Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson

Floor Speech

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, 3 years ago today, this Capitol served as the background for one of the most notable events in recent American history. On April 7, 2022, our country made a monumental stride forward. The Senate confirmed a once-in-a-generation legal talent, a jurist with outstanding credentials and invaluable lived experience, and the first-ever Black woman and former public defender to serve as a Justice of the Supreme Court: Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson.

Justice Jackson's confirmation shattered the glass ceiling and paved the way for future women of color to follow in her footsteps. Her name will be remembered in history for generations to come.

When the Supreme Court first met in the Capitol Building in February of 1801, there were a million slaves in this Nation of 5 million people--a million slaves in a nation of 5 million people. This very building itself was built with the labor of enslaved people. At the time, neither Black Americans nor women had the right to vote. America's battle to end slavery continued through the Civil War and was followed by decades of efforts to break down lingering racial barriers. Those efforts continue to this day.

And our struggle to enfranchise and empower women did not end with the passage of the 19th Amendment. It continues to this day, as we strive to give our daughters the same opportunities as our sons.

The confirmation of Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court honored the history that came before it. It honored the struggles of the past and the men and women who fought for a future where skin color and gender are no longer a barrier to full participation in American society, voting, or seeking the highest positions in our government.

America's history is defined by our enduring effort to bridge the gap between that ideal and our slow march toward progress. But with each generation, we edge closer to making that ideal a reality. In 1965, we ensured that the Federal Government could rigorously protect the right to vote--a right that protects all other rights, for that matter--with the passage of the Voting Rights Act.

Two years later, after passing that civil rights bill, we confirmed the first Black American to ever serve on the Supreme Court, Justice Thurgood Marshall. And more than 50 years later--50 years--we took another step forward by confirming Justice Jackson, the first Black woman to serve on the Court.

I want to give credit where it is due. This was the initiative of President Joe Biden, who made it clear when he was elected President this was his highest priority when it came to the Supreme Court. President Biden kept his word.

With Justice Jackson's confirmation to the highest Court in the land, we not only made history, but we also carried on the great American tradition, elevating our Nation's best and brightest legal minds to a sacred position of service, a seat she now occupies for life. There is no one more deserving of this high honor and profound responsibility than Justice Jackson. She is one of the best.

She has devoted her life to serving our country, and she has done so at every level of the Federal Judiciary. At every turn, she has upheld the Constitution and faithfully followed the rule of law. She is impartial, thoughtful, and even-handed, evaluating every case from, in her words, a ``neutral posture.''

Since her confirmation, Justice Jackson made her mark on the Court, establishing her status as a sharp and inquisitive questioner of the parties before her. And whether she authors majority opinions or dissents, she always demonstrates a brilliant legal mind.

Just a year into her tenure on the Court, Justice Jackson's first major opinion reaffirmed that Medicaid patients unlawfully denied care or abused by healthcare providers can sue under section 1983. Section 1983 is a law enacted following the Civil War, as part of the Ku Klux Klan Act, which allows lawsuits by individuals whose civil rights have been violated. It is a powerful tool for Americans to seek accountability from local, State, and Federal Government officials. At a time when President Trump and unelected ``co-President'' Elon Musk have vowed to cut Medicaid, it is more crucial than ever that we give those who need this program the legal recourse they need if they are denied care or otherwise abused by a provider.

In instances where Justice Jackson has dissented from the majority, she makes a clear case for why she reached that conclusion. Nearly 2 years ago, the Supreme Court ended the use of affirmative action in college and university admissions. Justice Jackson issued a strong compelling dissent, and she wrote:

[D]eeming race irrelevant in law does not make it so in life.

She continued:

And having so detached itself from this country's actual past and present experiences, the Court has now been lured into interfering with the crucial work that . . . institutions of higher learning are doing to solve America's real-world problems.

Mr. President, it is one of the great honors of my life to preside over the confirmation hearing of Justice Jackson during my time as chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee. Justice Jackson's story is one of breaking barriers and paving the way for future women of color to follow in her footsteps.

At a time when the President and his administration are challenging the rule of law in our country as never before, Justice Jackson's presence on the highest Court in the land could not be more important.

I am incredibly proud of all she has accomplished so far during her time on the Supreme Court. I know that Justice Jackson will continue to honor all those who came before her and sat on the bench.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Source