Amy Coney Barrett says she was offered a Supreme Court seat just 3 days after RBG died

(Image credit: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

published 30 September 2020

President Trump didn't take long to settle on nominating Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court.

Trump formally nominated the conservative 7th Circuit judge to replace Ruth Bader Ginsburg on Saturday. But in Barrett's Senate questionnaire released Tuesday, Barrett said she actually got the job days earlier.

Ginsburg died on Friday, Sept. 18. The next day, Barrett got a call from White House Counsel Pat Cipollone and Chief of Staff Mark Meadows about the vacancy, she said in the questionnaire. She spoke to Cipollone and Meadows on Sunday, who invited her to Washington, D.C.; "President Trump later called to confirm the invitation," she said. And on Monday, Sept. 21, Barrett met with Trump, Vice President Mike Pence, Cipollone and Meadows in person. "The president offered me the nomination on that day, and I accepted," Barrett said. Trump didn't announce her nomination until Saturday out of respect for Ginsburg, he said.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Explore More

Kathryn is a graduate of Syracuse University, with degrees in magazine journalism and information technology, along with hours to earn another degree after working at SU's independent paper The Daily Orange. She's currently recovering from a horse addiction while living in New York City, and likes to share her extremely dry sense of humor on Twitter.

Subscribe to The Week

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox