Amy Coney Barrett Officially Confirmed As The Next Supreme Court Justice
In a historic vote, Amy Coney Barrett is confirmed as the next Supreme Court Justice just eight days before Election Day.
Despite uproar and resistance from the Democrats, Amy Coney Barrett has been confirmed, just one month after being nominated by President Trump. The final vote in the Senate was 52 for and 48 against, and the confirmation was announced shortly after 8pm in Washington D.C.
Amy Coney Barrett is a successful legal scholar and a brilliant mind, but she’s a noticeable departure from the priorities of her predecessor, Ruth Bader Ginsburg. She’s also a champion of the pro-life movement, a mother, and an extremely well-educated individual, one who could stand to be the next national role model for Christian conservative women. The 48-year-old justice will likely ensure a reliable conservative majority on the Supreme Court for decades.
Amy Coney Barrett's Biography
Barret was raised in Metairie, LA. Her father was an attorney for Shell Oil, and her mother was a homemaker. After graduating from St. Mary’s Dominican High School, Barrett attended Rhodes College in Tennessee and then Notre Dame Law School. She graduated with honors from both.
Barrett then clerked for Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia. Afterward, she practiced law in Washington, D.C. where she litigated constitutional, criminal, and commercial cases in both trial and appellate courts.
In 2002, Barrett joined the faculty of Notre Dame Law School, where she taught and researched in the areas of federal courts, constitutional law, and statutory interpretation. Her scholarship has been published in leading legal journals, and she was chosen as "Distinguished Professor of the Year" by three of the law school's graduating classes.
In 2017, Barrett was confirmed as a judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. She has written about 100 opinions and "several telling dissents in which Barrett displayed her clear and consistent conservative bent," as The Associated Press comments on her judicial record.
She is married to Jesse Barrett, a former prosecutor now in private practice. The couple has seven children, one with Down syndrome and two adopted from Haiti.
The Opposition against Judge Barrett
Those opposed to Judge Barrett were concerned about her stance on abortion, the Second Amendment, and Obamacare. Others, particularly the radical feminists, were concerned that Barrett's traditional values and Catholic faith would threaten their rights.
Barrett has stated, “I would never impose my own personal convictions upon the law.”
Regarding abortion, Barrett suggested in 2016 that the court would most likely leave the basic right to abortion in place, but allow states the scope to make abortion difficult to obtain.
Evie writer S.G. Cheah explains why the radical feminists hate ACB: "Let’s be honest, radical feminists hate the fact that Amy Coney Barrett rejected the secular religion of feminism, and through this rejection, she succeeded in every aspect of her life. A loving husband, a happy family, and a successful career – Amy Coney Barrett has it all. Instead of fighting the patriarchy, Barrett embraced the idea of marriage with a large family. Because of this, Amy Coney Barrett symbolizes the worst form of betrayal to 'the sisterhood' of feminism."
Time alone will tell if any of these concerns are validated.