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President Joe Biden criticized the recent Supreme Court ruling that undermined affirmative action programs in higher education during a speech at the White House.
“This is not a normal court,” Biden said in response to a question from a reporter following his remarks.
“The truth is, we all know it, discrimination still exists in America … today’s decision does not change that,” Biden said during his White House speech.
Biden: “Because the truth is — we all know it: Discrimination still exists in America. Discrimination still exists in America. Discrimination still exists in America.
Today’s decision does not change that. It’s a simple fact.” pic.twitter.com/262DTL4NTY
— Poli Alert ⚖️ (@polialertcom) June 29, 2023
Biden proposed a new standard for college admissions, where colleges would consider the adversity that students have overcome. He also pledged to explore ways to promote diversity in the education system through the Department of Education.
However, Biden expressed his opposition to expanding the number of justices on the Supreme Court, during an interview on MSNBC on Thursday afternoon.
“[It] doesn’t make sense because it can become so politicized in the future,” Biden told MSNBC’s Nicolle Wallace during a live interview. “I think if we start the process of trying to expand the court, we’re going to politicize it maybe forever in a way that is not healthy,” Biden added.
The Supreme Court ruling, in a 6-3 opinion written by Chief Justice John Roberts, invalidated race-conscious admissions programs at Harvard and the University of North Carolina. The court found that these universities had discriminated against white and Asian American applicants by using admissions policies that favored underrepresented groups. Chief Justice Roberts clarified that universities can still consider applicants’ experiences related to race, but explicit consideration of race should not be allowed.
“Nothing in this opinion should be construed as prohibiting universities from considering an applicant’s discussion of how race affected his or her life, be it through discrimination, inspiration, or otherwise,” Roberts wrote. “But, despite the dissent’s assertion to the contrary, universities may not simply establish through application essays or other means the regime we hold unlawful today.”
The decision has dealt a significant blow to affirmative action in higher education, with the court’s five conservative justices supporting the ruling while the three liberal justices dissented.
