United States Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett declared today that Americans "deserve an independent Supreme Court that interprets our Constitution and laws as they are written".
The statement encapsulated her conservative approach to the law that has Republicans excited about the prospect of her taking the place of the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg before election day.
Barrett spoke about her judicial philosophy, her experience and her family at the end of the first day of her fast-tracked confirmation hearings that Senate Democrats are using to try and brand her a threat to Americans' healthcare during the coronavirus pandemic.
After sitting in silence through nearly four hours of opening statements from members of the Senate Judiciary Committee, the 48-year-old federal appeals court judge laid out her approach to the bench, which she has likened to that of her conservative mentor, the late Justice Antonin Scalia.
62% of registered voters say the U.S. Supreme Court should uphold Roe v. Wade as the basis of abortion law in the United States, according to new @ABC News/WaPo poll. https://t.co/U1PCAQCOTc
— ABC News (@ABC) October 12, 2020
"Courts have a vital responsibility to the rule of rule of law, which is critical to a free society. But courts are not designed to solve every problem or right every wrong in our public life," Barrett said in a statement she delivered after removing the protective mask she wore most of the day.
"The policy decisions and value judgments of government must be made by the political branches elected by and accountable to the people. The public should not expect courts to do so, and courts should not try."
She told senators that she is "forever grateful" for Ginsburg's trailblazing path as a woman on the court.
Yet Senator Kamala Harris, Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden's running mate, said the court is "often the last refuge for equal justice" and a Barrett nomination puts in jeopardy everything Ginsburg fought to protect.
Testifying from her office because of the pandemic, Harris said that not only healthcare but voting rights, workers' rights, abortion rights and the very idea of justice are at stake.
"By replacing Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg with someone who will undo her legacy, President Trump is attempting to roll back Americans' rights for decades to come," Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) said in her opening statement https://t.co/Ql6unpQlaG pic.twitter.com/0FO5DS4SQY
— POLITICO (@politico) October 12, 2020
Republicans called Barrett a thoughtful judge with impeccable credentials.
Barring a dramatic development, Republicans appear to have the votes to confirm her to a lifetime seat on the Supreme Court. If she is confirmed quickly, she could be on the court when it hears the latest challenge to the Affordable Care Act, a week after the election.
One after another, Democrats sought to tie her nomination to the upcoming court case.
"Health care coverage for millions of Americans is at stake with this nomination," said Senator Dianne Feinstein of California, the committee's senior Democrat.
Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, D, said the nomination is a "judicial torpedo aimed" at the law's protection for people with pre-existing health conditions among its provisions. The Trump Administration wants the court to strike down the entire law popularly known as "Obamacare" on November 10. Barrett has criticized the court's two earlier major rulings supporting the law.
Biden leads by 25 points among women. No candidate of either party in the polling era has ever led among women by more than 24 points in the final pre-election polls
— Matt Goodwin (@GoodwinMJ) October 11, 2020
https://t.co/lMTKMqVf0L
Among Republicans, Senator Chuck Grassley, R, dismissed warnings Barrett will undo the Obama-era healthcare law as "outrageous."
Trump himself seemed to be watching, tweeting several times about the hearing. In one message, he tweeted that he'd have a "FAR BETTER" healthcare plan, with lower costs and protections for pre-existing conditions. But he has not, as yet, discussed an actual healthcare plan.
Republicans also warned against making Barrett's Catholicism an issue in the confirmation debate, especially in regard to her stance on abortion, with Senator Josh Hawley of Missouri lambasting what he called a "pattern and practice of religious bigotry" by Democrats. However, Democratic senators made clear in advance of the hearing that they didn't plan to question the judge on the specifics of her religious faith.
Democratic presidential nominee Biden, also a practicing Catholic, told reporters ahead of a campaign trip to Ohio that he doesn't think "there's any question about her faith."
- AP_