How Jackson reshapes the Supreme Court

Plus: the latest on student loans and COVID funding [View this email online]( [NPR Politics]( April 9, 2022 This week, we looked at a historic Supreme Court confirmation, the student loan freeze and COVID funding stalling. Plus, coronavirus cases sweep D.C. --------------------------------------------------------------- The Big Picture: Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images Because soon-to-be Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson won’t likely change the ideological leaning of the 6-to-3 conservative Supreme Court, one can lose sight of the importance of her confirmation — historically and otherwise. In 233 years, the Supreme Court has never had a Black woman as a justice. Jackson, who was [confirmed 53 to 47 by the Senate on Thursday]( will be just the third Black person to ever serve on the court, after Thurgood Marshall and current Justice Clarence Thomas. In addition to race, Jackson’s nomination means the court will have the most gender balance in history, too. The court will now be 5-to-4 men to women. That is remarkable, considering in 2009, there was only one woman on the high court. Notably, when Jackson is seated, all three of the justices appointed by Democratic presidents will be women. Retiring Justice Stephen Breyer is the last white male justice nominated by a Democratic president. He was confirmed 28 years ago. [You have to go all the way back to 1965]( (Abe Fortas) to find the white male before Breyer who was nominated by a Democrat and sat on the high court. The same is obviously not the case for Republicans. Gender and racial parity have long been elusive at the Supreme Court, and Jackson brings perspective that the court has never had. Marshall's perspective as a Black man was [notable in his opinions]( and on things like [policing]( for example. Jackson will also bring perspective, not simply because she’s a Black woman but also from the wide spectrum of the justice system. She will be the first justice to have been a public defender and the first since Marshall to have ever defended criminal defendants — in addition to having been a trial judge. Justice Sonia Sotomayor is the only other current justice to have been a trial judge. Jackson’s confirmation will also make the court’s average age just 61, a major change over the past decade that solidifies a generational reshaping of the court, as well. — [Domenico Montanaro]( NPR’s senior political editor/correspondent [Read More]( --------------------------------------------------------------- Newsletter continues after sponsor message --------------------------------------------------------------- ICYMI: Top Stories [U.S. Education Secretary Miguel Cardona speaks.]( Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images Student loan pause extended: [The Biden administration is extending the freeze on student loan payments]( until Aug. 31, the seventh time the pause has been extended since it was first implemented in March 2020. The Education Department also unveiled a plan to return the accounts of roughly 7 million borrowers who are in default to good standing. Jan. 6 latest: The House voted this week to hold two former Trump advisers, Peter Navarro and Dan Scavino, [in criminal contempt of Congress]( for defying subpoenas from the Jan. 6 select committee. Also this week, [Ivanka Trump appeared remotely before the panel]( and spoke with members about the events surrounding the Capitol insurrection. COVID funding stalled: Senators this week reached a bipartisan deal on $10 billion in funding to combat the COVID-19 pandemic. But [a dispute over immigration policy]( from Senate Republicans — supported by some Democrats — has stalled the bill’s passage. A raft of COVID cases in D.C.: [House Speaker Nancy Pelosi tested positive for the coronavirus this week]( one of many lawmakers in both the House and Senate to test positive for the virus. Several Cabinet officials also tested positive this week, including [Attorney General Merrick Garland](. DOJ investigating Trump record handling: The Justice Department is [in the “very early stages” of an investigation into possible mishandling of government secrets]( by former President Donald Trump. The investigation comes after the National Archives and Records Administration said earlier this year that it had retrieved 15 boxes of White House records and other items stored at Trump's Mar-a-Lago property in Florida, some of which were top-secret. Texas ballot rejections: [More than 12% of mail-in ballots — almost 25,000 — were rejected in Texas]( for its first election under the state's controversial GOP-backed law. That's a far higher rejection rate than in previous elections. — [Brandon Carter]( NPR Politics social media producer The Shot: Kat Lonsdorf/NPR Vash Lavash, a small bakery in the western Ukrainian city of Ivano-Frankivsk, opened in January. Less than two months later, Russia invaded Ukraine and the bakery closed its doors. It reopened not long after Ukrainian officials urged businesses to reopen. "People who came here, we need to feed them," Lyubomyr Kitral, the bakery owner, tells NPR. "People who came from Kharkiv, Odessa, other big cities of Ukraine, they needed food." [See some of Vash Lavash's sweet treats and read about]( how the bakery is offering hope and employment in a time of crisis. — [Heidi Glenn]( NPR Politics editor --------------------------------------------------------------- Listen to your local NPR station. Visit NPR.org to find your local station stream. [Listen Live]( [Facebook]( [Instagram]( [Twitter]( What do you think of today's email? We'd love to hear your thoughts, questions and feedback: [nprpolitics@npr.org](mailto:nprpolitics@npr.org?subject=Newsletter%20Feedback) Enjoying this newsletter? Forward to a friend! [They can sign up here.]( Looking for more great content? 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