Floridians don’t often expect their elected leaders to rise above partisanship, in part because they know it’s unlikely to happen. But as the U.S. Senate considers the nomination of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to the U.S. Supreme Court, Floridians should demand that senators Rick Scott and Marco Rubio deal with her nomination fairly and honestly — and that they hold their fellow senators to the same standard.
It won’t be easy. President Joe Biden announced Jackson’s nomination during the opening days of CPAC, the annual event that has evolved into a four-day tent revival for the radical wing of the Republican Party that still appears to be firmly in the grip of former President Donald Trump and his acolytes. Conference attendees quickly turned the nomination into red meat to sharpen their knives on, flinging muddy innuendos and making barely veiled appeals to racism. One common theme insists that Biden only chose Jackson for her race and gender — ignoring her exceptional qualifications to fill the vacancy left by the retirement of Associate Justice Stephen Breyer.
Jackson, who grew up in Miami, will certainly make history on the high court — but not only as the first Black female ever to serve. Her reputation for thoughtful, insightful legal analysis defies the liberal firebrand tag that some politicians are already seeking to brand her with. And her qualifications are unique and valuable, making her well-suited to evaluate the big questions before the court.
