Ketanji Brown Jackson Just Made History

Senate confirms first Black woman to the Supreme Court
By John Johnson,  Newser Staff
Posted Apr 7, 2022 1:18 PM CDT
Ketanji Brown Jackson Just Made History
Ketanji Brown Jackson on Capitol Hill April 4.   (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

For the first time, a Black woman will hear cases on the Supreme Court. The Senate on Thursday confirmed Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to the court, where she will replace the retiring Stephen Breyer. The vote was 53-47, reports the Washington Post. Republicans Susan Collins of Maine, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, and Mitt Romney of Utah joined all Democrats in voting for her. The 51-year-old Jackson currently sits on the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. Her elevation to the high court will not change the court's 6-3 conservative majority. CNN notes that she will not be sworn in until after Breyer retires this summer.

Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer said it was “a joyous, momentous, groundbreaking day” in his remarks on the Senate floor. “This milestone should have happened generations ago—generations ago—but we are always trodding on a path towards a more perfect union,” he said. “America today is taking a giant step towards making our union more perfect.” Jackson's Republicans critics, notably Sens. Tom Cotton of Arkansas, Ted Cruz of Texas, and Josh Hawley of Missouri, generally accused her of being soft on crime, though the Post notes that her sentencings have not been "out of line for federal judges generally." (More Ketanji Brown Jackson stories.)

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