Chuck Schumer Demands Confirmation Of Judge Amy Coney Barrett Be Delayed Due to COVID Outbreak

We now have two members of the Senate Judiciary Committee who have tested positive for COVID, and there may be more. I wish my colleagues well.

It is irresponsible and dangerous to move forward with a hearing, and there is absolutely no good reason to do so.

— Chuck Schumer (@SenSchumer) October 3, 2020

The Senate’s top Democrat suggested Friday that confirmation hearings on Judge Amy Coney Barrett’s Supreme Court nomination must be pushed back to allow for thorough coronavirus “testing and isolation" as the nation’s capital reels from President Trump’s COVID-19 diagnosis.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said the GOP plan to start Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearings on Barrett’s nomination on Oct. 12 is unfeasible in light of the overnight announcement that Trump, the first lady and at least one senior White House adviser had tested positive for the virus.

“The infection of the president, first lady and a close aide require that the White House immediately conduct a contact tracing regime that follows CDC guidelines, as well as thorough testing and isolation for those who were exposed to infection risk,” Schumer said in a statement. “That includes Judge Amy Coney Barrett and anyone she was in contact with. It must also include people in the Senate with whom those individuals came into contact with, and their contacts.”

[...] “What happened to President Trump is a reminder of why the whole country, including senators and staff, must follow the science and follow the protocols laid out by the CDC and public health officials,” he said. "When you ignore the science, you don’t wear a mask, and you don’t follow social distancing guidelines, it puts you and everyone around you at risk. Following science is a must.”

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer on Friday night said Judge Amy Coney Barrett's confirmation hearing should be delayed after two Republican members of the Senate Judiciary Committee tested positive for COVID-19.

GOP Senators Mike Lee of Utah and Thom Tillis of North Carolina announced that they both tested positive for the coronavirus just days after attending an event with Barrett at the White House. Some attendees at the Saturday Rose Garden event—where President Donald Trump official nominated Barrett to replace the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on the Supreme court—were not wearing masks or following social distancing guidelines.

"It is premature for Chairman Graham to commit to a hearing schedule when we do not know the full extent of potential exposure stemming from the president's infection and before the White House puts in place a contact tracing plan to prevent further spread of the disease," Schumer and Senate Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Diane Feinstein wrote in a joint statement emailed to Newsweek.

[...] Republican Senator Lindsey Graham rejected Democratic calls to postpone Barrett's confirmation hearing. "I feel fine and look forward to the hearing for Judge Amy Coney Barrett on Oct. 12," he tweeted on Friday evening. "Any Senator who wants to participate virtually will be allowed to do so."

Schumer later reiterated his position in a separate statement shared Twitter. "We now have two members of the Senate Judiciary Committee who have tested positive for COVID, and there may be more. I wish my colleagues well," he wrote. "It is irresponsible and dangerous to move forward with a hearing, and there is absolutely no good reason to do so."

At least seven people have tested positive for COVID-19 who attended Saturday’s Rose Garden Supreme Court nomination event nomination of Judge Barrett: Pres Trump, Melania Trump, Sen Thom Tillis, Sen Mike Lee, Notre Dame Pres John Jenkins, Kellyanne Conway and a WH reporter.

— Yamiche Alcindor (@Yamiche) October 3, 2020