Billy Long: Senate should move quickly and confirm Amy Coney Barrett despite objections of left, "fake news media"

(From Seventh District Congressman Billy Long)

Last weekend, President Trump announced that he is nominating Judge Amy Coney Barrett to replace the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

Though Judge Barrett is an exceedingly qualified candidate with strong conservative values and accolades worthy of a Supreme Court nomination, her nomination was, not surprisingly, met with an array of criticism and unfounded claims from the left that replacing Justice Ginsburg should be delayed until after the election. 

Though expected, the Democrats’ brazen display of hypocrisy and partisanship is disgraceful and their efforts to block both the president and the Senate’s constitutional duties should not be taken lightly.

 

In 2016, Democrats widely supported President Obama’s decision to nominate Merrick Garland to succeed Antonin Scalia as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, insisting that the president and Senate had a constitutional obligation to fill the seat without delay; now, however, they’re singing a far different tune. 

Though the circumstances by which the president and Senate are authorized to fill Supreme Court Justice vacancies has not changed, Democrats have openly railed against an idea they once supported simply because they don’t like President Trump.

The Democrats have recently claimed that there simply isn’t enough time to confirm a new justice before the election and have implied that this nomination is unprecedented, but it’s not as uncommon as they would have you believe. There have been 15 Supreme Court appointments during an election year, three of which, including Ruth Bader Ginsburg, were confirmed in less than two months. 

Senate hearings are scheduled to begin on October 12, 22 days before the election; if John Paul Stevens was confirmed 19 days prior to the election, the Senate should have no problem confirming Judge Barrett. And thanks to her sterling reputation and qualifications, Democrats are having a difficult time masking their partisanship and justifying their disdain.

Though the fake news media and Democrats would have you believe otherwise, Judge Barrett is extraordinarily qualified, and her nomination has actually received widespread and bipartisan praise. 

More than 70 law professors endorsed her initial appointment to the federal bench, including Neal Katyal, Obama-Biden’s former acting solicitor general. All 34 clerks she served with on the Supreme Court in 1988- including those who worked for Justice Ginsburg- supported her nomination to the 7th circuit, and the American Bar Association, which Sen. Chuck Schumer considers the “gold standard”, rated her as “well-qualified” during her 2017 confirmation process. 

She has served on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit since 2017, was appointed by Chief Justice John Roberts to sit on the Advisory Committee on Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure and has proven she is worthy of the praise she’s received.

Yet, despite previous support and her qualifications, she, or any nominee put forth by President Trump, was destined to be discounted, discredited, disqualified, and attacked by Democrats desperate to avoid seating another Trump nominee on the bench. 

The disgusting display of partisanship and vicious attacks Judge Barrett and her family have endured since President Trump announced her nomination stem from the left’s unconditional hatred of President Trump, and unfortunately, she and her family are the latest victims of the “tolerant” left. I believe that Judge Barrett will make an excellent Supreme Court Justice, and I offer my strongest support as my colleagues in the Senate begin confirmation hearings.