WASHINGTON — On Monday evening, Amy Coney Barrett was confirmed to the Supreme Court by the U.S. Senate by a vote of 52-48. Shortly after the vote, Barrett was sworn in at the White House as Senate Republicans were able to overpower Democrats to install President Donald Trump’s nominee days before the election and secure a likely conservative court majority for years to come.
Trump's choice to fill the vacancy of the late liberal icon Ruth Bader Ginsburg potentially opens a new era of rulings on abortion, the Affordable Care Act and even his own election. Democrats were unable to stop the outcome, Trump's third justice on the court, as Republicans race to reshape the judiciary.
After the votes were cast by the Senate, many of Ohio's politicians on both sides of the aisle weighed in on the confirmation of Barrett.
From Gov. Mike DeWine: "I applaud the Senate majority for confirming President Trump's nomination of Judge Amy Coney Barrett to the United States Supreme Court. Judge Barrett is both highly qualified and highly respected. She will be an excellent addition to our nation's highest court."
From Lt. Gov. Jon Husted: “I welcome the action of the U.S. Senate today for completing its responsibility to advise and consent on the President’s nomination of Amy Coney Barrett to the U.S. Supreme Court. Justice Barrett has proven she is qualified, and her character and intellect have earned the respect of people of all judicial philosophies. Congratulations to Associate Justice Amy Coney Barrett for earning her seat on the court.”
Sen. Rob Portman (R-Ohio, voted yes to confirm): "Judge Barrett is exceptionally qualified to serve on the Supreme Court and I was proud to support her confirmation. Congratulations Justice Barrett! I have no doubt you will serve the American people with honor and distinction."
Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio, voted no to confirm): "Every single Senator who votes tonight to confirm Amy Coney Barrett is willing to risk taking away health care for millions of people and eliminating protections for pre-existing conditions. Watch closely."
Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost: "When the dissonance of 2020 is only a distance memory of the aged, future generations of lawyers will quote this remarkable, principled jurist with admiration for her intellect and wisdom on the nation's highest court."
Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio): “The process by which Judge Amy Coney Barrett was confirmed to replace Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on the Supreme Court drips with hypocrisy, injustice, and the worst of what we’ve come to expect from partisan Washington. Majority Leader McConnell held up President Barack Obama’s Supreme Court nominee Merrick Garland for nearly a year under the pretense that a justice ought not be confirmed in an election year. The fact that Amy Coney Barrett cruised from nomination to confirmation in an unprecedented 30 days, during a national pandemic, and eight days before a contentious presidential election proves that Republicans aren’t driven even by their own espoused values, but rather pure political expediency.”
Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio): "Democrats, mad. Constitution, protected. Amy Coney Barrett, confirmed."
Rep. Tim Ryan (D-Ohio): “More than 13 million Americans are unemployed and more than 200,000 have died; working-class people are begging for help from Congress. Yet while the American people are desperate for help, President Trump and Senate Republicans paused COVID-relief negations and dropped everything to confirm an extremist justice to the court just days before the Election. I am extremely disappointed that my Republican colleagues are continuing to refuse to focus on the critical issue of getting the American people the relief they need."
You can watch the swearing in ceremony in the player below: