President Joe Biden‘s administration held a celebratory ceremony outside the White House on Friday to commemorate the confirmation of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson, who will assume the role as the first black female Supreme Court justice later this year.
“It has taken 232 years and 115 prior appointments for a black woman to be selected to serve on the Supreme Court of the United States,” Jackson said during her speech. “In my family, it took just one generation to go from segregation to the Supreme Court of the United States.”
Jackson opened her speech recounting the “thousands of cases” and “hundreds” of written opinions she has participated in over her years as a federal judge, adding she is “humbled and honored to continue in this fashion as an associate justice” to the high court.
“And in every instance, I have done my level best to stay in my lane and to reach a result that is consistent with my understanding of the law and with the obligation to rule independently without fear or favor,” Jackson said.
SENATE CONFIRMS JUDGE KETANJI BROWN JACKSON AS NEXT SUPREME COURT JUSTICE
Today is a good day for America. A day that history will remember. Tune in as the Vice President, Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson, and I deliver remarks on the Senate’s historic, bipartisan confirmation. https://t.co/sRxo0MpkcX
— President Biden (@POTUS) April 8, 2022
Vice President Kamala Harris was the first to take the podium, saying Jackson’s confirmation will inspire “generations of leaders.” Biden first tapped Jackson in February as his nominee to replace retiring Justice Stephen Breyer after his nearly 28 years on the high court.
“They will watch your confirmation hearings and read your decisions in the years to come. The court will answer fundamental questions about who we are and what kind of country we live in,” Harris said. “Will we expand opportunity or be restricted? Will we strengthen the foundations of our great democracy or let them crumble? Will we move forward or backward?”
The ceremony was attended by Jackson’s family, as well as prominent figures such as the Rev. Al Sharpton, along with members of Congress who heavily aided through Jackson’s confirmation process, including Democratic Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Senate Judiciary Chairman Dick Durbin.
Biden lauded the three Republicans who helped the Senate confirm Jackson in a 53-47 vote on Thursday: Mitt Romney of Utah, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, and Susan Collins of Maine. He also praised Jackson for her ability to withstand criticism levied against her by GOP members of the Senate Judiciary Committee, which involved Jackson’s sentencing record and her past experience as a public defender.
“There was verbal abuse, the anger, constant interruptions, most vile, baseless assertions and accusations. In the face of it all, Judge Jackson showed the incredible character and integrity she possesses,” Biden said.
Among the list of special thanks Jackson professed was former President Barack Obama, saying he “put his faith in me by nominating me to my first judicial role on the federal district court.”
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She also praised Jackson’s prior clerkship with Breyer as “an extraordinary gift,” saying she is “daunted by the prospect” of following in his footsteps.
“Indeed, to be able to do so with even the smallest amount of his wisdom, grace, and joy … has proven especially significant for me during this past decade of my service as a federal judge,” Jackson said.
Jackson will assume her role on the bench after Breyer retires at the end of the 2021-2022 Supreme Court term this summer.
