Anti-abortion groups are denouncing Ketanji Brown Jackson‘s nomination to the Supreme Court as a reinforcement of the “regime of abortion.”
President Joe Biden nominated the federal judge on Friday to replace Justice Stephen Breyer, which would make Jackson the first black woman on the high court’s bench if confirmed by the Senate. Aside from her unique work as a public defender nominated to the high court, Jackson is expected to side with the other two Democratic-appointed justices on key issues, including abortion, gun rights, and affirmative action.
“Joe Biden is fulfilling his promise to only appoint justices who support the Roe v. Wade regime of abortion on demand up to birth — a policy so extreme only a handful of countries in the world hold it, including North Korea and China,” said Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of the anti-abortion group Susan B. Anthony List.
MEDICATION ABORTION ACCOUNTS FOR MORE THAN HALF OF US ABORTIONS, SURVEY FINDS
Jackson is a judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit and has previously worked as an attorney representing progressive causes, though she has never ruled specifically on a case that dealt with abortion matters. Still, she has been backed by numerous groups supportive of legal abortion, including NARAL Pro-Choice America.
During confirmation proceedings to the D.C. Circuit last year, Jackson was asked whether she believes Roe v. Wade was correctly decided. She responded it would be “inappropriate” to answer because Supreme Court decisions were binding on her as a lower court judge.
But prior to her 2012 nomination to a federal district court, Jackson served as an advisory school board member for the Montrose Christian School in Rockville, Maryland, in 2010 and 2011. The school’s website underscores its values under a variety of “Christ-centered” principles, including a statement that says: “We should speak on behalf of the unborn and contend for the sanctity of all human life from conception to natural death,” according to a previous version of the web page seen by the National Review in 2016.
Ed Whelan, a senior fellow for the Ethics and Public Policy Center, wrote in 2016 it was possible Jackson was unaware of Montrose’s values or that she sought to change them but nevertheless concluded left-wing advocates would “mercilessly attack any Supreme Court nominee of a Republican president who had such a tie.”
Jackson’s confirmation comes as the Supreme Court is poised to deliver rulings later this year over cases related to abortion laws in Texas and Mississippi, which could ultimately weaken Roe, the 1973 case holding that abortion is a constitutional right.
Before he was elected, Biden campaigned on the promise of unity and moderation. But since taking office, he has continued to deliver radical extremism. With the nomination of Jackson today, Biden continues to placate his liberal dark money friends. /3
— Carrie Severino (@JCNSeverino) February 25, 2022
Other conservative advocates, such as Carrie Severino, president of the Judicial Crisis Network, took to Twitter on Friday to decry Biden’s selection as a continuation to “deliver radical extremism.”
“Biden continues to placate his liberal dark money friends,” Severino said.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
The next step in the process for Jackson will be through confirmation proceedings in the Senate, where the narrow majority of Democrats must unite to place her on the bench or otherwise rely on the possibility for some Republicans to give her their vote.
“We urge the Members of the Senate to stand for our nation’s mothers and most vulnerable unborn by rejecting this extreme nominee, and we encourage the nomination of a judge who will honor our Constitution and the right to life,” said Jeanne Mancini, president of the March for Life Education and Defense Fund, on Friday.
