Confirmation hearing for Amy Coney Barrett to begin in Senate

With Election Day just weeks away, a bitterly divided Senate on Monday will launch the confirmation hearing of Judge Amy Coney Barrett, President Donald Trump’s choice to fill the seat of the late liberal icon, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. It could be a firestorm as Republicans push forward with almost unprecedented speed and Democrats look for ways to draw out the process for the lifetime appointment. Meanwhile, across the street at the Supreme Court, the remaining eight justices, who have just begun a new term, find themselves, and the court, once again in an unwelcome political spotlight. The hearings will serve as a touchstone for the bases of both parties, highlighting the potential of a hard-right turn that could last for decades in areas such as abortion, religious liberty, LGBTQ rights and the Second Amendment, distracting voters from the realities of Covid-19 and leaving liberals to contemplate new tools, including adding seats to the Supreme Court, to staunch their wounds.