McConnell Says Attacks on Judge Barrett’s Faith Are a ‘Disgrace’

Supreme Court nominee Judge Amy Coney Barrett, center, meets with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), right, and Vice President Mike Pence, front left, on Capitol Hill in Washington on Sept. 29, 2020. Erin Schaff/Pool via Reuters

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) called out Senate Democrats and the media for “discriminating” against Supreme Court nominee Judge Amy Coney Barrett and for suggesting that she would let her religious beliefs override her oath to defend the Constitution of the United States.

McConnell said Democrats, bolstered by liberal media outlets, have been attacking Barrett for her faith, instead of focusing on Barrett’s record as a judge.

“These euphemisms fool no one. United States senators are suggesting that Judge Barrett is too Christian or the wrong kind of Christian to be a good Judge,” McConnell wrote. “The ongoing attacks by Senate Democrats and the media on Judge Barrett’s faith are a disgrace.

“Every Supreme Court Justice in history has possessed personal views. Judges have a job to do and they swear to do it impartially. It is the definition of discrimination to assert that Justice Barrett’s particular faith makes her uniquely unqualified for this promotion.”

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) also criticized Democrats for trying to discredit Barrett because of her Christian faith.

“Democrats’ shameful attempts to discredit Judge Amy Coney Barrett as nominee for [the Supreme Court] because of her religion are wrong and unconstitutional,” Cruz wrote.

He and other Republicans have pointed to Article IV, Section 3 of the Constitution, which states that senators, representatives, and federal employees “shall be bound by Oath or Affirmation, to support this Constitution; but no religious test shall ever be required as a Qualification to any Office or public Trust under the United States.”

“The secular left says they’re for progress, but they’ve just wandered back into the embarrassing tropes of the 1960s, when some argued John F. Kennedy would obey the Pope over the national interests,” McConnell wrote.

During Barrett’s 2017 confirmation hearing for her current role on the 7th Circuit bench, Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) questioned Barrett on her Catholic beliefs and how she could keep them out of her legal judgments.

Barrett responded that she was a faithful Catholic and that her religious beliefs wouldn’t affect her decisions.

Since Barrett’s nomination to the Supreme Court, many newspapers and other media outlets, under headlines such as “Amy Coney Barrett Served as ‘Handmaid’ in Christian Group People of Praise” from The Washington Post, have questioned her religious beliefs.

Democrats are continuing to call for Barrett’s nomination to be postponed until after the November elections, claiming that another conservative judge on the Supreme Court will allow Republicans to overturn the Affordable Care Act, Roe v. Wade, same-sex marriage, and immigration policies that were issued during the Obama administration, such as Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals.

“I would discharge the judicial oath, which requires me to administer justice without respect to persons, do equal right to the poor and rich, and faithfully and impartially discharge my duties under the United States Constitution” if confirmed to the Supreme Court, she said at her nomination ceremony at the White House.

Democrats should question Barrett on her legal record instead of her faith, McConnell said.

“These disgraceful attacks only reinforce why it is crucial to confirm judges like Barrett who understand and respect our Constitution, including its protections for all Americans’ religious liberty,” he said.