Justice Amy Coney Barrett, in McConnell Center speech, insists the Supreme Court isn't 'partisan hacks'

Amy Coney Barrett and Mitch McConnell
(Image credit: Susan Walsh-Pool/Getty Images)

Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett tried to draw a sharp line between "judicial philosophies" and "political parties" in a lecture Sunday night at the 30th anniversary celebration of the University of Louisville's McConnell Center. "My goal today is to convince you that this court is not comprised of a bunch of partisan hacks," she said.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) introduced Barrett, saying she is from "Middle America" and doesn't try to "legislate from the bench." Some of the students at the event asked Barrett, in written questions submitted beforehand, about the Supreme Court's 5-4 "emergency" order effectively banning almost all abortions in Texas and other "shadow docket" decisions with huge effects on policy with no public hearings or serious discussion. She said it would be "inappropriate" to comment on specific cases or "emergency" decisions generally.

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McConnell's moves to deny President Barack Obama's nominee a hearing for months combined with pushing through Barrett's nomination a week before the 2020 election cemented conservative control of the Supreme Court for years or decades.

Barrett on Sunday argued that's not the right way to look at the high court. "The media, along with hot takes on Twitter, report the results and decisions" from the Supreme Court in a way "that makes the decision seem results-oriented," she said. "It leaves the reader to judge whether the court was right or wrong, based on whether she liked the results of the decision." She added that "sometimes, I don't like the results of my decisions. But it's not my job to decide cases based on the outcome I want."

Peter Weber, The Week US

Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.