On the recordOctober 31, 2017
I am here today to join my colleague from Indiana in support of the nomination of Amy Coney Barrett to be on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. As we all know, that is the highest court you can serve on, except for the Supreme Court. The circuit court is the court that often makes the final determination of what the law says if the Supreme Court chooses not to act or isn't asked to act. These are important jobs to be filled and carry great responsibility. This week, Amy Coney Barrett, two other women, and one man will come before this Senate to be confirmed to various circuit courts around the country. As others have come to the floor to point out, she is extremely qualified. She should be confirmed by the Senate this week. In letters to the Senate Judiciary Committee, 73 law professors agreed that ``Professor Barrett's qualifications for a seat on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit are first rate.'' Her former law school students wrote that they would like to see her on the court. She is a distinguished scholar in areas of law that matter most to the Federal courts. She respects the Constitution. She understands that the job of a judge is to see what the Constitution and the law say, rather than what she thinks they should say. She is known for her careful work, for her fairminded disposition, and for her personal integrity. Similar things have been noted by people who served with her as Supreme Court law clerks.…
