– Little that will make the Democrats angrier – VG

On Saturday, US President Donald Trump announced what has been at stake in recent days: He wants to place conservative law professor Amy Coney Barrett on the US Supreme Court, and that’s before the presidential election. November 3.

The Senate will likely vote on October 12, says the president.

– Since Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has full control in the Senate, I have a feeling they will implement it. I can’t think of anything that would infuriate Democrats more, Norwegian US expert Jennifer Leigh Bailey tells VG.

She is a professor in the Department of Sociology and Political Science at NTNU.

Check out Amy Coney Barrett’s speech in the rose garden on Saturday:

The democrats has made it clear that they believe voters should have their say before the president takes the seat of the late Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

– The decisions of the United States Supreme Court affect our lives, and the constitution was designed to give voters a voice in who makes these decisions. The Senate should not act until after the American people elect their next president and their next congress, writes presidential candidate Joe Biden on Twitter.

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Democratic Senator Joe Manchin, who supported Barrett’s nomination to a federal appeals court in 2017, will also not support the nomination, NTB writes.

– I cannot support a process that risks creating a greater division in the American people at a time when we desperately need to meet, he says.

What happens now?

Before the 100-member Senate can vote on whether to approve Barrett as the new Supreme Court justice, she will be examined by the Justice Committee, which is chaired by Trump’s friend, Lindsey Graham.

– I am very committed to ensuring that the nominee receives a challenging, fair and respectful audience. write on TwitterHe adds that he thinks Barrett is highly qualified for the job.

After the background check is done, the public hearings begin, writes Guardian. They are televised and Barrett must answer questions from the Justice Committee. Other witnesses may also be called in to speak for or against the candidate, and Democrats on the committee are expected to question Barrett on issues such as abortion, health care and election law.

Once the Justice Committee has given its approval, it is ready for a full vote in the Senate.

To stop approval, Democrats need at least four Republican senators to break with their own party in the case. So far, only Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski have said they will. Utah Sen. Mitt Romney, who was perhaps the strongest card from Democrats, has said he will support Trump’s appointment.

– I don’t see any sign or possibility that it won’t be approved. Romney is Mormon and very conservative, says Leigh Bailey.

Considering the extension of the Supreme Court

Democrats have previously announced a fight against the appointment of Judge and House Majority Leader Nancy Pelosi He has stated that they have “several weapons in their arsenal.”

– Republicans don’t know what they’re doing now. They upset Democrats so much that it will have major consequences for them for a long time to come, Jennifer Leigh Bailey believes, noting that there has already been talk of trying to expand the number of seats on the Supreme Court, so that Democrats can appoint more liberal justices if it wins. the majority in Congress after the presidential elections.

– This will infuriate Democrats so much they may consider it. Donald Trump breaks so many rules in his presidency that such things suddenly become possible, he says.

Are you thinking specifically of Barrett or wanting to appoint a new judge so soon before the election?

– To understand the mind, you also have to understand who Ruth Bader Ginsburg really was. She was such an icon to many that her seat becomes extremely important. Trump has been quoted as saying he saved Barrett for Ginsburg, making it all the more painful. For some, it can feel like you’re trying to hurt on purpose, throwing them in the face as much as possible, says the American expert.

Why is it so important?

The judges of the United States Supreme Court are appointed for life and have great power on, among other things, social issues such as the right to abortion. If Trump is successful with his plan, it will mean that he has appointed three of the nine justices to the Supreme Court.

The conservative majority in court will be six to three, and Trump will have helped shape American society for decades to come.

– A new conservative judge will lead to a potentially huge change in the way the US is governed and affect the US for many years, US expert Eirik Løkke from the liberal think tank Civita previously told VG.

For Democrats, this means that rights the liberal wing has fought for, such as changes to the abortion law and same-sex marriage, may be at stake.

– The whole balance stands and falls with this nomination: the constitutional right of a woman to make her own medical decisions about her own difficulties, the right to marry her loved ones, the right of workers to organize and negotiate fair wages, the future of our planet and the environment, the right of voters to have a voice in democracy, said Democratic Majority Leader Nancy Pelosi in a statement Saturday night.

Leigh Bailey notes that Barrett, if approved, will take the court in an even clearer conservative direction. The law professor opposes abortion and has a conservative view of how the constitution should be interpreted.

– The Supreme Court has gone in a conservative direction for many years, but it is
It’s rare for a president to put his stamp on the court for so long, he says, adding:

– Once a judge is appointed, politicians lose control over them and they can be led in different directions. But I think there is little chance that Coney Barrett will change.