Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson talks in the White House Cross Hall after President Joe Biden revealed Jackson as his Supreme Court nomination.
"If I'm confirmed as the next associate justice of the United States Supreme Court, I can only hope that my life and career, my love for this country and the Constitution, and my commitment to upholding the rule of law and the sacred principles upon which this country and the Constitution were founded will inspire future generations," Jackson said, flanked by President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris.
The event provided a huge opportunity for Jackson to present herself to the public, as it was broadcast live on cable news networks. Biden praised Jackson as someone who “strives to be fair, to get it right, to do justice. That is something all of us should remember. That is something I have thought about throughout this process.”
Biden noted her experience on the U.S. Sentencing Commission, making her unique among nominees, but also highlighted that she had a brother and two uncles serving as police officers. The president mentioned that the Fraternal Order of Police, at times in disagreement with Jackson on issues of criminal justice reform, issued a statement saying that there is “little doubt that she has the temperament, intellect, legal experience, and family background to have earned this appointment.”
That emphasis on her background seemed to be aimed at potential Republican opposition to her nomination, particularly as Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell signaled that they would tie her to far left groups.
In her speech, Jackson talked extensively about her family, including her father, who made the decision to go to law school after working as a public high school teacher. “Some of my earliest memories are of him sitting at the kitchen table, reading his law books. I watched him study and he became my first professional role model.”
If confirmed, Jackson, 51, would be the first Black woman to serve on the court, fulfilling a pledge that Biden made during his presidential campaign. She has been a leading contender to be elevated to the high court. Last year, three Senate Republicans joining with Democrats to confirm her to the influential D.C. circuit.
The news of Jackson’s nomination briefly shifted the focus away from the unfolding crisis in Ukraine on major news networks, with CNN’s Jake Tapper first to report with a tweet at 5:44 AM PT that she was the pick. Among the broadcasters, ABC News broke in with a special report, anchored by George Stephanopoulos, and NBC News had a report anchored by Savannah Guthrie.
The White House is anticipated to make a formal statement later on Friday.
Jackson served as a district judge from 2013 to 2021, and she made headlines in 2019 when she declared that the White House could not defy a congressional subpoena for then-White House counsel Don McGahn's testimony. She wrote, "Presidents are not kings."
Jackson worked for Breyer as a law clerk. She graduated from Harvard Law School in 1996 and worked at Harvard-Radcliffe College as a supervising editor in 1992. She also worked as an assistant federal public defender and served on the United States Sentencing Commission as vice chair and commissioner.
Jackson disputed this during her ruled in the McGahn case with an eye toward an eventual nomination to the Supreme Court. confirmation before the Court of Appeals last year.
"I know very well what my obligations are, what my duties are," she said, according to The Washington Post. "I know very well what my obligations are, what my duties are, not to rule with partisan advantage in mind, not to tailor or craft my decisions in order to gain influence or do anything of the sort."
Since then, I understand she has issued two opinions, both in the last few weeks, and one of her previous judgements was recently overturned by a unanimous panel of her current D.C. Circuit colleagues," McConnell added. "I also realize that far-left dark-money groups backed Judge Jackson, who have spent years assaulting the Court's legitimacy and structure."
