[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 171 (Thursday, October 1, 2020)]
[Senate]
[Page S6023]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    NOMINATION OF AMY CONEY BARRETT

  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Mr. President, I don't think I am overstating the 
severity of the situation when I say that this past week has been one 
of the most chaotic and divisive in our Nation's history. The American 
people met the news of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's 
death with an outpouring of sympathy; but, of course, rather than let 
an opportunity go to waste, radicals and activists, fueled by the same 
hatred that still fills our streets with violence, emerged from the 
shadows and exploited a nation's grief.
  Rarely--or perhaps, never before--in the history of this country have 
the so-called progressive movement, the activist left, and even some 
members of the Senate minority worked so tirelessly to scare the 
American people into submission.
  Their willingness to use differences in family, religion, and 
personal morality to impugn the integrity and competence of Supreme 
Court Associate Justice nominee Judge Amy Coney Barrett without giving 
her the benefit of even a single conversation shocks the conscience. It 
is a scandal beneath the dignity of this body.
  In the coming weeks, I would encourage my colleagues on both sides of 
the aisle to meet with Judge Barrett, as I did today. I think you will 
find that she is not trying to get off easy. As a fellow conservative 
woman who cherishes a deep faith and commitment to family, I can assure 
you, she has already been tested by fire and passed with flying colors.

                          ____________________