surpreme court with people walking up the steps

Why senators should confirm Judge Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court

Sep 29, 2020 by AFP

President Donald Trump has chosen Amy Coney Barrett, a judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, to fill the recent vacancy on the Supreme Court.

He made an excellent choice.

Judge Barrett is well-qualified to serve on the Court. She received her J.D. in 1997 from Notre Dame, where she served as executive editor of the law review, and received the Hoynes Prize, the highest honor at the law school.

Her writings, stated philosophy, and her time on the federal judiciary demonstrate that she has profound appreciation for the U.S. Constitution, the rule of law, and the proper role of a judge.

In some corners, Judge Barrett’s correct understanding of this role has fallen out of fashion. Some Americans have come to see our nation’s judges as something like super legislators, as people who codify their personal ideology into law through their cases.

Some judges rule in ways that confirm their misperception.

But that is not why we have courts and judges. The Supreme Court and its nine justices are there to ensure that the executive and legislative branches are acting in accordance with our Constitution. They do not exist to impose their preferred policies by judicial fiat.

Consistently, Judge Barrett has proved that she believes in this restrained role of a justice. Contrary to the wrongheaded philosophy that judges should craft law from the bench, she sees it a different way.

“Although judges, like all persons, possess ideological convictions, they must put aside those convictions to follow the law,” she wrote in response to questions from Senator Mazie Hirono during her 2017 hearing for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. “When judicial nominees tell this Committee that their personal views will not matter to the discharge of their judicial duties, they affirm their adherence to this fundamental aspect of the judicial oath.”

Judge Barrett also knows that the Constitution is not a malleable document that can be shaped into whatever a judge wants it to be. “The basic insight of originalism is that the Constitution is a law and should be interpreted like one,” she wrote in her response to questions from Senator Dianne Feinstein. “Thus, where the meaning of text is ascertainable, a judge must apply it.”

Judge Barrett’s adherence to the Constitution and to the rule of law is why Americans for Prosperity supports her confirmation.

“Judge Amy Coney Barrett is highly qualified and will rule based on the Constitution, rather than a personal agenda,” said Casey Mattox, vice president for legal and judicial strategy at Americans for Prosperity. “Based on her record, we are confident that she will embrace her role to safeguard the constitutional rights of the people while recognizing that we elect Congress, not the courts, to legislate.”

Judge Barrett has proven time and again that she understands the job of a judge, that she’s committed to our Constitution, and that she won’t legislate from the bench. As senators consider her nomination, it’s critical that AFP activists like you urge them to confirm her.

Take action today! Tell your senator to confirm Judge Amy Barrett to the Supreme Court!