What Happens When Amy Coney Barrett Fills RBG's Supreme Court Seat

[If President Donald Trump allows Judge Amy Coney Barrett (opens in new tab) of the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals to be nominated to the Supreme Court, when people across the country have already begun voting for the November 3, 2020 general election, the course of this country for decades to come will will change.

The fact that the Republican-controlled Senate opposed President Obama's Supreme Court nomination (opens in new tab) in 2016 because it was an election year and pushed for President Trump's Supreme Court nomination less than 36 days before Election Day proves that precedent no longer matters to the Republican The nominee is a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Lindsey Graham. Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham (Republican) reportedly plans to hold a confirmation hearing for Connie Barrett (open with new tab) the week of October 12, and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (Republican) will likely vote on the Senate floor immediately thereafter.

If religious conservative Connie Barrett wins a majority vote in the Senate, she probably will, unless Senators Susan Collins (R-Mich.) and Lisa Murkowski (R-S.C.) and two other Republican senators vote "no." She will. In the unlikely event that the vote does not occur before Election Day, Joe Biden would have a chance to nominate a liberal justice if he wins the 2020 election.

Below we outline some of the key issues at stake if Connie Barrett's nomination is realized.

The most timely issue facing Americans if Connie Barrett is nominated to the Supreme Court is the future of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) (opens in new tab), better known as Obamacare. The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear oral arguments on the ACA the week of November 10, in response to the Trump administration's claim that the law's mandates are unconstitutional. If the Supreme Court rules the ACA unconstitutional, 20 million Americans will lose health care in the midst of a global pandemic, including 12 million Americans on Medicaid. What your family and friends may not know is that this is the same law that allows parents to keep their children on their health insurance plan until age 26. [Although Roe v. Wade (opens in new tab), the 1973 Supreme Court decision that gave women the right to choose abortion, is clearly in jeopardy, Americans will see state cases brought before the Supreme Court. For example, if the Supreme Court does not strike down Louisiana's law (June Medical Services, LLC v. Russo (opens in new tab)) this summer, there will be one abortion clinic for every woman of reproductive age in Louisiana. Low-income women of color would be most affected by these state and federal restrictions.

Connie Barrett, who clerked for the late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia and shares the same judicial philosophy as he, has considered three laws restricting abortion in her home state of Indiana, according to The New York Times (opens in new tab). (opens in new tab).

Like abortion, contraception falls under the umbrella of reproductive health care. The Supreme Court has also upheld companies that do not include contraceptives like birth control pills and IUDs in their insurance plans because of religious reasons, which could cost women thousands of dollars.

"I worry that future policies designed to do everything we know will expand access to contraceptives, reduce barriers to abortion care, and improve reproductive well-being will face legal challenges that could ultimately end up in the courts," Rachel Fay, senior director of public policy at Power to Decide (opens in new tab), tells Marie Claire. 'We're not just worried about what's going on in the courts right now and the bad things that could happen. It's what we want to do to make the world a better place with respect to women's reproductive wellbeing that could be jeopardized by the balance."

The Human Rights Campaign (HRC) is one of many LGBTQ+ organizations opposing Connie Barrett's nomination to the Supreme Court. Upon her nomination, HRC released the following statement (opens in new tab) by Human Rights Campaign President Alfonso David:

"The last four years have been led by Donald Trump, Mike Pence, and Mitch McConnell, who put power before people by the LGBTQ community, has been an assault on the rights and dignity of LGBTQ people across the United States. With people suffering across the country, instead of providing assistance, Trump and McConnell are rushing to create a Supreme Court justice who could deal a fatal blow to those who maintain basic health care during a pandemic. The president is dramatically changing the judiciary and dismantling difficult rights and advances that have been secured for decades - LGBTQ rights, voting rights, reproductive rights, and more. Meanwhile, Mitch McConnell is sycophantic with the extreme judicial nominees Trump has nominated, trying to push the balance of the Supreme Court further to the edge. If she is nominated and confirmed, Connie Barrett will dismantle everything Ruth Bader Ginsburg has fought for in her extraordinary career. Such a major appointment would have to be made by the president, who would take office in January. The Human Rights Campaign vehemently opposes the nomination of Connie Barrett and this sham process."

The press release also directly states that Connie Barrett's ruling discriminates against the LGBTQ+ community:

"Connie Barrett has demonstrated in her words and rulings that she is hostile to LGBTQ rights. (opens in new tab) She defended the Supreme Court's dissent on marriage equality in the landmark Obergefell v. Hodges case, (opens in new tab) and questioned the Court's role in ruling on the case. She said that Title IX protections do not extend to transgender Americans (opens in new tab) and argued that it is 'a stretch in the text' to reach such an interpretation. While she questioned the rights of transgender people, she also misnamed transgender people, calling transgender women "physiological men" (opens in new tab)."

On November 4, the Supreme Court will hear Fulton v. City of Philadelphia, which "considers whether taxpayer-funded organizations must be allowed to discriminate against LGBTQ people when the government provides critical services. The case, like many cases before the Supreme Court, could have a significant impact on the lives of LGBTQ Americans.

To learn more about how Connie Barrett has ruled in previous decisions related to the LGBTQ+ community, click here (opens in new tab).

If Connie Barrett is nominated, there will likely be an increase in Second Amendment-related cases brought before the Supreme Court; in a 2019 dissenting opinion (opens in new tab), Connie Barrett said that people with felony convictions should be able to own guns but still vote She stated that they should not be able to. She wrote, "History does not support the proposition that felons lose their Second Amendment rights solely because they are convicted felons." 'It does, however, support the proposition that the state can take away the right to bear arms from those it deems to be dangerous. "

While approval of Connie Barrett would be inevitable, there are several ways to voice your opposition and prepare for the next step:

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