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To an epochal ceremony in Washington where Ketanji Brown Jackson was sworn in as the first Black woman to serve in the Supreme Court.
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JOHN ROBERTS, Chief Justice of the United States:
I am pleased to welcome Justice Jackson to the court.
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The months-long political haggling is now water under the bridge, now that 51-year-old Ketanji Brown Jackson has officially replaced retiring justice Stephen Breyer.
All the justices, except Neil Gorsuch, witnessed the historic moment.
Her inauguration signifies the first time four females will serve in the Supreme Court together.
President Joe Biden, who commended Breyer for his service, said Jackson would embody Black Americans' collective sentiments in the court.
But the Supreme Court lit another touchpaper in a 6-3 decision to dismantle the Environmental Protection Agency's authority to slash greenhouse gas emissions from American power plants.
Chief Justice Roberts pointed out the Clean Air Act never gave the EPA the right to do so, and that it's up to Congress to decide.
Environmentalists didn't mince words.
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MARK SHERMAN, AP:
Scientists have issued increasingly dire warnings that action has to be taken essentially immediately to reduce the emissions of greenhouse gases, which warm the climate. But the court's conservative majority said today that, that may be good and sound social policy, but that's for Congress to decide.
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But Congress lacks that nimbleness to confront every climate issue.
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BLAKE EMERSON, UCLA Law School:
Congress doesn't have the time or the expertise to be able to address all of the major social and economic problems on its agenda. And in addition, it's often incapable of reaching grand bargains.
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In the end, it is Congress which will be issuing orders to agencies when needs arise.
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