Biden’s Supreme Court Pick Faces Array of Ethics Questions
- February 26, 2022
A conflict of interest could trigger recusal from landmark affirmative action case
Kevin Daley, Washington Free Beacon
Supreme Court nominee Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson will face ethics questions about her ties to left-wing public relations professionals, and a conflict of interest that could trigger her recusal from a landmark affirmative action case.
Jackson, whom President Joe Biden nominated Friday, has come under fire following a report that she retained PR gurus with deep ties in Democratic politics to assist with her prospective nomination. And Jackson’s service on one of Harvard University’s governing boards will prompt questions as to recusing herself from a lawsuit accusing the university of bias against Asians in admissions, which the High Court will hear this fall.
Solicitor general Elizabeth Prelogar, the Biden administration’s top Supreme Court lawyer, obtained special authorization from the White House counsel and a senior Justice Department official to participate in the Harvard case despite a conflict of interest. Prelogar is a former university employee, having taught a class at Harvard Law School on appellate advocacy. Ethics rules required Prelogar to recuse from the case absent a waiver, and an oversight group is pressing for more information about the administration’s decision to grant one.