Senate Republicans expected to confirm Judge Barrett to Supreme Court

BY JACK CROWE

October 26, 2020

SENATE REPUBLICANS ARE EXPECTED TO CONFIRM Judge Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court this evening, cementing a conservative majority on the high court for what may be a generation to come, just one week before election day.

Barrett, a 48-year-old former Notre Dame law school professor who comes from the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals, will be sworn in by President Trump at the White House around 9 P.M. in an outdoor ceremony. (At least seven people who attended Barrett's nomination announcement, also held outside at the White House, later tested positive for the coronavirus.)

"The Senate is doing the right thing. We're moving this nomination forward and, colleagues, by tomorrow night we will have a new member of the United States Supreme Court," Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said on Sunday after his caucus advanced the nomination in a procedural vote to break a Democratic filibuster.

Republican senators Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski crossed party lines to vote with Democrats against advancing the nomination in Sunday's procedural vote. Both moderate lawmakers have expressed concerns about the speed with which Republicans moved to fill the late justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's seat so close to an election. Collins, who is locked in a tough reelection fight against Main state house speaker Sarah Gideon, is expected to vote against Barrett's confirmation. Murkowski, having registered her opposition to the timing, has said she will ultimately vote to confirm.

Rather than attacking Barrett personally by, for instance, discussing her religious affiliations, as they did during her confirmation to the 7th Circuit, Senate Democrats have focused narrowly on the consequences of Barrett's confirmation for the Affordable Care Act. They've also decried Republican hypocrisy on the question of confirming a Supreme Court justice during an election year and repeatedly called the confirmation hearings "a sham."

But Senator Dianne Feinstein, the ranking Democrat on the Judiciary Committee, seemed to close off that line of attack when she concluded the hearings last week by thanking Judiciary Committee chairman Lindsey Graham (R., S.C.) for presiding over "some of the best hearings" she'd ever participated in. Feinstein's display of bipartisanship earned her swift rebukes from progressive activists and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, who told reporters he'd had a "long and serious talk" with Feinstein.

State Department Suspends Diversity Training

The State Department confirmed Sunday that it has suspended a diversity training program for employees but assured it is still committed to a diverse and inclusive workplace.

The department paused the diversity training after President Trump issued an executive order directing agencies to end the "divisive" programs, according to an internal State Department cable obtained by Reuters.

"As an Executive Branch Agency, the Department of State complies with all Executive Orders," a State Department spokesman told Reuters Sunday. "Department leadership continues to encourage the workforce to engage in inclusive conversations and other efforts to promote diversity and inclusion consistent with the E.O."

Trump Asks Supreme Court to Block North Carolina Mail-In Ballot Extension

President Trump's campaign on Sunday again requested that the U.S. Supreme Court block a North Carolina policy to count absentee ballots that arrive after Election Day.

The campaign first filed the application on Thursday following a 12-3 decision by the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Tuesday that upheld the state's policy.

The North Carolina State Board of Elections plans to count ballots postmarked by November 3 that arrive before November 12.

Ocasio-Cortez Declines to Promise Support for Pelosi as Speaker, Will Back 'Most Progressive Candidate

Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Sunday hedged on whether she would support Nancy Pelosi as House speaker again, saying she will support the "most progressive" candidate.

"If Speaker Pelosi runs again, as she just indicated she will if the Democrats keep the House, will you support her?" CNN's Jake Tapper asked the freshman congresswoman during an interview on CNN.

"Again, I want to make sure that we win the House. I do believe that we will, but it's critically important that we are supporting Democrats in tight swing races, making sure that not only all of them come back but that we grow our majority. I believe that we have to see those races as they come, see what candidates are there," Ocasio-Cortez responded.

Pelosi Says She Will Run for Speaker Again as Coronavirus Stimulus Talks Remain Stalled

House speaker Nancy Pelosi said Sunday that she plans to run for speaker again as Democrats and Republicans struggle to reach a deal on another coronavirus stimulus package before the election in November.

"If Democrats keep the House, are you going to run for another term as Speaker?" CNN's Jake Tapper asked Pelosi during an interview on State of the Union.

"Yes, I am," Pelosi responded, adding that "we have to also win the Senate."

Talks on another stimulus bill to offset the economic damage of the pandemic remain sluggish as differences remain among House Democrats, Senate Republicans, and the Trump administration.

Pence Chief of Staff Tests Positive for Coronavirus

Vice President Mike Pence's chief of staff, Marc Short, tested positive for the coronavirus on Saturday, Pence's office announced.

Pence and his wife Karen both tested negative for the coronavirus on Saturday and "remain in good health," Pence's press secretary Devin O'Malley in a statement Saturday, and Short "began quarantine and assisting in the contact tracing process" the same day.

Three more of the vice president's staff members along with an adviser to Pence have also reportedly tested positive for the virus.