In this image from video, the vote total in the U.S. Senate on the confirmation of Amy Coney Barrett to become a Supreme Court justice at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, on Oct. 26, 2020. Senate Television via AP
Republicans celebrated Amy Coney Barrett’s confirmation as an associate justice of the Supreme Court Monday night, announcing it as a victory for the United States, while Democrats declared it a dark day for America and said they will not stop fighting against what they call the “illegitimate process.”
Throughout the confirmation hearings, Republicans applauded Barrett’s legal knowledge, temperament, and character while Democrats claimed with Barrett in the High Court, the majority will change long-standing precedent.
“Throughout her academic and legal career, and in her personal life, Judge Amy Coney Barrett has proven to have the character, temperament, and experience Iowans, and all Americans, look for in a Supreme Court Justice,” wrote Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa).
Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) in the Senate subway area of the Capitol before President Donald Trump’s State of the Union address in Washington on Feb. 4, 2020. Charlotte Cuthbertson/The Epoch Times
Sen. Mike Rounds (R-N.D.) wrote, “Today is a great day for the rule of law and our Founders’ vision when carefully crafting the Constitution,” adding, “Amy Coney Barrett is one of the most qualified nominees to be confirmed to the Supreme Court. She will be a fair and impartial judge who will apply the law as written, and not legislate from the bench.”
Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) led the process for Judge Amy Coney Barrett to be confirmed to the Supreme Court Monday, Oct. 26 with votes landing along party lines, 52 to 48.
“A constitutional conservative on the Supreme Court who understands the difference between being a judge and a politician,” wrote Graham. Adding, “A great day for conservative women and the American people!”
However, Democrats did not look at Barrett’s qualifications, but focused on the process which they have repeatedly called illegitimate, citing when former president Barack Obama nominated a judge for the Supreme Court in an election year and the Republican-controlled Senate blocked his nominee.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) warned Republicans that they had created a “wound” by using political force to confirm Barrett that would take a long time to heal, and concluded, “It will go down as one of the darkest days in the 231-year history of the United States Senate.”
Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) calls on reporters during a news conference at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, on Jan. 22, 2020. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) pushed back against Democrats attacking the process. “Democrats cannot use ‘illegitimate’ as a synonym for ‘we didn’t get our way,’” he wrote on Saturday as the full Senate debate began.
Other Democrats claimed that the conservative majority now created by Justice Barrett does not reflect the values of the American people and will require them to take drastic actions.
Former presidential candidate Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) reacted to the Barrett confirmation on Twitter Monday night, “The Republicans are popping champagne tonight to celebrate how they for shoved aside the wishes of the American people to steal a Supreme Court seat & impose their radical agenda on the country—an agenda most Americans don’t support. But this fight isn’t over. We will fight on.”
Sen. Tom Udall (D-N.M.) wrote in a statement, “Today is an awful day for the Supreme Court and the United States Senate, but the story does not end here. Americans will not tolerate a far-right majority on the [Supreme Court] that tears up decades of precedent,” He said if the majority repeals healthcare, tip the scales of the election, or block climate change legislation, “I believe there will be a very strong reaction to correct the course.”
Meanwhile, Democrat leaders from the Obama administration said Barrett’s confirmation was a reason to vote the Republicans out of office.
“The rushed and unprecedented confirmation of Amy Coney Barrett as Associate Justice to the Supreme Court, in the middle of an ongoing election, should be a stark reminder to every American that your vote matters,” wrote the Biden campaign in a written statement.
“Senate Republicans just pushed through a Supreme Court justice who will help them take away Americans’ health care in the middle of a pandemic. For them, this is a victory. Vote them out,” wrote former Secretary of State Hilary Clinton.
Some of the most progressive and newest members of Congress, Reps. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), echoed top Democrats like Schumer and Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.) as they called for expanding the Supreme Court.
Omar wrote, “Remember that Republicans have lost 6 of the last 7 popular votes, but have appointed 6 of the last 9 justices. By expanding the court, we fix this broken system and have the court better represent the values of the American people.”
Masooma Haq began reporting for The Epoch Times from Pakistan in 2008. She currently covers a variety of topics including U.S. government, culture, and entertainment.
