President Joe Biden is on pace to become the first president to nominate more federal judges of color as he makes a last-ditch effort to confirm judicial nominations before his term ends.
Tiffany Johnson, Biden’s judicial candidate for the Northern District of Georgia, was confirmed by the Senate on Monday. To far, Biden has appointed more Black women to lifetime federal judgeships than any other president in a single term.
According to data the White House provided to NBC News, approximately 60% of Biden’s 233 appointees are individuals of color. The Senate Judiciary Committee advanced the nominations of Benjamin Cheeks and Serena Raquel Murillo, two additional candidates for U.S. district judge, on Thursday; they now await Senate confirmation. According to the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, if Cheeks is confirmed, Biden will have chosen 63 Black federal judges, the most of any presidency.
In an emailed statement, White House communications director Ben LaBolt said that Biden is gratified to have made the judiciary more representative of the nation and that his legacy will continue to influence the judiciary for decades to come.
According to Lena Zwarensteyn, senior director of the fair courts program and an adviser at the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, President Biden made it clear to the Senate even before he took office that he wanted to ensure that those who had historically been excluded from our judiciary are included.
According to the research, having more judges with diverse viewpoints—whether from different groups or from having worked on a variety of issues—improves decision-making and undoubtedly increases the trust that communities may have in these organizations. Therefore, it is crucial that we have impartial judges at all levels.
Donald Trump appointed two Black women to the federal bench during his first term, but Barack Obama appointed 26 Black women lifetime judges over his two years.
During his one term, Jimmy Carter appointed 37 Black lifetime judges. During their two terms, Obama and Bill Clinton appointed 62 Black judges apiece. The Leadership Conference claims that Biden would surpass their record by one if Cheeks is confirmed.
These figures take into consideration judges of different races as well as those who have been appointed to many courts by the same president.
Before Trump assumes office in January and Republicans seize control of the Senate, Senate Democrats pledged to confirm as many Biden candidates as they could. Since Election Day, they have confirmed many, but these circuit nominees remain in limbo because of resistance from both GOP and Democratic senators.
This Senate will continue to try to confirm more of President Biden’s outstanding judicial nominations, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., wrote in an Xthat post in November.
The other nominations must be confirmed, according to Marge Baker, executive vice president of People For the American Way, a national progressive group that fights far-right extremism.
Even though we are happy with the caliber and number of confirmed nominees thus far, Baker stated that these circuit court nominations are also extremely significant. Julia M. Lipez of Maine, 1st Circuit; Karla M. Campbell of Tennessee, 6th Circuit; Ryan Young Park of North Carolina, 4th Circuit; and Adeel Abdullah Mangi of New Jersey, nominated for the 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals, are the four circuit judges in limbo.
“Hundreds of millions of people’s lives are impacted by the decisions made by these courts,” Baker continued. Voting rights, consumer and labor rights, antitrust laws, climate change, and abortion are among the issues they decide. These courts of appeals frequently make the final decisions on a wide range of matters.
While in office, Biden has long sought to change the federal judiciary, which is predominately white and male, by selecting judges from a range of demographic and professional backgrounds. He has succeeded in doing so by verifying the record numbers of former civil rights attorneys, public defenders, and labor attorneys. According to the White House, women have made up more than half of his appointees, and he has appointed justices from a number of racial and ethnic minority groups as well as some LGBTQ judges.
By nominating Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, the first Black woman to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court, Biden created history. Numerous firsts are explained by his dozens of appointments.
According to Dedrick Asante-Muhammad, president of the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies, a think tank based in Washington, Biden has taken the lead in selecting Black judges. At least in terms of representation, these appointments will have a lasting effect, which is fantastic. This is demonstrating to the public that having Black judges on the panel should be normal and consistent.
The stakes are now high since these nominations may have an impact on court rulings throughout Trump’s second term, according to experts.
Biden-appointed judges have significantly improved justice for Americans nationwide, according to Elliot Mincberg, a Supreme Court scholar and counsel for the People For the American Way.
Zwarensteyn described it as a significant and frequently overlooked aspect of Biden’s legacy.
In terms of administrations that have done this, he has truly elevated it to what I would consider the next level.
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