Today (September 27, 2020) Democratic Presidential Nominee Joe Biden laid out three reasons why the nomination of Judge Amy Coney Barrett is wrong for the American People.
These reasons include:
- The Republican rush to fill the seat in an obvious power grab and show of profound hypocrisy.
- Voting for the next President and Congress is already underway in many states.
- The threat the Supreme Court Nominee shows towards the fate of the Affordable Care Act for millions of people, many with preexisting health conditions, in the middle of a Pandemic.
The Republican rush to fill the seat in an obvious power grab and show of profound hypocrisy.
Mr. Biden strongly rebuked Mr. Trump, Mr. McConnell, and the other Republicans for rushing to fill the Supreme Court seat held by Justice Ginsburg in an obvious power grab just before the November elections and the display of profound hypocrisy given how many of these same Republicans treated Obama Supreme Court Nominee Merrick Garland in 2016.
Among the former Vice Presidents comments were:
"But yesterday, before justice Ginsburg could be laid to rest and after a hundred thousands of Americans had already cast their ballots, the president nominated a successor to her seat..."
"It doesn’t matter to them the Republicans set the precedent just four years ago when they denied even the courtesy of a hearing to President Obama’s nominee after Justice Scalia passed after he had only passed away nine the months prior to election day..."
"And the voters, in my view, are not going to stand for this abuse of power. And, if we’re to call ourselves a democracy, their voices must be heard."
Voting for the next President and Congress is already underway in many states.
The 2020 Democratic Presidential Nominee also reminded the people that voting for the next President and Congress is already underway in much of the country. He appealed to his former Republican colleagues to be mindful of what the people say at the polls leading up to November 3, 2020. Among Mr. Biden's comments were:
"The Senate has to stand strong for our democracy. They must not act on this nomination until the American people finish the process they’re already begun, of selecting their president and their Congress. And I’ve said before, if the people choose Donald Trump, then the Senate should give his nominee a hearing and a vote. If the people do not choose Trump and choose me, President Trump’s nomination should be withdrawn. I should nominate… chosen by a president who’s just been elected by the people… to get a fair hearing, which would not even occur until early February… a confirmation vote."
"I urge the American people to keep voting and to let your current senators know that you want to be heard before a vote on confirmation of a new justice. And I urge every senator to take a step back from the brink, take off the blinders on politics for just one critical moment, and stand up for the Constitution you swore to uphold. This is a time to de-escalate, to put an end to the shattering of precedents that has thrown our nation into chaos under this president."
"Just because you have the power to do something doesn’t absolve you of your responsibility to do right by the American people. Uphold your Constitutional duty. Summon your conscience. Stand up for the people. Stand up for our cherished system of checks and balances. Americans are watching. Americans are voting. We must listen to them now. We must allow them to exercise this sacred power. So please listen..."
The threat the Supreme Court Nominee shows towards the fate of the Affordable Care Act for millions of people, many with preexisting health conditions, in the middle of a Pandemic.
Mr. Biden spent a large portion of his remarks, telling the American People that the confirmation of Amy Coney Barrett, with her warped originalist, textualist judicial philosophy, likely means the end of the Affordable Care Act and its provisions that allow people to purchase health insurance on the Obamacare Marketplace and its protections of coverage for individuals with preexisting conditions.
The 2020 Democratic Presidential Nominee commented:
"All that does matter is that they (Trump and the Republicans) see an opportunity to overturn the Affordable Care Act on their way out the door. And as I speak, we are still in the midst of the worst global health crisis in a century, a crisis that has already taken over 200,000 lives, between 750 and 1,000 lives a day and counting. And yet, the Trump administration is asking the Supreme Court right now, as I speak, to eliminate the entire Affordable Care Act. The administration filed a brief in the Supreme Court that concludes, and I quote, “The entire ACA, thus, must fall. The entire ACA, thus, must fall.”
"President Trump can claim all he wants that he’s going to protect people with pre-existing conditions. But the fact is he’s already fighting to take those protections away as we speak. If he has his way, more than 100 million people with pre-existing conditions like asthma, diabetes, and cancer could once again be denied coverage. Complications from COVID-19 like lung scarring and heart damage could become the next flood of pre-existing conditions used as an excuse to deny coverage to millions of people. Women could once again be charged higher premiums just because they are women. Pregnancy becoming a pre-existing condition, again. Seniors would see their prescription drug prices go up and the funding for Medicare go down."
"And then, Saturday, President Trump would nominate Judge Amy Coney Barrett and, on Sunday, layout clearly what his objective is: to terminate Obamacare. The judge has a written track record, a written track record of disagreeing adamantly with the Supreme Court’s decisions on two occasions upholding the ACA. In fact, not as a judge, but prior to going on the bench, she publicly criticized Chief Justice Roberts’ opinion upholding the law eight years ago."
The former Vice President summed up what else would happen if Coney Barrett went on the Supreme Court, remarking:
"The American people understand the urgency of this moment. They’re already voting in droves because they know their healthcare hangs in the balance. They understand that, if Donald Trump gets his way, they could lose their right to vote, their right to clean air and water, their right to equal pay for equal work. Workers could lose their collective bargaining rights. Dreamers could be thrown out of the only country they’ve ever known. And women could lose the bedrock rights enshrined in Roe v. Wade for 50 years. People are voting right now because they know the very soul of this country is at stake and because they know that the decisions of the Supreme Court affect their everyday lives."
Senator and 2020 Democratic Vice Presidential Nominee Kamala Harris also offered her assessment of the Coney Barrett Nomination, issuing a statement that read:
“From day one, President Trump made clear that he had a litmus test for Supreme Court Justices – destroy the Affordable Care Act’s protections for people with preexisting conditions and overturn our right to make our own health care decisions."
“President Trump, Mitch McConnell and Senate Republicans will stop at nothing to destroy the Affordable Care Act’s protections for 130 million Americans with preexisting health conditions. The devastating coronavirus pandemic has already killed more than 202,000 Americans and sickened millions more, yet President Trump is fighting in the Supreme Court right now to strike down the only law guaranteeing Americans can access the health care they need. Republicans are desperate to get Judge Barrett confirmed before the Supreme Court takes up this case in November and millions of Americans will suffer for their power play."
“Just yesterday, I paid my respects to the legendary Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who devoted her life to fighting for Equal Justice Under Law and a more fair and just world. Her passing is devastating, and it would be a travesty to replace her with a justice who is being selected to undo her legacy and erase everything she did for our country."
“I have been proud to represent the people throughout my entire career. With the next Supreme Court Justice set to determine the fate of protections for those with preexisting health conditions, and reproductive health options, I will continue to fight on behalf of the people and strongly oppose the president’s nomination.”
Is Judge Amy Coney Barrett qualified to sit on the United States Supreme Court?
Yes.
Does that mean she belongs on the United States Supreme Court in 2020 and for the next 30 to 40 years?
No.
Senator Harris and Vice President Biden are right to point out that the:
- Republicans have engaged in a ruthless power grab to circumvent the will of the American People a little more than a month before the elections to steal a second Supreme Court seat.
- Coney Barrett's judicial philosophy is the complete anthesis to the progressive icon she would be succeeding and the American People would have reason to fear for their health care, reproductive, safety, worker, civil, and equal rights should she make it to the Supreme Court.
Protest and fight this Nomination with all the legal means available. Democratic Senators need to continually remind the people what a Coney Barrett Nomination means for their futures. If Judge Coney Barrett is confirmed to the court in late October, make the Republican Senators and Donald Trump pay at the polls on November 3, 2020.
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