Letter to the editor: Casey, Toomey should support Jackson as justice

The selection of a Supreme Court justice has a profound effect on the well-being of our democracy. The decisions made by a justice over decades of his or her lifetime affect each and every one of us on issues of health care, a thriving environment, jobs and civil rights and liberties.

After a rigorous process, Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson has been nominated based on her stellar character and credentials: a federal judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia since 2021, judge on the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, vice chair of the U.S. Sentencing Commission and public defender. She graduated magna cum laude from Harvard University and cum laude from Harvard Law School. Historically, she would be the first Black woman to serve as a Supreme Court justice.

The selection of a justice is made by the president with the advice and consent of the Senate in both parties. These parties need to come together above politics to confirm a justice who will bring a fresh and diverse perspective of judicial experience.

I urge Sens. Bob Casey and Pat Toomey to support Jackson as the next Supreme Court justice. Her unique experience will ensure that we have a justice who will promise equal justice and uphold the values of our Constitution.

Judith Flaherty

Brighton Heights