Who is Amy Coney Barrett?
4:20
(CNN) -
By appointing Justice Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court, President Donald Trump took the first step Saturday to cement a 6-3 conservative majority in the superior court, a change that could usher in changes. radicals in health care, as well as in voting, abortion and gun rights.
But the moment also served as a move for female voters, as Trump attempts to address a historic gender gap in the polls.
As Barrett spoke at the Rose Garden before an audience that included her seven children - as a designee, said Trump, who could become the first mother of school-age children to serve on the superior court - she showed how challenging it will be for the Democrats denigrate her as a terrifying figure who would join the court's conservative majority in rolling back abortion rights and stripping Americans of their health care protections.
LOOK: The notable discrepancies of Judge Amy Coney Barrett
Federal appeals judge, who served as a secretary to Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia in the late 1990s, was introduced Saturday night by Trump as a woman with a "commanding intellect" and "unwavering loyalty to the Constitution. "Whom she chose because she is one of the" nation's brightest and most talented legal minds. "
In her own speech, Barrett deftly conveyed the attributes of her judicial philosophy that have made her loved by conservatives.
But she also mentioned elements of her own biography as a "room mom, rideshare driver, and birthday party planner" that seemed intended to make her an identifiable figure for the Republican-leaning and independent suburban women's key voting bloc. They may be nervous about your conservative views on abortion and health care.
In a ceremony that the White House choreographed as a near-replica of the 1993 event in which then-President Bill Clinton nominated Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the 48-year-old judge spoke reverently of the progressive icon she would replace, stating that it would be "Aware of who came before me."
Barrett noted that Ginsburg began her career "at a time when women were not welcome in the legal profession," but "not only smashed glass ceilings, it smashed them."
In an unspoken plea for bipartisanship ahead of controversial confirmation hearings that will begin Oct. 12 and which Republicans hope will have wrapped up on Election Day, Barrett spoke of his admiration for the friendship between Scalia, whom he called his mentor, and Ginsburg "that arguments, even on matters of great importance, need not destroy affection," a standard he claimed to have applied in his own personal and professional relationships.
But Barrett also presented herself unequivocally as an acolyte to Scalia, a conservative fanatic who defined himself by his "originalist" approach to interpreting the Constitution, stating that he had "an incalculable influence" on his life.
"His judicial philosophy is also mine: a judge must apply the law as it is written," Barrett said of Scalia.
"Judges are not legislators and must be determined to set aside any political views they may have."
Trump and his allies hope that the appointment - and the president's recognition of Barrett's balancing act as an accomplished jurist and working mother - can help the president win back some of the conservative women he has alienated with his leadership style. and pandemic management.
But it is difficult to predict whether the election of Trump will have a definite impact on the presidential race because Americans have such strongly defined views on Trump and few persuasive voters remain.
However, Barrett's conservative credentials and the high court's shift to the right could hurt the re-election prospects of vulnerable Senate Republicans, who are struggling to solidify their hold on the Republican base without alienating socially progressive and minded voters. Independent.
Democrats focus on health care
Democrats quickly sought to refocus the conversation Saturday night on the threats a 6-3 conservative court could pose to the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and abortion rights. while Republicans tried to keep the focus on Barrett's compelling personal story, as a woman who is balancing her duties in the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals with caring for her young children, including two children that she and her husband adopted from Haiti and one who was born with Down syndrome.
Former Vice President Joe Biden, along with many other Democratic leaders, focused on the most immediate challenge to the Affordable Care Act.
Oral arguments are scheduled a week after the election in a case brought by a coalition of Republican law clerks and the Trump administration, who argue that the individual mandate of the law is unconstitutional and there are legal grounds for repealing the law in its whole.
MORE: President Trump Chooses Amy Coney Barrett as Supreme Court Candidate
“President Trump has tried to scrap the Affordable Care Act for four years.
Republicans have tried to end it for a decade.
Twice, the US Supreme Court upheld the law as constitutional, "Biden said in a statement.
Barrett, the candidate said, “has a written record of disagreeing with the decision of the United States Supreme Court defending the Affordable Care Act.
He criticized the majority opinion of Chief Justice John Roberts defending the law in 2012.
The former vice president argued that the Senate should not act on Trump's appointment of Barrett until "after the American people select their next president and the next Congress," claiming that the American people will vote this time "because of their attention medical is at stake.
Biden noted that medical complications with COVID-19 have created a new set of pre-existing conditions, the protections of which could be removed if the ACA is lifted.
But polls by the Kaiser Family Foundation, which has followed public opinion on the health law since its passage in 2010, shows that the country is still divided on the Obama-era health law.
Their poll earlier this month found that only about half of Americans (49%) have a favorable opinion of the Affordable Care Act, with more than 80% of Democrats backing the law, compared to the 48% of independents and 16% of Republicans.
California Sen. Kamala Harris, a Democratic vice presidential candidate who is on the Senate Judiciary Committee that will hold Barrett's confirmation hearings, said Barrett would “undo (Ginsburg's) legacy and erase everything he did for our country. ».
"Trump's chosen successor to Judge Ginsburg makes it clear: They intend to destroy the Affordable Care Act and repeal Roe," Harris said on Twitter, referring to the landmark Roe v. Decision.
Wade who affirmed the right to abortion.
"This selection would move the court further to the right for a generation and harm millions of Americans."
Trump is in favor of repealing Roe vs.
Wade.
Barrett has suggested opposition to abortion rights, but like most conservative court candidates, she has been cautious in her responses to the case.
During a 2013 conference at Notre Dame, she said she thought it was "very unlikely at this point that the court is going to annul (Roe v. Wade)," adding that "the fundamental element, that women have the right to choose abortion will probably continue ”.
Trump Appoints Amy Coney Barrett to US Supreme Court 7:51
In an extensive exchange of views on Roe with California Senator Dianne Feinstein in 2017 during her confirmation hearings for the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals, Barrett told the Democratic senator that she did not want to comment on her agreement or disagreement with any Supreme Court. .
A precedent from the court, because he said that he would commit, if confirmed in the court of appeals, to "unwaveringly follow all the precedents of the Supreme Court."
When asked how he evaluated the precedents related to Roe, he offered a limited response on how he viewed his role as an appellate judge: "Roe has been affirmed many times and survived many challenges in court," Barrett said during that 2017 hearing. "And it is over 40 years old, and is clearly binding on all Courts of Appeal.
Therefore, it is not open to me or me, and it would not be in my interest, as a judge of the Court of Appeal, to challenge that precedent.
He would join.
But for now, Democrats seem to be more focused on Barrett's potential impact on health care coverage as an issue that could enliven a broader group of voters, at a time when many already cast their votes by mail.
They also hope to avoid the mistakes her party made during the 2017 hearing, when Feinstein's probing questions about how Barrett's Catholic faith might affect his judicial views turned the Notre Dame professor into a hero to religious conservatives who argued that the Democrats had shown anti-Catholic prejudices.
A new polarizing element before the elections
The highly charged policy debates that will emerge during Barrett's upcoming confirmation hearings, which are also expected to focus on how he would handle election disputes as the president makes his unsubstantiated claims about voter fraud, carry the most potential harm to the at-risk Republican senators like Susan Collins of Maine, Thom Tillis of North Carolina, Cory Gardner of Colorado and Martha McSally of Arizona, who are trying to shore up their support within Trump's base while appealing to suburban mothers , many of which favor the right to abortion.
On the other hand, some in the Republican Party have argued that the appointment process could help Republican senators in red states like Alaska, Kansas and South Carolina who are targeted by Democrats this year.
While CNN polls have shown that nearly six in 10 Americans believe that the winner of the November presidential election should choose the judge to replace Ginsburg in the high court, there is no definitive data yet to show whether Trump's election has been more animated for conservatives or progressives, and if it will really move the votes to the sidelines.
But much of politics is about perception.
And in the case of judicial candidates, their demeanor and demeanor in these high-pressure appearances can often influence the views of voters as much as their writing and opinions.
With her cleverly tailored speech and promise to serve all Americans during her debut Saturday, Barrett proved that she will be a formidable adversary for Democrats in the weeks ahead.
Amy coney barrett