[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 20 (Tuesday, February 1, 2022)]
[Senate]
[Pages S421-S422]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                       Supreme Court Nominations

  Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, since the time John Jay was inaugurated 
as the first Chief Justice, only 115 individuals have been chosen to 
sit on the U.S. Supreme Court. Out of these 115 Justices, only 5--only 
5--have been women. Only two--only two--have been African Americans. 
Only one--just one--has been Hispanic. And to date, never--never--has 
an African-American woman sat on the highest Court in the land.
  Soon, President Biden will have an opportunity to make the Supreme 
Court look more like America by nominating the first Black woman in 
U.S. history to serve as a Justice. Every single Member of this 
Chamber, regardless of party, should embrace the President's commitment 
to make sure that our courts--and especially the Supreme Court--better 
reflect our country's diversity, and nominating a Black woman as 
Justice is a long overdue step toward achieving that goal.
  Past Presidents, from Eisenhower to Johnson to Reagan, were clear 
about their intentions of nominating historic and barrier-breaking 
individuals to the Supreme Court. President Biden's commitment to 
nominate a Black woman is a continuation of that important effort.
  And once President Biden announces his nominee, I intend to have the 
Senate move quickly so we can fulfill our constitutional duty to advise 
and consent and, ultimately, confirm the President's pick. We will have 
a fair process but also a quick process so that the work of the Supreme 
Court continues uninterrupted.
  If our democracy is to prosper in the 21st century, the American 
people must have confidence that our Federal courts will faithfully 
adhere to the solemn principle of ``equal justice under law.'' The more 
our judges reflect our Nation's vibrancy and rich diversity, the more 
effectively they will be able to administer equal justice.
  And make no mistake, a more balanced, more diverse judiciary has been 
one of the Senate Democrats' top priority in our work with the Biden 
administration. Over the past year, we have worked at a record pace to 
confirm the most judicial nominees in the President's first year since 
the time of Ronald Reagan, and we have done it with nominees who bring 
diversity in their backgrounds, their life experiences, and 
professional expertise--something that didn't happen, really, in a 
large way until this year.

[[Page S422]]

  One day, I hope the barrier-breakers of today will be closer to the 
norm of tomorrow. We want more women to sit on our courts, especially 
the Supreme Court. We need more people of color, more public defenders, 
more civil rights lawyers, more children of immigrants to sit on our 
courts to reflect the broad diversity that America is and will continue 
to be. In fact, it will continue to grow.
  The more Americans look at our courts and see people who look like 
them and come from the same backgrounds and share similar experiences, 
the better off our justice system and our democracy shall be. And 
nowhere else is this more important than the Supreme Court.
  So I applaud the President's commitment to choosing a qualified and 
historic nominee, and the Senate stands ready to work quickly to 
confirm President Biden's pick when we get it.