Trump nominates Amy Coney Barrett for Supreme Court

President Trump this evening announced he’s nominating Amy Coney Barrett to the US Supreme Court.

Barrett, 48, was a finalist for the Supreme Court spot that went to Brett Kavanaugh in 2018. She was confirmed in 2017 for her current judgeship on the 7th US Circuit Court of Appeals, which covers Indiana, Illinois and Wisconsin.

Now, the Republican-led Senate will begin the confirmation process for Barrett — and some GOP senators signaled they will quickly move to take up the nomination.

Here’s what we know about next steps:

President Donald Trump and Amy Coney Barrett walk to the Rose Garden on Saturday.

For the Supreme Court announcement today, the Rose Garden was transformed to look similar to June 14, 1993 — the day then-President Bill Clinton announced Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s nomination to the high court.

Trump this evening nominated Amy Coney Barrett to fill Ginsburg’s seat.

It is a very distinctive look, with large flags hanging down from the Colonnade, one after another, between the columns.

President Trump and his advisers specifically asked for the Rose Garden to be adorned in hanging flags after they recently saw the Clinton-Ginsburg announcement replaying on television.

It’s a subtle — but noticeable — replication of that look, a White House aide says.

Here’s what it looked like in 1993:

President Bill Clinton and Ruth Bader Ginsburg walk along the Colonnade of the White House on June 14, 1993.

Sen. Lisa Murkowski, a Republican Alaska, said despite her statement indicating she doesn’t support President Trump nominating a Supreme Court justice this close to Election Day, she will meet with Amy Coney Barrett as part of the confirmation process.

Here’s her statement:

Last week, Murkowski said she opposes taking up a Supreme Court nomination prior to Election Day. She did not address whether she will oppose President Donald Trump’s nominee in a lame-duck session if Joe Biden wins the presidency.

Democratic Sen. Mazie Hirono.

Democratic Sen. Mazie Hirono, a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said that Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett will strike down the Affordable Care Act if she is confirmed.  

“Judiciary Republicans are prepared to vote for whoever the nominee is, but they want to push this person through to steal yet another Supreme Court seat, to vote down the Affordable Care Act,” Hirono said. 

The Supreme Court will hear oral arguments on the future of the ACA on Nov. 10.

The senator from Hawaii told CNN’s Wolf Blitzer she will not be meeting with Barrett ahead of confirmation hearings.  

White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows said he hopes the nominee will be confirmed by Nov. 1.

“We may not be able to stop it; we can slow it down. But the American people need to know what’s at stake,” Hirono said. “… And what’s at stake is their very health care.”

People gather at Harrisburg International Airport ahead of President Trump's rally in Middletown, Pennsylvania, on Saturday. 

President Trump is set to hold a rally in Middletown, Pennsylvania, this evening — his first political event after officially nominating Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court. 

The event is not scheduled to kick off until 7 p.m. ET, but a significant crowd had already gathered hours ahead of time. As the nominating ceremony began, the large jumbotron over the event switched to Fox News’ live coverage of the event. 

The crowd quieted down and turned its attention to the event enthusiastically cheering as Barrett was announced. Some in the crowd broke out into a chant of “Fill the Seat!”. 

As Barrett delivered her remarks, the Trump crowd cheered as she said she loved America and the Constitution and when she promised to uphold the document as it was written.

They also cheered loudly as she talked about her role as a mother and described her family life.

As is typical with Trump events, this event is being staged once again with little to no precautions in place to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. Very few people are wearing masks and the crowd — which numbers in the thousands — is packed in shoulder-to-shoulder.

From left, Amy Coney Barrett and Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

CNN chief legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin highlighted the differences between late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Trump’s nominee to fill her seat, Amy Coney Barrett. 

He outlined the differing views of the conservative federal appeals court judge and the liberal justice Ginsburg. 

“The differences for reproductive freedom, for health care, for gun control — or the absence thereof — affirmative action, so many issues, her views are going to be diametrically opposed to Ruth Ginsburg’s,” he said. “And that’s what Donald Trump promised during the campaign. He is delivering on that promise, and we’re going to see in very short order whether the voters think that’s a good idea.”

The exterior of the US Supreme Court in Washington, DC.

Many Democratic lawmakers are mentioning health care and the Affordable Care Act in response to President Trump’s decision to nominate Amy Coney Barrett to the US Supreme Court,

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi in a statement tied her opposition to Barrett’s nomination to concerns she will support eliminating Obamacare. And Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer told his fellow senators that a vote to confirm Barrett “is a vote to strike down the Affordable Care Act”

Here’s why they’re focusing on health care: The Supreme Court is set to hear oral arguments just after the November election in a case about the Affordable Care Act.

Senate Republicans have indicated they may vote to confirm Barrett before Election Day — meaning she could be seated on the bench for that case.

What Barrett has said about the Affordable Care Act: In an early 2017 law review essay reviewing a book related to the Supreme Court ruling on the Affordable Care Act, Barrett criticized Chief Justice John Roberts’ rationale that saved the law in 2012.

“Chief Justice Roberts pushed the Affordable Care Act beyond its plausible meaning to save the statute,” Barrett wrote. “He construed the penalty imposed on those without health insurance as a tax, which permitted him to sustain the statute as a valid exercise of the taxing power.”

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said President Trump’s decision to nominate Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court has put “Americans’ healthcare in the crosshairs.”

“The American people should make no mistake — a vote by any Senator for Judge Amy Coney Barrett is a vote to strike down the Affordable Care Act and eliminate protections for millions of Americans with pre-existing conditions,” Schumer wrote in a statement.

Schumer continued:

What this is about: The Supreme Court is set to hear oral arguments just after the November election in a case about the Affordable Care Act. Senate Republicans have indicated they may vote to confirm Barrett before Election Day — meaning she could be seated on the bench for that case.

In an early 2017 law review essay, reviewing a book related to the Supreme Court ruling on the Affordable Care Act, Barrett criticized Chief Justice John Roberts’ rationale that saved the law in 2012.

“Chief Justice Roberts pushed the Affordable Care Act beyond its plausible meaning to save the statute,” Barrett wrote. “He construed the penalty imposed on those without health insurance as a tax, which permitted him to sustain the statute as a valid exercise of the taxing power.”

Joe Biden attends a memorial service for Ruth Bader Ginsburg in the Statuary Hall at the US Capitol on Friday, September 25.

Joe Biden released a statement reacting to Amy Coney Barrett’s nomination and focused on health care and protecting the Affordable Care Act.

He added that the Senate should not act on the vacancy until after the American people select their next president. 

Remember: Senate Republicans have outlined a possible confirmation hearing for Barrett that could have her confirmed before Election Day.

The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear oral arguments just after the election in a case about the Affordable Care Act. The case is brought by a coalition of Republican state attorneys general and the Trump administration, who argue the law’s individual mandate is unconstitutional, and the entire law must fall.

Amy Coney Barrett honored the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg in her speech after President Trump selected her to fill Ginsburg’s Supreme Court seat.

“Should I be confirmed, I will be mindful who came before me,” she said. “The flag of the United States is still flying at half-staff in memory of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg to mark the end of a great American life.”

Barrett continued: “Justice Ginsburg began her career at a time when women were not welcome in the legal profession, but she not only broke glass ceilings, she smashed them.”

Barrett — who once clerked for Justice Antonin Scalia — noted Ginsburg’s friendship with the conservative Justice.

While Ginsburg and Scalia disagreed “fiercely,” they demonstrated disagreements “need not destroy affection.”

Watch:

President Trump, while announcing that he’s nominating Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court, urged Democrats to grant her a “respectful and dignified” hearing.

The battle of the Supreme Court vacancy has shaped the 2020 election in the past week. Many Democrats have said the seat should not be filled before the election, while Republicans in the Senate are moving to confirm Trump’s nominee before Election Day.

Watch:

Sen. Mitch McConnell departs the Senate chamber on Monday, September 21.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said Trump “could not have made a better decision” in selecting Amy Coney Barrett as his Supreme Court nominee.

McConnell has been steadfast that the US Senate will vote on President Trump’s nomination to the Supreme Court this year.

President Trump has selected Amy Coney Barrett to fill Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s Supreme Court seat.

Barrett, 48, was a finalist for the Supreme Court spot that went to Brett Kavanaugh in 2018.

She was confirmed in 2017 for her current judgeship on the 7th US Circuit Court of Appeals, which covers Indiana, Illinois and Wisconsin.

Born in New Orleans in 1972 and a 1997 Notre Dame law graduate, Barrett worked in private practice and then became a law professor, settling at Notre Dame in 2002. She once served as a former law clerk to the late right-wing beacon Justice Antonin Scalia.

Barrett, if confirmed, will certainly tilt the high court further rightward for years to come. She has demonstrated her conservative bona fides on Second Amendment gun rights, immigration and abortion. You can read more about her writings here.

Watch:

President Trump is in the Rose Garden for his Supreme Court announcement. He is accompanied Judge Amy Coney Barrett.

President Trump is expected to announce who he is nominating to fill the late Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s Supreme Court seat at 5 p.m. ET.

He’ll make the announcement in the White House Rose Garden, which has been transformed to look similar to June 14, 1993 — the day then-President Bill Clinton announced Ginsburg’s nomination to the high court.

Trump is expected to nominate Amy Coney Barrett, according to multiple sources with knowledge of the process.

This will be the third person Trump has nominated to the Supreme Court, following Justices Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh.

From left, Supreme Court Justices Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh stand together at President Trump's State of the Union address on February 5, 2019.

President Trump will soon announce his nominee to fill Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s Supreme Court seat.

This will be the third time Trump has nominated someone to fill a Supreme Court vacancy.

His first Supreme Court pick was Neil Gorsuch in 2017, whom he selected to fill the vacancy created by the death of Justice Antonin Scalia. Former President Barack Obama had nominated Merrick Garland for the seat in 2016 — but Republicans refused to fill the election-year Supreme Court vacancy.

Then, in 2018, when Justice Anthony Kennedy announced his retirement, Trump nominated Brett Kavanaugh.

White House staff prepare the Rose Garden ahead of President Trump's scheduled Supreme Court nomination announcement on Saturday.

President Trump will soon announce his nominee to the US Supreme Court. He intends to choose Amy Coney Barrett, according to multiple sources with knowledge of the process.

Some Republican senators have signaled they will quickly move to take up the nomination following the announcement. This sets the stage for the possibility of a final confirmation vote before Election Day.

Two Republican senators — Sens. Lisa Murkowski and Susan Collins — have said they do not support voting on the nomination of a Supreme Court justice ahead of the election.

But now that Utah Republican Sen. Mitt Romney has signaled that he is on board with moving ahead with a vote, Barrett’s likely to be confirmed barring any potential missteps.

According to a likely schedule being circulated around the Senate, the hearing to confirm Trump’s pick could begin on Oct. 12.

President Trump will announce his Supreme Court justice nominee at 5 p.m. ET today. He intends to choose Amy Coney Barrett, according to multiple sources with knowledge of the process.

If you’re just reading in, here’s what we know about Barrett:

President Bill Clinton announces Ruth Bader Ginsburg's nomination to the Supreme Court on June 14, 1993.

For the Supreme Court announcement today, the Rose Garden is being transformed to look similar to June 14, 1993 — the day then-President Bill Clinton announced Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s nomination to the high court.

It is a very distinctive look, with large flags hanging down from the Colonnade, one after another, between the columns.

A White House aide who is involved in making the preparations today sent a photo to CNN showing the flags. It is designed to replicate the look of Ginsburg’s announcement. 

President Trump and his advisers specifically asked for the Rose Garden to be adorned in hanging flags after they recently saw the Clinton-Ginsburg announcement replaying on television.

It’s a subtle — but noticeable — replication of that look, a White House aide says.

The likely confirmation hearing schedule in the Senate Judiciary Committee for Judge Amy Coney Barrett, President Trump’s expected pick for the Supreme Court vacancy, is being circulated to members of the Senate, according to three people familiar with the process.  

The schedule would be as follows: 

Remember: This schedule is subject to change if something unexpected comes up in the next few weeks, but Republicans are pretty locked in on this timeline. It would tee up a Senate floor vote shortly before Election Day.