The US Senate gave the green light this Monday to continue the process to confirm the person chosen by President Joe Biden to fill a vacancy on the Supreme CourtKetanji Brown Jackson, who could become the first African-American woman to go to court.
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By 53 votes in favor and 47 votes against, the Democrats approved withdrawing Jackson’s nomination from the Upper House judiciary committee, where shortly before it had been blocked due to a tie between his supporters (11 Democrats) and opponents (11 Republicans). .
The arrival of Jackson to the court would not change the ideological composition of the US Supreme
Accordingly, Senate Progressive Majority Leader Chuck Schumer filed this motion in order to move forward with the nomination process. After the approval of said motion, the plenary session of the Upper House is not expected to vote on the confirmation of the judge until Thursday or Friday of this week.
In principle, the magistrate’s confirmation would not have to be complicated in the chamber, since the fifty Democratic legislators have said that they will vote in her favor, to which the Republicans Susan Collins, Mitt Romney and Lisa Murkowski will be added.
Democrats have a narrow majority in the Senate with 50 seats compared to 50 for Republicansalthough it has the tiebreaking vote of the vice president of the country, Kamala Harris.
During the hearings before the judicial committee, the conservatives have criticized Jackson for her work in defense of the prisoners of Guantánamo (Cuba) and have even accused her of incurring in her career as a judge in a “pattern that allowed the accused of child pornography escape unscathed from their heinous crimes.
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These accusations, provided without evidence, have been criticized by conservative media such as The National Review and even members of the Republican party itself have tried to distance themselves.
Supreme Court nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson.
What changes if Jackson comes to court?
In any case, the arrival of Jackson to the court would not change the ideological composition of the US Supremewhich with six conservative and three progressive justices, is leaning more to the right than at any time since the 1930s.
Jackson was appointed to replace the progressive Stephen Breyer, who will retire at the end of June, so if his appointment is confirmed, the ideological composition of the highest court will not change, with six of the nine members of a conservative tendency.
Some of its members decide to retire and others hold office until their death, such as the progressive Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died in 2020 at the age of 87 and who became the oldest acting judge.
The court today has three conservatives appointed by Biden’s predecessor, Donald Trump.
Like all public officials and presidents in the United States, Supreme Court justices can be impeached and removed from office if they are found guilty of treason, corruption or other serious crimes, something that has never happened before.
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The court held its first session in 1790 and judges have served an average of about 15 years.
However, some serve much longer. Anthony Kennedy, who retired in 2018, was appointed in 1987 by then-President Ronald Reagan and confirmed the following year.
Any candidate for a high court judge must be nominated by the President and then survive a confirmation hearing by the Senate Judiciary Committee. Finally, it must be approved by the full Senate.
AFP and EFE
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