Barrett confirmation hearing day two: Barrett declines to call landmark abortion decision ‘super-precedent’
Here are some significant developments:
- Barrett said Roe v. Wade, the 1973 ruling that legalized abortion nationwide, did not belong to the category of judicial rulings known as “super-precedents” — decisions considered so fundamental that they cannot be overturned. “Roe is not a super-precedent,” Barrett said, adding: “But that does not mean it should be overruled.”
- Democrats cast Barrett as a conservative ideologue whose confirmation to the high court would threaten the ACA. Republicans tried to deflect the Democrats’ focus on health care and defended Barrett from the assumption that she would be an automatic vote to dismantle the landmark law. Under questioning, Barrett said, “I’m not on a mission to destroy the Affordable Care Act.”
- Barrett declined to say whether presidents should commit to a peaceful transfer of power, saying she would not get drawn into political controversies. She did note the country’s history of “peaceful transfers of power.” “I think that is part of the genius of our Constitution and the good faith and goodwill of the American people, that we haven’t had a situation that has arisen,” she said.
- Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), who had contracted the coronavirus, released a letter Tuesday from his physician saying he has been cleared to participate in person at the confirmation hearings. The letter says the senator has met the criteria set by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, but it makes no mention of whether Tillis has tested negative for the virus. Tillis spoke at the hearing without a mask.
- A slight majority of American voters oppose holding confirmation hearings now, according to a Washington Post-ABC News poll, although opposition has eased since President Trump announced his choice to replace Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died last month.
Source:WP
