Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Amy Coney Barrett Considered Leading Contender To Fill Ginsburg's Seat
USA Today: Front-Runner For Supreme Court Nomination To Replace Ginsburg Is A Favorite Of Religious Conservatives
The front-runner for President Donald Trump's Supreme Court nomination in the aftermath of Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's death is a darling of religious conservatives. Amy Coney Barrett, 48, a finalist for Trump's second high court nod in 2018 that ultimately went to Brett Kavanaugh, could move the high court further to the right – perhaps for decades to come. ... She has written that Supreme Court precedents are not sacrosanct, which liberals have interpreted as a threat to the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision legalizing abortion nationwide. (Wolf and Groppe, 9/19)
The New York Times: To Conservatives, Barrett Has ‘Perfect Combination’ Of Attributes For Supreme Court
Two years ago, after nominating Brett M. Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court, President Trump strongly hinted that his choice for the next opening would be a former law professor he had named to a federal appeals court the year before: Judge Amy Coney Barrett. Now, three years into that job, Judge Barrett is regarded — at least for now — as the leading contender to replace Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died on Friday. If Judge Barrett were nominated and confirmed, she would be the sitting justice with the least courtroom experience, but one viewed as a home run by conservative Christians and anti-abortion activists. (Dias and Liptak, 9/20)
The Washington Post: Amy Coney Barrett, Potential Supreme Court Nominee, Wrote Influential Ruling On Campus Sexual Assault
Amy Coney Barrett, a leading contender for the Supreme Court seat held by the late Ruth Bader Ginsburg, wrote an influential appellate decision last year that made it easier for students accused of sexual assault to challenge universities’ handling of their cases. Barrett led a three-woman panel of judges that said Purdue University may have discriminated against a male student accused of sexual assault when it suspended him for a year, a punishment that cost him his spot in the Navy ROTC program. (Reinhard and Brown, 9/20)
Bloomberg: Ginsburg Successor Could Shift Law On Abortion, Health-Care Act
A conservative successor to Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg would move the U.S. Supreme Court closer to overturning the right to abortion, threaten the Affordable Care Act and, if confirmed quickly enough, strengthen President Donald Trump’s hand in legal disputes over the November election. Ginsburg’s death Friday gives the president and his Republican allies an opening to leave a transformational mark on a court already shaped by two Trump appointments. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell vowed Friday to bring a new Trump nominee up for a vote, even though the election is less than seven weeks away. (Stohr, 9/18)
