On Monday (Oct. 26), the Senate confirmed Judge Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court, solidifying the Republican majority just one week before Election Day. Barrett was sworn in shortly after by Supreme Court Associate Justice Clarence Thomas at the White House. Barrett marks the third justice nominated by President Trump, who was at the swearing in ceremony, after Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh.
“I am grateful for the confidence you have expressed in me and I pledge to you and to the American people that I will discharge my duties to the very best of my ability,” Barrett said.
According to CBS, Barrett was confirmed by a vote of 52-48, with only one Republican — and all Democrats — voting against her. Democrats have previously voiced concerns about what Barrett’s confirmation could mean for the Affordable Care Act and the abortion rights-protecting ruling, Roe v. Wade. Democrats tried to delay the proceedings by boycotting a vote, but Republicans pushed Barrett’s advancement forward nonetheless.
“This has been a sham process from the beginning,” Senate Democrats wrote in a statement. “Amidst a global pandemic and ongoing election, Republicans are rushing to confirm a Supreme Court Justice to take away health care from millions and execute the extreme and deeply unpopular agenda that they’ve been unable to get through Congress.”
After Barrett was sworn in, the Trump campaign celebrated her confirmation in a statement.
“Justice Amy Coney Barrett is a reminder to millions of Americans why they voted for President Trump in the first place,” Trump’s campaign legal advisor Jenna Ellis said. “She is now the third solid, conservative Justice appointed to the Supreme Court by the President and she will apply the Constitution and not turn the Court into a super legislature.”
“Her nomination and confirmation exposed the radical leftist plan to pack the Court by expanding its size, and also put Joe Biden on the spot,” she added. “He must now come clean with the American people, reveal his list of prospective justices, explain his position on court packing, and stop telling voters that they ‘don’t deserve’ to know what he thinks.”