Supreme Court Justice Liberal Justice Stephen Breyer will formally step down on Thursday, paving the way for President-elect Joe Biden’s Ketanji Brown Jackson to be sworn in for life to replace him, the court has announced. Jackson, 51, is set to become the first black woman to serve on the nation’s highest court since she was confirmed by the Senate on April 7. Breyer, 83, has been in court since 1994 and announced his plans to retire in January. He will retire at noon (16:00 GMT) on Thursday, shortly after the court issues its last of its decisions for his current term. “It was a great honor for me to participate as a judge in the effort to preserve our Constitution and the rule of law,” Breyer said in a letter to Biden. Breyer, the court’s former judge, was often at loggerheads in a court that never moved to the right, including last Friday when his conservative majority overturned the constitutional right to abortion recognized in the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling. Breyer also disagreed with another major decision last week, when conservatives in the court first upheld the U.S. Constitution’s right to bear arms. The Jackson ratification by the Senate marked a victory for Biden, who tried to infuse the federal judiciary with a wider range of backgrounds. Jackson, who served at the beginning of her career as a clerk in the Supreme Court for Breyer, will become the sixth female judge. For the first time, four women will serve together on the floor. He will take Breyer’s place in the Liberal bloc of a 6-3 Conservative court, whose actions in recent weeks have shown a willingness to assert his power by deciding and deciding decisively on controversial issues. In addition to landmark rulings on gun rights and abortion rulings, the court has issued a series of rulings that extend religious rights, destroying the wall that separates church and state. In just the past two weeks, the court has allowed more public funding for private schools that teach and promote religion – including those that ban LGBT students and teachers – and upheld a soccer coach at a state high school. prayers with players on the field after the games. The court’s conservative wing was strengthened with the addition in 2020 of former President Donald Trump’s third appointee, Amy Connie Barrett. Her appointment changed the dynamics of the court by marginalizing Supreme Judge John Roberts, allowing his Conservative bloc to garner the five votes needed to decide cases without him. Roberts is considered more of a growing conservative. Trump’s other two appointees were Judges Neil Gorsos and Brett Cavanaugh. The Conservative majority can last for years – possibly decades – and has signaled interest in other major changes to the law. The race will be big during the next term of the Supreme Court, which starts in October. A major case could end the positive action policies used by colleges and universities in their admissions processes to increase enrollment of Black and Hispanic students to achieve campus diversity. Ending such policies was another goal of the Conservatives. Another major case involving the Alabama U.S. District Charter, which a lower court deemed discriminatory against black voters, could further weaken the Voting Rights Act, a landmark 1965 federal law. prohibiting racist bias in voting. The Morning and Afternoon Newsletters are compiled by Globe editors, giving you a brief overview of the day’s most important headlines. Register today.
