A Black woman is 'made for this moment' on the Supreme Court

Thursday, January 27

The Supreme Court is seen at dusk in Washington on Oct. 22, 2021.

Supreme Court Justice Breyer is retiring. Will a Black woman be the next justice?

President Joe Biden said he is going to nominate a Black woman to the Supreme Court. But we can't forget the heavy partisanship American is facing right now. My guess is that this nomination won't be quick and easy.

A Black woman is 'made for this moment' on the Supreme Court

By Ben Jealous

We are fortunate to have an outstanding cadre of lawyers and scholars who are Black women and made for this moment on the Supreme Court, as Justice Marshall was for his. Black women in the law who have been fighting for civil rights in our country, year in and year out. Black women who have worked in civil rights advocacy, or as public defenders, or in nonprofits where they have seen our justice system not just from the top down but from the bottom up – as most Americans see it. Black women in academia whose brilliant scholarship is informed by their lived experiences.

Having a Black woman on the Supreme Court is about far more than sending a powerful message about representation and inclusion, although those things are not insignificant. At its core, it is about improving the quality of decision-making and justice that takes place there.

Today's Editorial Cartoon

Marc Murphy, USA TODAY Network

USA TODAY Network

•	January political cartoon gallery from the USA TODAY Network

Breyer sets Supreme Court up for even more political theater

By Richard Wolf

The news that Justice Stephen Breyer will retire from the Supreme Court this summer comes as little surprise. Every day he stays on the job is another day Republicans could regain control of the 50-50 Senate and threaten to block his replacement.

By refusing to step down during President Joe Biden's first year in office – he pushed back against such calls – the 83-year-old Breyer has played a dangerous game. But he is from a time when one party wouldn't block a high court nomination except for cause, as Democrats tried and failed to do in 1991 when Clarence Thomas was accused of sexual harassment. Most nominees skated to confirmation; Breyer himself whisked through the Senate in 1994 by an 87-9 vote.

Those days are over.

Ukranian liberty is under siege. The U.S. has an obligation to act.

By Reps. Marcy Kaptur, Brian Fitzpatrick, Mike Quigley, Andy Harris

Since Russia's illegal invasion of Ukraine's southeast flank in 2014, nearly 14,000 innocent Ukrainians have perished and more than a million have been displaced.

Now, the free world is watching with growing alarm as Russia amasses more than 100,000 well-armed soldiers at Ukraine's border, awaiting the signal to unleash further bloodshed. What a terrible waste of human potential.

The Kremlin is preparing to sacrifice the lives of thousands of its own men and women for no other reason than to bolster the ego of its ruthless dictator, Vladimir Putin.

Columns on qualified immunity

We're doing a series examining the issue of qualified immunity. For more on the series read here.

•	Roadside assistance caught the cop who killed my cousin. Justice shouldn't be so rare.
•	I refused to lie under oath for the state of Arizona. It cost me my job.
•	How the KKK Act could help protect and enforce constitutional rights for all of us.
•	Fix qualified immunity travesty that lets police off the hook after violating civil rights