The Republican-led Senate confirmed Amy Coney Barrett as a justice to the Supreme Court, drawing expected backlash from Democratic lawmakers.
Throughout the confirmation process, Democrats blasted President Donald Trump and congressional Republicans for pushing through a nominee shortly before the 2020 presidential election. Barrett succeeded late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and her confirmation cements a conservative majority on the highest court in the land.
After Barrett was confirmed late Monday, on a 52-48 vote, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) blasted Trump and Senate Republicans, saying they âhave committed an act of supreme desperation by jamming through a Supreme Court justice â all so that they can achieve their years-long campaign to destroy Americansâ health care.â
Barrettâs confirmation and swearing-in ceremony were eight days before Election Day held on Nov. 3.
Pelosi continued, âNow, Americans must continue to make their voices heard in the election. Congress will have to reverse the damage of a radical Republican court and defend pre-existing condition protections together with every other benefit and protection of the Affordable Care Act.â
âThe Presidentâs Supreme Court manipulation threatens the very values and rights that define and distinguish our nation: a womanâs constitutional right to make her own medical decisions, the rights of LGBTQ Americans, the right of workers to organize and collectively bargain for fair wages, the future of our planet and environmental protections, voting rights and the right of every American to have a voice in our democracy.â
âWe must have a Congress that is prepared to remedy what the Supreme Court will do to undermine the health, financial security and well-being of American families,â Pelosi concluded her statement.
The House speaker also spoke about Barrettâs confirmation on MSNBC Monday evening:
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) also blasted his Republican colleagues, tweeting, âThe truth is: This nomination is part of a decades-long effort to tilt the courts towards the right to accomplish through the courts what Republicans could never accomplish through Congress.â
He added, âDemocrats will never stop fighting for Americansâ health care, rights and freedoms.â
See Schumerâs tweets below:
Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden also weighed in, saying in a statement, âThe 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.â
However, in contrast, Trump celebrated Barrettâs confirmation to the Supreme Court.
At the swearing-in ceremony, the president said, âThe Barrett family has captured Americaâs heart. It is highly fitting that Justice Barrett fills the seat of a true pioneer for women, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.â
Barrett also said in her brief remarks, âThe oath that I have solemnly taken tonight means at its core I will do the job without fear or favor and do it independently of the political branches and of my own preferences.â
