Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, known for sparking debate, is facing ridicule for admitting during a light-hearted Q&A that she often has sleepless nights filled with concern over “the state of our democracy.”
During an Indianapolis Bar Association event on Thursday, she faced rapid-fire questions on various topics, including her favorite books and songs, at the end of the session.
Asked what keeps her up at night, the much-maligned justice turned it serious, saying, “I would say the state of our democracy.”
“I genuinely want to encourage people to focus, engage, and stay informed about what’s happening in our country and its governance,” she added, receiving applause from the audience.
Brown, 54, did not have a chance to expand on her worries, nor list any specific concerns.
However, critics were quick to jump on the comments, saying the real worry was the Biden-appointed justice whose repeated dissents have faced sharp criticism from many other jurists, including fellow liberals.
“What keeps me up [at] night is knowing that we have unqualified Justices like Jackson on the SCOTUS,” quipped one X user.
Another similarly joked, “Having someone like her on the Supreme Court is what keeps me up at night.”
Others, meanwhile, suggested that Jackson’s was reflecting how she is “informed in her opinions by her emotions rather than the rule of law” — with the justice having also said that she sees her role as, in part, giving “a slightly different perspective, or a different take on something” from the other justices.
“Her unprofessionalism is an embarrassment to the bench,” that X user wrote.
“She’s functionally an activist, not a judge,” another jabbed. “Impartial judges committed to faithful application of the law don’t make incendiary comments like this in public.”
“Some of her dissents this term have been pretty embarrassing,” said another user — saying that some “sound like a substack post” rather than a ruling on the law.
This week, the Biden appointee was the sole dissenting voice in the high court’s 8-1 order clearing the way for President Trump to continue to slash the federal workforce.
Late last month, Jackson faced a savage rebuke over her “extreme” dissent in the landmark birthright citizenship case, in which she fretted that “our beloved constitutional Republic will be no more.”
Conservative Justice Amy Coney Barrett snapped back: “We will not dwell on Justice Jackson’s argument, which is at odds with more than two centuries’ worth of precedent, not to mention the Constitution itself.
“We observe only this: Justice Jackson decries an imperial Executive while embracing an imperial Judiciary.”
Jackson said during her talk Thursday that she felt compelled to give “a slightly different perspective, or a different take on something” from the other justices.
