Supreme Court Shake-Up: Justice Stephen Breyer Retires; Joe Biden Gets Opportunity To Name 1st Black Woman To Top Court
deadline.comAfter almost three decades on the Supreme Court, Justice Stephen Breyer is stepping down.With an official announcement expected soon, the not all together unexpected news from the liberal leaning 83-year old Associate Justice while a Democrat is in the White House now provides President Joe Biden with an opportunity to name a replacement.
Justice Breyer is the oldest member of the conservative majority High CourtAlways a big play for any POTUS, naming a successor to Breyer could be the beginning of Democrats’ long game effort to counter the current SCOTUS conservative majority by running out their clock with younger Justices.
With the 2022 midterm elections anticipated to be close and Democrats potentially losing their power in the already 50-50 Senate and the House of Representatives, Justice Breyer’s exit may also be the only opening Biden has to get a strong and long-lasting nominee confirmed.Also, the SCOTUS is expected to hand down seismic rulings on matters such as abortion in the coming months heading into confirmation hearings for any nominee.
Adding to that is the fact that then candidate Biden pledged during the bitter 2020 campaign that if elected he would name the first Black woman to the Supreme Court.Being that the appellate court is usually the source for Supreme Court nominees, the spotlight has therefore become even brighter on Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson since her elevation to the U.S.
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