Tag Archives: Supreme Court

NBC News reports: The Supreme Court ruled unanimously on Monday that the city of Boston violated the Constitution when it refused to let a local organization fly a Christian flag in front of city hall. While the case had religious overtones, the decision was fundamentally about free speech rights. The court said the city created a public forum, open to …

The New York Times reports: President Biden planned to celebrate the confirmation of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court with a ceremony on the White House South Lawn on Friday. The event, scheduled for 12:15 p.m., will commemorate the appointment of the first Black woman to the court alongside a bipartisan group of senators who voted to confirm …

Bloomberg News reports: The first Black woman justice won’t start hearing arguments until the next term begins in October. The justice-in-waiting hasn’t said how she’d spend the next three months, though she will almost certainly devote time to hiring law clerks and deciding how she will run her chambers. Although Jackson can remain on the appeals court until Breyer retires, …

The New York Times reports: Faced with a historic pick who would not change the ideological divide of the court, top Senate Republicans had initially promised a respectful review of her record to show they could scrutinize a judicial nominee without personal attacks. Few questioned her qualifications, and Judge Jackson had been reviewed and approved by the Judiciary Committee three …

The Associated Press reports: The Senate cleared the way Thursday for a final vote to confirm Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court, preparing to endorse the Black woman on the high court and giving President Joe Biden a bipartisan endorsement for his historic pick. A 53-47 vote to cut off debate Thursday morning came hours before Jackson’s expected confirmation. …

The Huffington Post reports: Sens. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) and Mitt Romney (R-Utah) announced Monday night that they will vote to confirm Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court, making them the second and third Republicans to confirm their vote for President Joe Biden’s court pick. “After multiple in-depth conversations with Judge Jackson and deliberative review of her record and recent …

Yahoo News reports: The Senate Judiciary Committee was split on whether to approve the nomination of Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court. The vote on Monday went as expected, with the committee’s Democrats voting in favor of holding a Senate-wide confirmation vote, and the Republicans opposing her nomination’s advancement. The vote was split, but Democrats control the Senate, allowing …

Reuters reports: The Senate Judiciary Committee on Monday voted 11-11 along party lines on U.S. President Joe Biden’s Supreme Court nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson, with the full Senate still expected to confirm her later in the week as the first Black woman to serve on the top U.S. judicial body. The deadlocked committee vote, with Biden’s fellow Democrats in favor …

Yahoo News reports: Members of the Senate Judiciary Committee are scheduled to vote on Ketanji Brown Jackson’s nomination for the Supreme Court. It kicks off a potentially historic week in which a full Senate vote could set course for the nation’s highest court seating it’s first Black female judge. The elevation of Jackson to the Supreme Court would not change …

The Hill reports: Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) is putting public and private pressure on Senate Republican colleagues to oppose President Biden’s nominee to the Supreme Court, despite the historic nature of her nomination to be the first Black woman on the court. McConnell has dug in against Biden’s nominee, arguing the vote isn’t about “race or gender” but …

NBC News reports: A Navy fuel ship will be named for the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg in recognition of her efforts to advance women’s rights and gender equality, Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro said Thursday. The future John Lewis-class replenishment oiler — a ship that transfers fuel to the Navy’s operating carrier strike groups — will be …

South Carolina’s The State reports: U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina said he will not vote for Judge Kentanji Brown Jackson to serve on the Supreme Court, denying President Joe Biden of another Republican vote for his historic nominee who will likely be confirmed as the first Black woman to serve on the nation’s highest court. Graham, a key …

The New York Times reports: Senator Susan Collins of Maine plans to vote to confirm Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court, ensuring that President Biden’s nominee and the first Black woman to be put forward for the post will receive at least one Republican backer. After a second personal meeting with the judge on Tuesday afternoon, Ms. Collins …

Bloomberg News reports: Senator Elizabeth Warren and almost two dozen other Democratic lawmakers are demanding that Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas recuse himself from any cases involving 2020 election disputes or the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol after revelations his wife advocated actions to overturn the presidential election. Warren, Representative Pramila Jayapal and members of the House and Senate judiciary …

CNBC reports: Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Richard Durbin, D-Ill., told NBC that Justice Thomas should recuse himself from any cases related to the Jan. 6 riot that come before the high court. Durbin said it would be “the ultimate conflict of interest” for Thomas to participate in a case “where his wife is frequently contacting the chief of staff for …

The Hill reports: Justice Clarence Thomas participated remotely in oral arguments on Monday, three days after the Supreme Court said he was released from the hospital following treatment for an infection and as he faces ongoing ethical scrutiny. An analysis by The Hill determined that, between November 2020 and February 2022, Thomas participated in at least 10 rulings related to …

ABC News reports: Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas should recuse himself from certain cases after it emerged his wife, Virginia “Ginni” Thomas, sent text messages to former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows urging him to help overturn the 2020 election results. Klobuchar said it was “a …

USA Today reports: Sen. Richard Blumenthal is calling for Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas to “voluntarily” appear before Congress to answer questions about his wife’s communications with the White House regarding efforts to overturn the 2020 election. Blumenthal, who sits on the Senate Judiciary Committee, told CBS that Justice Thomas should “voluntarily appear” before the House Select Committee investigating the …

Courthouse News Service reports: The Supreme Court sided with the Defense Department on Friday afternoon, blocking a lower court ruling that would force the military to deploy unvaccinated Navy SEALs fighting a Covid-19 vaccine mandate. There was no majority opinion on the ruling but Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote a concurring opinion. Justices Clarence Thomas, Neil Gorsuch and Samuel Alito dissented. …

The Hill reports: Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) on Friday said Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas should recuse himself from any cases involving the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol and, if former President Trump runs again, cases related to the 2024 election. Wyden said Clarence Thomas’s “conduct on the Supreme Court looks increasingly corrupt” in the wake of …