Trump Sparks New Battle With Supreme Court Pick
WASHINGTON (Dispatches) -- President Donald Trump on Saturday nominated Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court - another milestone in Trump’s rightward shift of the top U.S. judicial body.
Trump’s announcement during a flag-festooned White House Rose Garden ceremony - with Barrett, 48, by his side and her seven children on hand - sets off a scramble by Senate Republicans to confirm her as the president has requested before Election Day in 5-1/2 weeks as he seeks a second term in office.
If confirmed by the Senate to replace liberal Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died at age 87 on Sept. 18, Barrett would become the fifth woman ever to serve on the court and would push its conservative majority to a commanding 6-3.
Like Trump’s two other appointees, Neil Gorsuch in 2017 and Brett Kavanaugh in 2018, Barrett is young enough that she could serve for decades in the lifetime job, leaving a lasting conservative imprint. Barrett is the youngest Supreme Court nominee since conservative Clarence Thomas was 43 in 1991.
Scalia, who died in 2016, was one of the most influential conservative justices in recent history. Barrett previously served as a clerk for Scalia on the high court and described him as her mentor, citing his "incalculable influence” on her life.
With Trump’s fellow Republicans holding a 53-47 Senate majority, confirmation appears certain, though Democrats may try to make it as difficult as possible.
An emboldened Supreme Court conservative majority could shift the United States to the right on hot-button issues.
Barrett, a devout Roman Catholic who earned her law degree and taught at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana, was appointed by Trump to the Chicago-based 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in 2017 and is a favorite of religious conservatives, a key Trump voter bloc.
But Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden repeated his call for the appointment to be made by the winner of the Nov. 3 election.
"The Senate should not act on this vacancy until after the American people select their next president and the next Congress,” Biden said.
Democrats are still furious over Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell’s 2016 refusal to consider President Barack Obama’s Supreme Court nomination of Merrick Garland because it came during an election year. This marks the first time since 1956 that a U.S. president has moved to fill a Supreme Court vacancy so close to an election.
"Donald Trump and Mitch McConnell have made it clear they will pull out all the stops to jam through another right-wing Supreme Court nominee - even if that means breaking their own rule pertaining to election-year appointments,” Democratic Senator Ron Wyden said.
Trump’s announcement during a flag-festooned White House Rose Garden ceremony - with Barrett, 48, by his side and her seven children on hand - sets off a scramble by Senate Republicans to confirm her as the president has requested before Election Day in 5-1/2 weeks as he seeks a second term in office.
If confirmed by the Senate to replace liberal Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died at age 87 on Sept. 18, Barrett would become the fifth woman ever to serve on the court and would push its conservative majority to a commanding 6-3.
Like Trump’s two other appointees, Neil Gorsuch in 2017 and Brett Kavanaugh in 2018, Barrett is young enough that she could serve for decades in the lifetime job, leaving a lasting conservative imprint. Barrett is the youngest Supreme Court nominee since conservative Clarence Thomas was 43 in 1991.
Scalia, who died in 2016, was one of the most influential conservative justices in recent history. Barrett previously served as a clerk for Scalia on the high court and described him as her mentor, citing his "incalculable influence” on her life.
With Trump’s fellow Republicans holding a 53-47 Senate majority, confirmation appears certain, though Democrats may try to make it as difficult as possible.
An emboldened Supreme Court conservative majority could shift the United States to the right on hot-button issues.
Barrett, a devout Roman Catholic who earned her law degree and taught at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana, was appointed by Trump to the Chicago-based 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in 2017 and is a favorite of religious conservatives, a key Trump voter bloc.
But Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden repeated his call for the appointment to be made by the winner of the Nov. 3 election.
"The Senate should not act on this vacancy until after the American people select their next president and the next Congress,” Biden said.
Democrats are still furious over Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell’s 2016 refusal to consider President Barack Obama’s Supreme Court nomination of Merrick Garland because it came during an election year. This marks the first time since 1956 that a U.S. president has moved to fill a Supreme Court vacancy so close to an election.
"Donald Trump and Mitch McConnell have made it clear they will pull out all the stops to jam through another right-wing Supreme Court nominee - even if that means breaking their own rule pertaining to election-year appointments,” Democratic Senator Ron Wyden said.