The Senate today confirmed Amy Barrett as a US Court of Appeals Judge for 7th Circuit after Democrats trashed her Catholic faith. The Senate voted to confirm Barrett 55-43 despite the attacks on her religious views.
Democrats asked offensive questions of Barrett during her hearing in committee. They demanded to know how her faith would influence her decisions as a member of a federal appeals court. She replied that she holds a sincere Catholic faith but that it would not interfere with her decision-making as a judge.
Top pro-abortion Democrat Senators Dianne Feinstein and Dick Durbin came under fire for their questioning. The two made it appear that people who hold sincerely-held pro-life Catholic beliefs are somehow not qualified to serve as federal judges.
“When you read your speeches, the conclusion one draws is that the dogma lives loudly within you, and that’s of concern when you come to big issues that large numbers of people have fought for, for years in this country,” Feinstein said.
Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) interrogated Barrett over her use of the term “orthodox Catholics” in an article she wrote previously.
“Do you consider yourself an orthodox Catholic?” Durbin asked.
“If you’re asking whether I take my faith seriously and I’m a faithful Catholic, I am,” she told the senator. “Although I would stress that my personal church affiliation or my religious belief would not bear on the discharge of my duties as a judge.”
Amazingly, the abortion activist defended the questioning.
“I prefaced my remarks by saying that going into a person’s religion is not the right thing to do in every circumstance,” he said. “But she’s been outspoken. As a law school professor at Notre Dame she has taken on the tough challenge of how a person with strong religious beliefs becomes a judge and looks at American law.”
The Catholic Association thanked the Senate for rising above the partisan attacks.
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The Catholic Association’s Legal Advisor Andrea Picciotti-Bayer told LifeNews: “Amy Coney Barrett’s qualifications for the federal judiciary are undisputed, but abortion industry advocates continue their smear campaign by attacking Barrett’s Catholic faith. The full senate rejected their attempt to hang a “Catholics need not apply” sign outside the Senate chamber when it considers candidates to the judiciary. We applaud the Senate’s rejection of anti-Catholic bigotry and confirmation of Amy Barrett’s nomination to the 7th Circuit court of appeals.”
Judicial Crisis Network’s Chief Counsel and Policy Director, Carrie Severino chimed in as well.
She said, “Congratulations to Amy Coney Barrett on being confirmed to be U.S. Circuit Judge for the Seventh Circuit. Amy Coney Barrett is one of President Trump’s many well-qualified, impressive, experienced judicial nominees who will apply the rule of law fairly. I look forward to more confirmations from the Senate soon.”
