(Washington) Influence campaign, meticulous investigations and a few low blows: tension is mounting in Washington as Joe Biden’s announcement of his candidate for the Supreme Court approaches.
Posted at 6:55 a.m.
The Democratic president has promised to appoint, for the first time in history, a black woman to the temple of American law and must give her name at the end of February.
For now, he has just said he is focusing on four candidates, all “incredibly qualified”, to replace the progressive judge Stephen Breyer who will leave the Court this summer.
With his flawless career in public and private, Ketanji Brown Jackson, 51, a judge on the influential federal appeals court in Washington, has long been a favorite.
But magistrate Michelle Childs, 55, has risen in the forecasts thanks to the campaign supported by elected officials from both parties, who appreciate her modest origins and her career far from the capital.
Unless Leondra Kruger, judge of the Supreme Court of California, won thanks to her young age – 45 – and her brilliant mind. Or that a less visible figure creates surprise.
In the meantime, CVs, decisions, speeches… everything is scrutinized by the White House, which wants to avoid unpleasant surprises during the confirmation process.
No ideologue
The US Constitution provides that Supreme Court justices are appointed for life by the President and confirmed by the Senate. Long a formality, this second stage has become, with the growing divisions of the political class, the object of bitter battles.
The most violent played out in 2018 after Donald Trump appointed Judge Brett Kavanaugh, when a woman accused him of a sexual assault dating back to their youth. These accusations, which he strongly denied, nearly derailed his confirmation.
The White House is not only trying to avoid scandal: given the Democrats’ fragile control of the Senate, it also wants to choose a candidate likely to obtain the support of a few elected Republicans.
She therefore meticulously examines the writings and declarations of the candidates, looking for little phrases likely to be perceived as the sign of opinions that are too marked on the left.
“I am not looking to make an ideological choice, but someone to replace Judge Breyer” with the same open, consensual and pragmatic state of mind, explained Joe Biden on NBC, saying he was confident of having the votes. of some opposition senators.
To achieve this, his teams are increasing contacts with members of Congress and he himself has received several influential elected officials.
All of a great
Among them, two elected officials from South Carolina are openly campaigning for Michelle Childs, who has spent her entire career in that state.
“She has what it takes to be a great Supreme Court justice,” argued black lawmaker Jim Clyburn, who provided a crucial boost to Joe Biden during the 2020 campaign and could, at this point. title, expect consideration.
Republican Senator Lindsey Graham applied even more direct pressure: “She would get the most Republican votes,” maybe as many as ten, he told ABC. “Anyone else would be problematic. »
But voices on the left criticize the magistrate for having, when she was a lawyer, defended large companies against employees. Without naming her, two elected Democrats circulated a letter denouncing “the domination of pro-business judges in the Supreme Court”.
In the vast influence campaign underway, some have used less laudable methods.
According to Politico, a former aide to Ketanji Brown Jackson edited the candidates’ Wikipedia pages in a way to make his former boss – who was unaware – look more progressive than her rivals.
Joe Biden “will not be swayed by public campaigns, attacks or lobbying,” White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki promised. “He will remain focused on the qualifications, files, past and references” of the candidates.