Multiple major media outlets are reporting that Justice Stephen Breyer will be retiring at the end of this term in June. That would open a vacancy for Joe Biden to fill without risking losing the Senate in the 2022 midterms.
Breyer has been the subject of a Democratic pressure campaign for him to retire while a Democrat is in office and Democrats control the Senate, unlike Justice Ginsburg whose vacancy was filled by Trump (with Amy Coney Barrett). We covered the pressure campaign in June 2021, Democrats Renew Push for Justice Stephen Breyer to Retire.
Biden made a promise to fill a vacancy with a Black woman.
The promise was repeated after the election:
We covered the likely contenders in Here Come The Biden Judges, Including His Likely Eventual SCOTUS Nominee.
Breyer said he doesn’t want his retirement to appear political, but if it is true that he won’t leave until a successor is confirmed, then it’s highly political. Breyer would be making a vacancy open to Democrats, but will avoid a vacancy if for some reason a nominee is not confirmed before the midterms.
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