Senate likely to confirm Barrett to U.S. Supreme Court, cementing
conservative majority
Send a link to a friend
[October 26, 2020]
By Sarah N. Lynch
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The
Republican-controlled U.S. Senate is expected on Monday to confirm
President Donald Trump's nominee, Amy Coney Barrett, as the next justice
to the Supreme Court, a move that will tilt the country's highest court
further to the right for years to come.
No nominee to the Supreme Court has ever been confirmed by the Senate
this close to a presidential election, with more than 58 million ballots
already cast ahead of Election Day on Nov. 3.
The rush to confirm Barrett, 48, has bitterly divided Democrats and
Republicans, who are expected to split along party lines on the final
vote. Trump has said repeatedly he wants her in place to vote on any
election-related cases that go to the court.
With Republicans controlling the chamber 53-47 and no indication of an
internal revolt against the conservative appeals court judge succeeding
liberal Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Barrett looks almost certain to
take up a lifetime appointment on the bench over universal Democratic
opposition.
Several Republicans who previously expressed concerns about rushing the
process, including Alaska Republican Lisa Murkowski, are expected to
approve Barrett's nomination.
Senate Democrats and some Republicans expressed unease at the
possibility that Vice President Mike Pence, several of whose close aides
have tested positive for COVID-19, might attend Monday's vote.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said Pence "reportedly intends to
come" to the Senate chamber to preside over the final vote, and blasted
him for being willing to put "the health of everyone who works in this
building at risk."
With Barrett confirmed, the Supreme Court will have a solid 6-3
conservative majority.
Barrett is expected to participate in a crucial hearing on Nov. 10,
where Trump and his fellow Republicans will ask the court to strike down
the Affordable Care Act. The 2010 healthcare law, popularly known as
Obamacare, has helped millions of Americans obtain medical insurance and
protected those with pre-existing conditions.
[to top of second column]
|
Judge Amy Coney Barrett, President Donald Trump's nominee for the
Supreme Court of the United States, meets with Senator James
Lankford, a Republican from Oklahoma, (unseen). at the U.S. Capitol
in Washington, DC, U.S. October 21, 2020. Sarah Silbiger/Pool via
REUTERS/File Photo
During her confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary
Committee this month, Barrett, a favorite of Christian
conservatives, sidestepped questions on abortion, presidential
powers, climate change, voting rights, Obamacare and other issues.
"It is my belief that Judge Barrett represents a threat to the very
rights, including reproductive rights, rights of LGBT individuals,
and voting rights, that Justice Ginsburg worked so hard to protect,"
Senate Judiciary Committee senior Democrat Dianne Feinstein said on
the Senate Floor on Sunday.
"For those reasons, I oppose her nomination."
Barrett was nominated on Sept. 26 following Ginsburg's death eight
days earlier.
She has criticized previous rulings upholding Obamacare but said
during her confirmation hearing she had no agenda to invalidate the
measure.
Barrett has been a federal appeals court judge since 2017 and was
previously a legal scholar at the University of Notre Dame in
Indiana.
"We're giving you a great new Supreme Court justice," Trump told a
campaign rally on Sunday.
(Reporting by Sarah N. Lynch; Editing by Peter Cooney)
[© 2020 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.] Copyright 2020 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content.
|