Richmond says Jackson will fill ‘void’ on Supreme Court

White House adviser Cedric Richmond cheered President Biden’s Supreme Court nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson as a “smart, pragmatic judge” during an interview with The Hill’s Steve Clemons on Friday.

“She’s that smart, pragmatic judge who we believe will represent America well. She’ll be someone who all of America can look up to and it’s filling a void that’s been missing from the court for a long time,” Richmond, who is the director of the White House Office of Public Engagement, said of Jackson, who would be the first Black woman on the Supreme Court. “Her credentials are impeccable.”

Biden announced Jackson, a federal appeals judge in Washington, D.C., as his choice to replace Justice Stephen Breyer on the Supreme Court Friday morning.

House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn (D-S.C.) had openly advocated for J. Michelle Childs, a federal district court judge in his home state of South Carolina. Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) also threw his support behind Childs and predicted she would win bipartisan support in the Senate during the confirmation process.

Asked if the White House needed to do any “bridge fixing” given Biden ultimately selected Jackson over Childs, Richmond said he didn’t think so.

“I cannot speak for Sen. Graham but I do think that I know Jim Clyburn, who is one of my best friends and mentors, pretty well. What the congressman was stressing is that we have a person with real life experiences,” Richmond said.

Clyburn issued a statement voicing support for Jackson shortly after Richmond’s interview, cheering Jackson as an “outstanding judge.” 

“This Is A Glass Ceiling That Took Far Too Long To Shatter, And I Commend President Biden For Taking A Sledgehammer To It,” he said. 

Richmond noted that Jackson’s parents went to historically black colleges and universities and that Jackson was a product of a public-school education.

He also relayed an anecdote about Jackson being told by her high school guidance counselor that she shouldn’t set her sights “so high” as Harvard. Jackson went on to graduate with honors from Harvard University and attend Harvard Law School.

“I think that this is consistent with what the congressman was pointing out although he had a preferred candidate, but he also said that that was not the only candidate,” Richmond said.

His comments came during The Hill’s event, “America’s Report Card,” on Friday.

Biden does not need Clyburn’s vote to confirm Jackson, but a vote of confidence from the prominent Black lawmaker and Biden ally will nevertheless be important as Jackson moves forward with her confirmation process.

Biden pledged to nominate a Black woman to the Supreme Court on the campaign trail in 2020 in reiterated that pledge when Breyer announced plans to retire from the high court in January.

Richmond noted in his conversation with The Hill that Jackson was previously confirmed to positions with bipartisan support in the Senate.

Three Republicans – Sens. Graham, Susan Collins (Maine), and Lisa Murkowski (Alaska) – voted to confirm Jackson to her current spot on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit when Biden nominated her last year.

Graham on Friday expressed displeasure at media reports that Biden would nominate Jackson, and not Childs, however.

“The attacks by the Left on Judge Childs from South Carolina apparently worked. I expect a respectful but interesting hearing in the Senate Judiciary Committee,” Graham said in a statement. “The Harvard-Yale train to the Supreme Court continues to run unabated.”

Jackson won praise from prominent Black leaders and Democrats as her nomination became known on Friday. Biden is slated to introduce her as his nominee Friday afternoon.