Subscribe Login
Jamaica Observer
ePaper
The Edge 105 FM Radio Fyah 105 FM
Jamaica Observer
ePaper
The Edge 105 FM Radio Fyah 105 FM
    • Home
    • News
      • Latest News
      • Cartoon
      • International News
      • Central
      • North & East
      • Western
      • Environment
      • Health
      • #
    • Business
      • Business Bites
      • Social Love
    • Sports
      • Football
      • Basketball
      • Cricket
      • Horse Racing
      • World Champs
      • Commonwealth Games
      • FIFA World Cup
      • Olympics
      • #
    • Videos
    • Entertainment
      • Music
      • Movies
      • Art & Culture
      • Bookends
      • #
    • Lifestyle
      • Page2
      • Food
      • Tuesday Style
      • Food Awards
      • JOL Takes Style Out
      • Design Week JA
      • Black Friday
      • #
    • All Woman
      • Home
      • Relationships
      • Features
      • Fashion
      • Fitness
      • Rights
      • Parenting
      • Advice
      • #
    • Obits
    • Classifieds
      • Employment
      • Property
      • Motor Vehicles
      • Place an Ad
      • Obituaries
    • More
      • Games
      • Elections
      • Jobs & Careers
      • Study Centre
      • Jnr Study Centre
      • Letters
      • Columns
      • Advertorial
      • Editorial
      • Supplements
      • Webinars
    • Home
    • News
      • Latest News
      • Cartoon
      • International News
      • Central
      • North & East
      • Western
      • Environment
      • Health
      • #
    • Business
      • Business Bites
      • Social Love
    • Sports
      • Football
      • Basketball
      • Cricket
      • Horse Racing
      • World Champs
      • Commonwealth Games
      • FIFA World Cup
      • Olympics
      • #
    • Videos
    • Entertainment
      • Music
      • Movies
      • Art & Culture
      • Bookends
      • #
    • Lifestyle
      • Page2
      • Food
      • Tuesday Style
      • Food Awards
      • JOL Takes Style Out
      • Design Week JA
      • Black Friday
      • #
    • All Woman
      • Home
      • Relationships
      • Features
      • Fashion
      • Fitness
      • Rights
      • Parenting
      • Advice
      • #
    • Obits
    • Classifieds
      • Employment
      • Property
      • Motor Vehicles
      • Place an Ad
      • Obituaries
    • More
      • Games
      • Elections
      • Jobs & Careers
      • Study Centre
      • Jnr Study Centre
      • Letters
      • Columns
      • Advertorial
      • Editorial
      • Supplements
      • Webinars
  • Home
  • News
    • International News
  • Latest
  • Business
    • Business Bites
  • Cartoon
  • Games
  • Food Awards
  • Health
  • Entertainment
    • Bookends
  • Regional
  • Sports
    • Sports
    • World Cup
    • World Champs
    • Olympics
  • Videos
  • Career & Education
  • Classifieds
  • All Woman
  • Environment
  • Webinars
  • More
    • Football
    • Elections
    • Letters
    • Advertorial
    • Columns
    • Editorial
    • Supplements
  • Epaper
  • Design Week
Senate votes to advance Barrett; confirmation expected Mon
Amy Coney Barrett
Latest News
October 24, 2020

Senate votes to advance Barrett; confirmation expected Mon

WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Republicans voted overwhelmingly Sunday to advance Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett toward final confirmation despite Democratic objections, just over a week before the presidential election.

Barrett’s confirmation on Monday was hardly in doubt, with majority Republicans mostly united in support behind President Donald Trump’s pick. But Democrats were poised to keep the Senate in session into the night in attempts to stall, arguing that the November 3 election winner should choose the nominee to fill the vacancy left by the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

Republicans are excited by the chance to install a third Trump justice on the court, locking in a conservative majority for years to come. Barrett’s ascent opens up a potential new era of rulings on abortion, gay marriage and the Affordable Care Act. A case against the Obama-era health law scheduled to be heard November 10.

“The Senate is doing the right thing,” said Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, vowing to install Barrett to the court by Monday.

The 51-48 vote launched 30 hours of Senate debate. Two Republicans, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Susan Collins of Maine, voted against advancing the nominee, and all Democrats who voted were opposed. California Senator Kamala Harris, the vice presidential nominee, missed the vote while campaigning in Michigan.

Vice President Mike Pence would typically preside over the coming votes, but after a close aide tested positive for the COVID-19, it was unclear whether he will fulfil his role for the landmark vote.

Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer said the Trump administration’s drive to install Barrett during the coronavirus crisis shows “the Republican Party is willing to ignore the pandemic in order to rush this nominee forward.”

The conservative judge picked up the crucial backing Saturday from Murkowski, one of the last GOP holdouts against filling the seat in the midst of a White House election and with more than 50 million people already having voted.

Murkowski said she disliked the rush toward confirmation, but supported Trump’s choice of Barrett for the high court. She said would vote against the procedural steps, but ultimately join GOP colleagues in confirming Barrett. “While I oppose the process that has led us to this point, I do not hold it against her,” Murkowski said.

Now the only Republican expected to vote against Barrett is Collins, who faces a tight reelection in Maine. She has said she won’t vote for the nominee so close to the election.

McConnell, R-Ky, noted the political rancor, but defended his handling of the process. He scoffed at the Democrats’ “horror stories” about the judge’s conservative qualifications.

Barrett, 48, presented herself in public testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee as a neutral arbiter and at one point suggested, “It’s not the law of Amy.” But Barrett’s past writings against abortion and a ruling on “Obamacare” show a deeply conservative thinker.

“She’s a conservative woman who embraces her faith, she’s unabashedly pro-life but she’s not going to apply ‘the law of Amy’ to all of us,” said the committee chairman, Senator Lindsey Graham, R-SC, said late Saturday on Fox.

At the start of Trump’s presidency, McConnell engineered a Senate rules change to allow confirmation by a majority of the 100 senators, rather than the 60-vote threshold traditionally needed to advance high court nominees over objections. With a 53-47 GOP majority, Barrett’s confirmation is almost certain.

By pushing for Barrett’s ascension so close to the November 3 election, Trump and his Republican allies are counting on a campaign boost, in much the way they believe McConnell’s refusal to allow the Senate to consider President Barack Obama’s nominee in February 2016 created excitement for Trump among conservatives and evangelical Christians eager for the Republican president to make that nomination after Justice Antonin Scalia’s death.

Barrett was a professor at Notre Dame Law School when she was tapped by Trump in 2017 for an appeals court opening. Two Democrats joined at that time to confirm her, but none is expected to vote for her in the days ahead.

{"website":"website"}{"jamaica-observer":"Jamaica Observer"}
0 Comments · Make a comment

ALSO ON JAMAICA OBSERVER

Champion standout Jelani Harvey earns place at prestigious Choate Rosemary Hall
Latest News, Sports
Champion standout Jelani Harvey earns place at prestigious Choate Rosemary Hall
September 1, 2026
KINGSTON, Jamaica — At just 17 years old, Jelani Harvey is already showing that success on the football field and in the classroom can go hand in hand...
{"jamaica-observer":"Jamaica Observer"}
Construction worker charged with murder
Latest News, News
Construction worker charged with murder
September 1, 2026
KINGSTON, Jamaica — A 30-year-old  construction worker has been charged with murder and possession of an offensive weapon following a fatal stabbing  ...
{"jamaica-observer":"Jamaica Observer"}
Opposition questions Gov’t response to soaring airfares to Jamaica
Latest News, News
Opposition questions Gov’t response to soaring airfares to Jamaica
September 1, 2026
Opposition Spokesperson on Tourism and Linkages, Andrea Purkiss has called on Minister of Tourism Edmund Bartlett to explain what is being done to sto...
{"jamaica-observer":"Jamaica Observer"}
St Catherine North Police Division records first murder-free month in 29 months
Latest News, News
St Catherine North Police Division records first murder-free month in 29 months
September 1, 2026
KINGSTON, Jamaica — The St Catherine North Police Division has recorded its first murder-free calendar month in 29 months, with August passing with no...
{"jamaica-observer":"Jamaica Observer"}
Gayle hails expanded Tottori support ahead of Beijing 2027
Latest News, Sports
Gayle hails expanded Tottori support ahead of Beijing 2027
September 1, 2026
KINGSTON, Jamaica  —  President of the Jamaica Athletics Administrative Association (JAAA) Garth Gayle believes Jamaica’s renewed partnership with Tot...
{"jamaica-observer":"Jamaica Observer"}
55% of Jamaicans face food insecurity, 28% go hungry- new UN data shows
Latest News, News
55% of Jamaicans face food insecurity, 28% go hungry- new UN data shows
September 1, 2026
ST ANN, Jamaica — More than half of Jamaicans are facing food insecurity, with 28 per cent experiencing severe conditions in which they go hungry or s...
{"jamaica-observer":"Jamaica Observer"}
Vybz Kartel signs Shenequa
Entertainment, Latest News
Vybz Kartel signs Shenequa
September 1, 2026
KINGSTON, Jamaica — Dancehall heavyweight Vybz Kartel has signed rising singer and songwriter Shenequa as the first female artiste to join his GreedyL...
{"jamaica-observer":"Jamaica Observer"}
‘Whisper’ Richards joins Wimbledon on loan
Latest News, Sports
‘Whisper’ Richards joins Wimbledon on loan
September 1, 2026
Jamaican footballer Dujuan “Whisper” Richards has completed a season-long loan move from English Premier League club Chelsea FC to third tier team AFC...
{"jamaica-observer":"Jamaica Observer"}
❮ ❯

Polls

HOUSE RULES

  1. We welcome reader comments on the top stories of the day. Some comments may be republished on the website or in the newspaper; email addresses will not be published.
  2. Please understand that comments are moderated and it is not always possible to publish all that have been submitted. We will, however, try to publish comments that are representative of all received.
  3. We ask that comments are civil and free of libellous or hateful material. Also please stick to the topic under discussion.
  4. Please do not write in block capitals since this makes your comment hard to read.
  5. Please don't use the comments to advertise. However, our advertising department can be more than accommodating if emailed: advertising@jamaicaobserver.com.
  6. If readers wish to report offensive comments, suggest a correction or share a story then please email: community@jamaicaobserver.com.
  7. Lastly, read our Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy

Recent Posts

Archives

Facebook
Twitter
Instagram
Tweets

Polls

Recent Posts

Archives

Logo Jamaica Observer
Breaking news from the premier Jamaican newspaper, the Jamaica Observer. Follow Jamaican news online for free and stay informed on what's happening in the Caribbean
Featured Tags
  • Editorial
  • Columns
  • Health
  • Auto
  • Business
  • Letters
  • Page2
  • Football
Categories
  • Business
  • Politics
  • Entertainment
  • Page2
  • Business
  • Politics
  • Entertainment
  • Page2
Ads
img
Jamaica Observer, © All Rights Reserved
  • Home
  • Contact Us
  • RSS Feeds
  • Feedback
  • Privacy Policy
  • Editorial Code of Conduct