HYDE-SMITH: ‘AMERICANS SHOULD BE CELEBRATING’ JUDGE AMY CONEY BARRETT FOR THE SUPREME COURT
Miss. Senator Delivers Speech for Confirmation of Judge Barrett to Serve on U.S. Supreme Court
VIDEO: Senator Hyde-Smith Endorses Judge Barrett’s Confirmation.
VIDEO: Senator Hyde-Smith’s Full Speech on Judge Barrett.
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.) today said the American people should be celebrating the prospect of Judge Amy Coney Barrett’s confirmation to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court, describing her as a “stunningly successful” jurist and mother.
Hyde-Smith delivered a speech to the Senate to explain her support for confirming Barrett, who was nominated by President Trump in September to be an Associate Justice on the Court.
“Judge Barrett’s life experiences as a judge, lawyer, teacher, wife, and mother will bring a valuable, and much needed, perspective to the Supreme Court. I am proud to support Judge Barrett. Now the Senate must do its Constitutional duty and confirm Judge Amy Coney Barrett as soon as possible,” said Hyde-Smith, who visited with Barrett in September.
The Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday will vote on forwarding the Barrett nomination to the full Senate for consideration. [Watch 8 a.m. CDT, Oct. 22.] The Senate is expected to be in session over the weekend, with a final confirmation vote on Monday or Tuesday.
“Americans should be celebrating the nomination of Judge Barrett. She is brilliant, hardworking, ambitious, and a proud mother and wife. In a time where we need role models for our youth, Judge Barrett fills that role,” Hyde-Smith said.
“The Judge is a family-oriented woman who reveres the Constitution. She is a representative for working women across the country and a testament that women can have a career and family and be stunningly successful at both. I also appreciate that she has displayed great strength in withstanding affronts to her faith and her family during the confirmation process,” she continued.
The text of Hyde-Smith’s remarks are available below and here.
U.S. SENATOR CINDY HYDE-SMITH (R-Miss.)
October 21, 2020
Mr. President, it is an honor to speak in strong support of Judge Amy Coney Barrett to serve as an associate justice on the Supreme Court of the United States. After careful review of her record and her outstanding testimony during her confirmation hearing, it is clear Judge Barrett is well suited for a lifetime appointment on the Court.
Last week, Judge Barrett firmly held her own during hours and hours of questioning from my colleagues on the Judiciary Committee. She did not once falter during her hearing—in fact, she excelled.
Judge Barrett proved to the American people that she is prepared, talented, compassionate, and not to mention, brilliant. Judge Barrett demonstrated that she is an independent individual who can think for herself. She made clear she is an originalist who will follow the rule of law.
Without a single note or binder in front of her, Judge Barrett repeatedly affirmed that she would interpret the Constitution and laws passed by Congress as they are written—no more, no less.
During her hearing, Judge Barrett testified: “I apply the law. I follow the law. You make the policy.” The Judge kept pointing out that we, the Senate, are the legislators.
She stressed that she has no mission or agenda to change the law as she would want it. Judge Barrett made it abundantly clear that in her role as a jurist, she has no issues with setting aside her personal beliefs when applying the letter of the law.
This mindset and legal philosophy is exactly the type of jurist we need on our nation’s highest court.
Not only did we hear from Judge Barrett, but we heard from her former professors, colleagues, and students—these are the people who know her best. These individuals were a witness to not only her intellect, but her character as well. The testimonies on her behalf only proved her absolute readiness for this position.
Americans should be celebrating the nomination of Judge Barrett. She is brilliant, hardworking, ambitious, and a proud mother and wife. In a time where we need role models for our youth, Judge Barrett fills that role.
The Judge is a family-oriented woman who reveres the Constitution. She is a representative for working women across the country and a testament that women can have a career and family and be stunningly successful at both. I also appreciate that she has displayed great strength in withstanding affronts to her faith and her family during the confirmation process.
If confirmed—and I am confident that she will be—Amy Coney Barrett will have the honor to be the fifth woman in history to serve on the Supreme Court. The first judge as a mother of school-aged children. She will be the only sitting judge on the Court to have not attended an Ivy League law school. We must continue to ensure women, like Judge Barrett, are represented in the highest levels of our judicial system.
Judge Barrett’s life experiences as a judge, lawyer, teacher, wife, and mother will bring a valuable, and much needed, perspective to the Supreme Court. I am proud to support Judge Barrett. Now the Senate must do its Constitutional duty and confirm Judge Amy Coney Barrett as soon as possible.
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