Voters Split on Supreme Court Justice Nomination

American voters are narrowly divided on whether or not a Supreme Court Justice by the Senate in October 2020. Forty-six percent of those polled want to postpone any Supreme Court Justice nomination until after a new presidency begins in January, according to The Hill on October 7.

The poll, conducted by SSRS Research, found a narrow lead among respondents as to whether or not Amy Coney Barrett should be confirmed as the next Supreme Court Justice — 42 percent for and 46 percent against. The majority of those in favor are Republican, 83 percent. Eight percent of Democrats and 42 percent of independents polled want to see Barrett confirmed.

President Trump nominated her even as Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg lay in state. Barrett is an ultra-conservative judge whose potential life-long confirmation would create a majority of Justices on the highest court of the nation. She is a vocal critic of Roe v. Wade and the Affordable Care Act.

Overturning abortion rights is a key issue for Republicans. The majority of them tick off three reasons they intend to vote for Trump; Supreme Court Justice, abortion abolition, and tax cuts.

Mitch McConnell (R-Ky) is determined to push Barrett’s Supreme Court confirmation through before the election. He will do Trump’s bidding no matter the cost — COVID-19 infections at the White House and in the Senate continue to be revealed.

The planned upcoming confirmation hearing is a matter of protest among the Democrats in Congress as well as their constituents. They have several objections to the hearing, primarily they believe the “rule” established in 2016 when the Senate would not hear then-President Barack Obama’s nominee for the Supreme Court— in 2016, Republicans cried foul, insisting the voters choose the next president before a confirmation hearing.

That is not the case in 2020. Trump is down in the polls and they think an urgently confirmed Supreme Court Justice might turn the tides for him — or not. However, as of October 8, 5.5 million early ballots have been cast, which 70 times greater than in 2016. So, these millions are not among those who might be persuaded to choose Trump over Joe Biden.

During the first Presidental Debate on Sept. 29, 2020, when the topic of a Supreme Court Justice confirmation came up, Trump stood his ground proclaiming naming a new judge was his right as the sitting president. He jabbed at Biden saying that if he (Biden) was the current president he would name a new Supreme Court Justice.

Biden, on the other hand, tried to push his point of view that the voters should choose who nominates the next Justice. Which is a view held by 92 percent of Democrats as defined in the SSRS Research polls reported on October 7.

Instead of responding to the argument that Republicans did not even entertain considering a new Supreme Court Justice nominee during Obama’s last year in office, they frighten their constituents about Biden stacking the court should he be elected and Barrett is confirmed.

The topic of stacking the Supreme Court came up in the Vice Presidential Debate on October 7. Vice President Mike Pense queried Kamala Harris about Biden’s intent. She avoided directly answering by saying the next Supreme Court Justice must be decided by the voters.

It is worthy to note that the United States Constitution does not state how many Supreme Court Justices are needed. Congress and the President make the determination.

Written by Cathy Milne-Ware

Sources:

The Hill: Poll finds voters split on Barrett nomination; Dominick Mastrangelo
The Hill: More than 5.5M people have already voted, over 70 times more than 2016; Tal Axelrod
CNN: CNN Poll: Americans are divided over Amy Coney Barrett; Grace Sparks

Featured and Top Image Courtesy of Rory Finneren’s Flickr Page –  Creative Commons License
Inset Image Courtesy of Sarah Hina’s Flickr Page – Creative Commons License