Stephen Breyer gifted the chance for a liberal successor — when will he take it? – CNN

Breyer, who before becoming a judge was chief counsel to the Senate Judiciary Committee, knows better than most how last week's surprise Georgia election has transformed the prospects for Biden to fulfill a progressive agenda related to the judiciary.

Still, a Biden choice would enhance the diversity and youth of the bench and open a new chapter for justices who have the last word on issues from abortion and LGBTQ rights, religious liberties and racial remedies, to federal power and corporate regulation.

President-elect Biden has vowed to name the first Black woman to the bench. When he initially made the pledge during a February 2020 debate in Charleston, he said, "I'm looking forward to making sure there's a Black woman on the Supreme Court, to make sure we in fact get every representation."

Among such candidates could be US district court judge Ketanji Brown Jackson, 50, in Washington, DC, a former law clerk of Justice Breyer. Another possibility would be California Supreme Court justice Leondra Kruger, 44. Other Black women of varying backgrounds would no doubt be in the mix if a vacancy arises.

Breyer, named by President Bill Clinton in 1994, declined to respond to questions related to any retirement plans.

Breyer is known for many off-bench pursuits, including an enthusiasm for architecture, and he has authored several books related to law and regulation. Such outside interests, along with the new Democrat dynamic in the nation's capital, might induce him to leave the bench, perhaps as soon as this summer when the current 2020-21 session ends.

His new book to be published this year, "Against Segregation in America's Schools," could be his valedictory. It explores retrenchment on school integration today and is tied to one of Breyer's leading opinions for justices on the left.

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Stephen Breyer gifted the chance for a liberal successor -- when will he take it? - CNN