Dems focus on healthcare in Supreme Court fight
(DEMOCRATICAL PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE JOE BIDEN):
“Yesterday, before Justice Ginsburg could be laid to rest, and after hundreds of thousands of Americans had already cast their ballots, the president nominated a successor to her seat….”
Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden on Sunday made it clear that his party’s opposition to President Donald Trump's Supreme Court nominee, Amy Coney Barrett, will focus on the possibility she could cast a decisive vote to strike down the Obamacare health law.
“There's no mystery about what's happening here. President Trump was trying to throw out the Affordable Care Act. He's been trying to do it for the last 4 years.”
With Republicans controlling the Senate, Democrats have little leverage to prevent a quick vote on Barrett before the Nov. 3 election and almost no hope of preventing her confirmation.
Instead, their attacks appeared aimed at energizing their political base with an issue that is already a talking point for Biden, especially with the county mired in pandemic that has killed over 200,000 people and with cases still surging in some states.
Barrett could be on the bench for oral arguments on Nov. 10 in a case in which Trump and his Republican allies are seeking to invalidate the Affordable Care Act. That could result in millions of Americans losing their healthcare coverage, as well as protections for pre-existing health conditions.
(DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE JOE BIDEN):
“The American people understand the urgency of this moment. They’re already voting in droves because they know they’re healthcare hangs in the balance.”
Trump on Saturday announced Barrett as his choice to replace liberal Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died September 18th.
Barrett said she would be a justice in the mold of her mentor, the late staunch conservative Antonin Scalia, who twice voted in favor of previous unsuccessful Obamacare challenges.
Democratic senators on Sunday echoed Biden's message, saying Barrett will face questions about the ACA during a multi-day confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee due to start on Oct. 12th
