The Rush to Confirm Amy Coney Barrett Endangers Voting & Civil Rights

The Senate confirmation hearing for President Trump's Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett ended Thursday with Republicans on the Judiciary Committee scheduling a vote on her nomination for October 22, with a full Senate vote to follow shortly thereafter — less than two weeks before the presidential election, in which the Supreme Court could play a decisive role.

The right-wing judge's confirmation looks all but assured, after four rushed days of questioning in which Barrett refused to state her position on abortion rights, gay marriage, the Affordable Care Act, voting rights, climate change, and even if President Trump could delay the election. If confirmed, she gives conservatives a 6-3 majority on the high court.

"We have never had a president put forth a nomination and commence confirmation hearings in the middle of an ongoing presidential election," says Kristen Clarke, president and executive director of the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law.

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