Biden is nominating Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court. (Bill O’Leary/The Washington Post via Getty Images)
Brown Jackson’s record was a focal point last year during her confirmation for a seat on the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, where she now sits.
The judge was said to be one of three candidates who was interviewed personally by Biden.
The Supreme Court is now dominated 6-3 by conservatives after former President Donald Trump named three nominees.
Ketanji Brown Jackson, is President Biden’s Supreme Court nominee to replace outgoing Justice Stephen Breyer. (Photo by Kevin Lamarque-Pool/Getty Images)
Democrats have applauded Biden’s commitment to nominate a Black woman to the nation’s highest court, though some Republicans have raised objections.
Sen. Ted Cruz, who sits on the Senate Judiciary Committee, previously told “Fox News Sunday” that Biden’s promise amounted to racial discrimination.
“What the president said is that only African American women are eligible for this slot, that 94% of Americans are ineligible,” Cruz said. “The way Biden ought to do it is to say ‘I’m going to look for the best justice,’ interview a lot of people, and if he happens to nominate a justice who was an African American woman, then great.”
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Biden had promised to make the pick by the end of February. The announcement comes ahead of his State of the Union address to Congress next week, as his approval ratings continue to slide, including among Democrats.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
