FBI field office retracts invitation to celebration for Ketanji Brown Jackson's nomination

The FBI field office in Los Angeles canceled a celebratory event to honor the nomination of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court after supervisors determined the event violated the agency's obligation to nonpartisanship, according to a report.

An email invitation from the FBI's Los Angeles Women's and Black Affairs Committees advertised a "save the date" for a "nomination party" for Judge Jackson, in addition to an interview with the office's assistant director in charge. The email was dated March 11.

The emails were reported by the Washington Free Beacon.

On March 12, second email was circulated by a member of the office's Diversity and Inclusion department that read, "The FBI must remain neutral in all political nomination and confirmation processes. Accordingly, a party for any nominee in FBI space would be inappropriate. Please see the revised flyer for the event. LA OPCA apologizes for any misunderstanding surrounding the publicity for this event."

The event's cancelation highlights the balancing act that the FBI has not always gotten right over the past few years when it comes to political involvement. GOP lawmakers have consistently make their doubts about the FBI's nonpartisanship known. 

In a statement from the FBI to the Beacon, a spokesperson for the agency said, "An email circulated within the FBI's Los Angeles Field Office recognizing a Supreme Court nomination was issued without proper review and was quickly retracted by FBI management." 

The email, continued the spokesperson was "addressed immediately and does not reflect the high standards of the FBI."