Crapo Comments on the Nomination of Amy Coney Barrett to be Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court

Washington, D.C. -- U.S. Senator Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, issued the following statement regarding the nomination of Seventh Circuit Judge Amy Coney Barrett to serve as Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court. 

“Congratulations to Judge Barrett for this high honor.  I take seriously my constitutional responsibility to thoroughly review this nomination, and have long maintained that judges at every level of our judicial system must interpret the law as it is written, not legislate new positions from the bench.  As the confirmation process continues, I look forward to the opportunity to meet with Judge Barrett to learn and understand more deeply about her judicial philosophy.  I will conduct all due diligence to ensure my consideration of and votes regarding her nomination remain consistent with the principles and values of Idahoans.” 

A graduate of Rhodes College and Notre Dame Law School, Judge Amy Coney Barrett currently serves as a Judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit.  The Senate confirmed her nomination to that position by a vote of 55-43 on October 31, 2017.  She is the first woman to occupy an Indiana seat on the Seventh Circuit.  Prior to her seat on the Seventh Circuit, Judge Barrett served as a professor of Law at Notre Dame and previously as a visiting associate professor at the George Washington University Law School.  She spent two years as a judicial law clerk for D.C. Circuit Court Judge Laurence Silberman and the late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia.  She also has experience in private law practice. 

If confirmed, she will fill the vacancy created by the September 18, 2020, death of Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.  The confirmation hearings for Judge Barrett will commence on a schedule to be announced later by the Senate Judiciary Committee. 

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