Jodi Kantor published a detailed expose about Justice Barrett. Very little here surprises me. I've laid out the case many times. Based on Barrett's record, she should have never been nominated for the Seventh Circuit, she should have never been put on the Supreme Court "short list" before she decided a case, she should have never been a finalist for Justice Kennedy's seat barely a year into her tenure on the Seventh Circuit, and she should have never been elevated to Justice Ginsburg's seat with so much unknown about her. Yet, all the while, people who held important positions in the conservative legal movement assured us that Barrett was "solid." They could point to nothing tangible to make this case, other than their personal connections with Barrett, her academic credentials, and her Scalia clerkship. In the end, Kantor writes, President Trump picked the candidate he thought would help him get re-elected.
As President Trump was leaning toward appointing Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court five years ago, some advisers shared doubts about whether she was conservative enough. But he waved them away, according to someone familiar with the discussions. He wanted a nominee religious conservatives would applaud, and with an election approaching, he was up against the clock.
Justice Barrett is who she is. I think it is a mistake to say she is "drifting," since she really didn't have a starting place for jurisprudence. She is figuring things out as she goes along. So it is hard to blame Justice Barrett for doing what was entirely predictable. Indeed, I think Barrett is doing exactly what an untested and inexperienced law professor would do if elevated to the Supreme Court. Truly, I don't blame her. People misunderstand my criticism of Justice Barrett.
.jpg?w=600)
