White House celebrates confirmation of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to Supreme Court

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The White House celebrated the confirmation of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court from the Rose Garden Friday, saying she will "inspire generations of leaders" for years to come, with President Biden praising Republican senators who set aside "partisanship" to vote in favor of his nominee. 

Jackson’s family, the president and first lady, and vice president and second gentleman attended the Rose Garden ceremony Friday, along with a number of Biden cabinet secretaries, including Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, Labor Secretary Marty Walsh, Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Marcia Fudge, Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm, Education Secretary Miguel Cardona and more.

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Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, Judiciary Chairman Dick Durbin, and a number of other Democratic senators were in attendance, including Sens. John Hickenlooper, Patrick Leahy, Ed Markey, Jon Ossoff, Sheldon Whitehouse, Chris Coons, Chris Van Hollen, and Mazie Hirono. More than a dozen House Democratic lawmakers attended as well.

"The first really smart decision I made in this administration," Biden said Friday. "This is not only a sunny day. I mean this from the bottom of my heart. This is going to let so much shine, sun shine on so many young women. So many young black women, so many minorities." 

U.S. President Joe Biden delivers remarks on Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson’s confirmation as the first Black woman to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court, as she stands at his side during a celebration event on the South Lawn at the White House in Washington, U.S., April 8, 2022.  (REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque)

The president said that this is "a moment of real change in American history." 

Vice President Harris, before the president began his remarks, said that the confirmation of the first Black woman to the United States Supreme Court will "inspire generations of leaders." 

"They will watch your confirmation hearings and read your decisions in the years to come," Harris said. "The court will answer fundamental questions about who we are and what kind of country we live in. Will we expand opportunity or restricted? Will we strengthen the foundations of our great democracy or let them crumble?" 

Jackson, after the president's remarks, said it "is the greatest honor of my life to be here with you at this moment," and extended her "heartfelt thanks to the many, many people who have helped me as part of this incredible journey." 

"First, as always, I have to give thanks to God for delivering me," she said. "As I said at the outset, I have come this far by faith and I know that I am truly blessed to the many people who have lifted me up in prayer since the nomination. Thank you. I am very grateful." 

Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson wipes away tears as she speaks in front of U.S. President Joe Biden about her confirmation as the first Black woman to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court during a celebration event on the South Lawn at the White House. (REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque)

Jackson also thanked Biden for "believing" in her and "honoring her" with the "extraordinary chance to serve our country." 

"Thank you also, Madam Vice President, for your wise counsel and steady guidance," she continued. "And thank you to the first lady and the second gentleman for the care and warmth that you have shown me and my family." 

Jackson also thanked "each member of the Senate." 

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"It has taken two hundred and thirty-two years and one hundred and fifteen prior appointments for a Black woman to be selected to serve on the Supreme Court of the United States. But we've made it. We've made it. All of us, all of us," she said. "And our children are telling me that they see now more than ever that here in America, anything is possible. They also tell me that I'm a role model, which I take both as an opportunity and as a huge responsibility." 

She added: "I am feeling up to the task primarily because I know that I am not alone." 

Quoting Maya Angelou's "Still I Rise," Jackson said: "I do so now while bringing the gifts my ancestors gave, I am the dream and the hope of the slave." 

"So as I take on this new role, I strongly believe that this is a moment in which all Americans can take great pride," she said. "We have come a long way toward perfecting our union in my family. It took just one generation to go from segregation to the Supreme Court of the United States." 

Leila Jackson, daughter of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson, applauds with her father Patrick Jackson as U.S. President Joe Biden hosts a celebration of Judge Jackson’s confirmation as the first Black woman to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court, on the South Lawn at the White House in Washington. (REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein)

She added that it "is an honor, the honor of a lifetime for me to have this chance to join the court to promote the rule of law at the highest level and to do my part to carry our shared project of democracy and equal justice under law forward into the future." 

The Senate voted to confirm Jackson to the Supreme Court on Thursday, fulfilling the president’s campaign promise to appoint the first Black woman to the high court.

The vote was bipartisan, 53-47, with Republican Sens. Susan Collins of Maine, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Mitt Romney of Utah voting for Jackson. The Republican senators previously announced their support for the history-making confirmation saying she is well-qualified. Vice President Kamala Harris presided over the confirmation vote Thursday afternoon.

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From the Rose Garden Friday, the president said he "always believed" a "bipartisan vote" for Jackson would be possible — despite the "harassment and attacks in the hearings."

While praising some Republicans who voted in favor of Jackson, Biden slammed others, saying what Jackson was "put through" was "well beyond painful and difficult," but instead, "verbal abuse, the anger the constant interruptions, the most vile, baseless assertions and accusations."

U.S. President Joe Biden pumps his fists as Vice President Kamala Harris delivers remarks on Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson’s confirmation as the first Black woman to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court, on the South Lawn at the White House in Washington (REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque)

The president was referring to what was a rollercoaster confirmation process that included tears at one hearing from Jackson, as well as combative questioning from Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., and others about her sentencing record as a federal judge.

During two intense days of grilling at the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, Republicans pressed Jackson about why she gave a handful of child pornography offenders prison time that was less than what prosecutors and sentencing guidelines allowed and accused her of being too lenient on criminals. Jackson defended her record and said her career cannot be defined by a "small subset of my sentences."

In contrast, Democrats at the hearing praised Jackson's grace under pressure and sought to highlight Jackson's long list of achievements. At some points, senators celebrated how far she's come as a Black woman in America — drawing visible signs of emotion and tears from Jackson.

President Biden listens as Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson speaks during an event on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, Friday, April 8, 2022, celebrating the confirmation of Jackson as the first Black woman to reach the Supreme Court.  (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)

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The three Republicans who voted for Jackson "deserve enormous credit for setting aside partisanship and making a carefully considered judgment based on the judge's character, qualifications, independence, and I truly admire the respect, diligence and hard work they demonstrated in the course of the process," Biden said.

Biden said he believes that "respect for the process is important." 

"And that's why it was so important to me to meet the constitutional requirement to seek the advice and the consent of the Senate, the advice beforehand and the consent," Biden said.