>> neil, you're the only one, unless our other friends have secret lives that i don't know about. you're the only one who frequently argues cases in front of this court, the supreme court. how would this change your strategy? >> well, i think every time a new justice comes on the court, things change. it's not just one vote, the dynamics among all of the nine change. it's an intimate close knit group of people. on the corporate cases, justice barrett would be an easier vote for corporations than justice ginsburg's vote. i think they'll be quite a disagreement. it was one thing when justice gorsuch replaced justice scalia. that didn't change the direction of the court much.

that was a bit more of a change. this is really moving from one side of the spectrum to the other. and that's why i think that this point the democrats are making, which is the electoral mandate is so critical here is right. that's what republicans said in 2016 when it was 10 months before an election. here we are we're 40 days before an election. and they're rushing someone through. the only precedent is in 1864. what did abraham lincoln do? even though the country is it so divided? he didn't rush a nominee through, he said, i'm going to let whoever wins the election do this. i just want to show our work to our viewers. we've been given news that this is expected to get underway in about two minutes. if you see me interrupt one of our friends, that's the reason.

>> i want to come back to you on this point of rushing someone through. that seems to be a disservice. she's reported in all of the analysis to be incredibly skeptical of roe. she would respect settled law, but there's also some tea leaves here that that's not the case. wanting to go further than her mentor, justice scalia, and on obamacare. donald trump who's making this pick today has said in public at rallies, he needs the supreme court to settle the pren sham election. how does that manifest itself in her confirmation hearings? >> i think the republicans stay away in that. i don't think they'll go near it. i think they are going to do. >> i don't think either one

will. the democrats -- i talked to a lot of senators over the last few days, they are painfully aware that they need to be calm and respectful in these hearings. think know they have an advantage, america is abusing the power. in the hearing, that becomes circus like and accusatory toward this woman. i think you'll see them disk to the issues and be calm in the process. >> we're expecting donald trump to take to the podium with amy coney barrett. his third appointment if confirmed, she would replace the late justest ruth bader ginsburg. let's listen in.

♪ [ applause ] >> thank you very much, thank you. thank you. i stand before you today to fulfill one of my highest and most important duties under the united states constitution.

the nomination of a supreme court justice. this is my third such nomination after justice gorsuch and justice kavanaugh. and it is a very proud moment indeed. over the past week our nation has mourned the loss of a true american legend, justice ruth bader ginsburg, was a legal giant and a pioneer for woman. her extraordinary life and legacy will inspire americans for generations to come. now we gather in the rose garden to continue our never ending task, the impartial rule of law. it's my honor to nominate one of our nation's most brilliant and

gifted legal minds to the supreme court. she is a woman of unparalleled achievement, towering intellect, sterling credentials and unyielding loyalty to the constitution, judge amy coney barrett. [ applause ] >> we're also joined by amy's husband, jesse, thank you, jesse very much. and their seven beautiful

children. congratulations to you all, a very special day. with us as well are the first lady. thank you first lady. along with vice president mike pence and his amazing wife karen. thank you very much. judge barrett is a graduate of rhodes college and notre dame. she served as the executive editor of the law review. graduated first in her class. and received the law school's award for achievement. she became a clerk for judge lawrence silverman on the u.s. court of appeals.

serving as a clerk on the supreme court for justice antonin scalia. a highly -- a very highly respected law professor at notre dame wrote to justice scalia, with a one sentence recommendation, amy coney is the best student i ever had. that's pretty good. justice scalia hired her shortly thereafter and we are honored to have his wonderful wife maureen -- where is maureen, maureen scalia with us today. thank you. and our great secretary of labor, thank you very much, thank you, mr. secretary.

very good genes in that family, i will say. judge barrett spent 15 years as a professor at the university of notre dame law school. she was renowned for her scholarship, celebrated by her colleagues and beloved by her students. three times she was selected at notre dame, distinguished professor of the year. when i nominated judge bar receipts to serve on the u.s. court of appeals for the 7th circuit in 2017, every law clerk from her time at the supreme court endorsed her and endorsed her nomination writing, we are democrats, republicans and independents, yet we write to support the nomination of professor barrett to be a circuit judge. professor barrett is a woman of remarkable intellect and character, she's eminently qualified for the job, and i can tell you i did that too, i

looked and i studied and you are very eminently qualified for this job, you are going to be fantastic for this job. thank you. really fantastic. the entire notre dame law facility and faculty, everybody, everybody at that school also -- we got so many letters, also wrote letters of support to amy's nomination to the 7th circuit. they wrote in effect, despite our differences, we unanimously agree that our constitutional system depends upon an independent judiciary staff by talented people, and we unanimously agree that amy is such a person. for the last three years, judge barrett has served with immense distinction on the federal bench. she's more than a stellar scholar and judge. she's a profoundly devoted

mother. her family is a core part of who amy is. she opened her home and her heart and adopted two beautiful children from haiti. her incredible bond with her youngest child, a son with down syndrome is a true inspiration. if confirmed she will make history as the first mother of school aged children ever to serve on the u.s. supreme court. that's good. [ applause ] >> to her children, emma, vivian, tess, john peter, liam,

juliet and benjamin, thank you for sharing your incredible mom with our country. thank you very much. amy coney barrett will decide cases based on the text of the congress sti tugs as written. as amy has said, being a judge takes courage. you are not there to decide cases as you may prefer, you are there to do your duty and to follow the law wherever it may take you. that is exactly what judge barrett will do on the u.s. supreme court. i want to thank the members of the senate. we have so many of them here today. thank you very much. i see you in the audience, and you're so proud. i want to thank you for your commitment and to providing a fair and timely hearing. i know it will be that. judge barrett was confirmed to

the circuit court three years ago, by a bipartisan vote. her qualifications are unsurpassed, unsurpassed and her record is beyond reproach. this should be a straightforward and prompt confirmation. it should be very easy. good luck. it's good to be very quick. i'm sure it will be extremely noncontroversial. we said that the last time, didn't we? well, thank you all very much, and thank you for being here. that's really great. thank you. thank you. i further urge all members of the other side of the aisle to provide judge barrett with the respectful and dignified hearing that she deserves, and frankly that our country deserves. i urge lawmakers and members of the media to refrain from personal or partisan attacks. and the stakes for our country are incredibly high. rulings that the supreme court will issue in the coming years

will decide the survival of our second amendment, our religious liberty, our public safety and so much more, to maintain security, liberty and prosperity, we must preserve our priceless heritage of a nation of laws. and there is no one better to do that than amy coney barrett. law and order is the foundation of the american system of justice. no matter the issue, no matter the case before her. i am supremely confident that judge barrett will issue rulings based solely upon a fair reading of the law. she will defend the equal justice of citizens of every race creed and color. i know you will make our country very very proud, please, amy, say a few words.

thank you very much. congratulations. [ applause ] >> thank you. thank you very much, mr. president. i am deeply honored by the confidence that you have placed in me. and i am so grateful to you and the first lady, to the vice president and the second lady, and to so many others here, for your kindness on this rather overwhelming occasion. i fully understand that this is a momentous decision for a president. and if the senate does me the honor of confirming me, i pledge to discharge the responsibilities of this job to the very best of my ability.

i love the united states and i love the united states constitution. i am truly -- [ applause ] >> i am truly humbled by the prospect of serving on the supreme court. should i be confirmed, i will be mindful of who came before me. the flag of the united states is still flying at half staff in memory of justice ruth bader ginsburg, to mark the end of a great american life. justice ginsburg began her career at a time when women were not welcome in the legal profession. but she not only broke glass ceilings, she smashed them. for that, she has won the admiration of women across the country and indeed all over the world.

she was a woman of enormous talent and consequence and her life of public service serves as an example to us all. particularly important to me was her long and deep friendship with justice antonin scalia, my own mentor. justices scalia and ginsburg disagreed fiercely in print without rancher. their ability to maintain a warm and rich friendship despite their differences even inspired an opera. these two great americans demonstrated that arguments, even about matters of great consequence need not destroy affection. and both my personal and professional relationships, i strive to meet that standard. i was lucky enough to clerk for justice scalia, and given his influence on my life.

i am very moved to have members of the scalia family here today, including his dear wife maureen. i clerked for justice scalia more than 20 years, but the lessons i learned still resonate. his judicial philosophy is mine too. a judge must apply the law as written. judges are not policy makers, and they must be resolute in setting aside any policy views they might hold. the president has asked me to become the ninth justice. and as it happens, i'm used to being in a group of nine, my family. our family includes me, my husband jesse, emma, vivian, tess, john peter, liam, juliet and benjamin.

the most revealing fact about benjamin, our youngest, is that his brothers and sisters unreservedly identify him as their favorite sibling. our children make our life very full. while i am a judge, i'm better known back home as a room parent, car pool driver and birthday party planner. when schools went remote last spring, i tried on another hat, jesse and i became co principals of the barrett e learning academy. our children are my greatest joy, even though they deprive me of any reasonable amount of sleep. i couldn't manage this very full life without the unwavering support of my husband jesse. at the start of our marriage, i imagined that we would run our household as partners, as it has turned out. jesse does far more than his share of the work.

to my chagrin, i learned at dinner recently, my children consider him to be the better cook. for 21 years, jesse has asked me every single morning what he can do for me that day. although i almost always say nothing. he still finds ways to take things off my plate. and that's not because he has a lot of free time. he has a busy law practice. it's because he is a superb and generous husband. and i am very fortunate. [ applause ] >> jesse and i have a life full of relationships, not only with our children, but with siblings, friends and fearless baby-sitters, one of whom is with us today. i am particularly grateful to my parents, mike andling de coney.

i spent the bulk -- i have spent the bulk of my adulthood as a midwesterner, but i grew up in their new orleans home. as my brother and sisters can also attest, mom and dad's generosity extends not only to us, but to more people than any of us could count. they are an inspiration. it is important at a moment like this, to acknowledge family and friends. but this evening i also want to acknowledge you, my fellow americans. the president has nominated me to serve on the united states supreme court. and that institution belongs to all of us. if confirmed, i would not assume that role for the sake of those in my own circle. and certainly not for my own sake. i would assume this role to serve you. i would discharge the judicial orange, which requires me to

administer justice without respect to persons, do equal right to the poor and rich, and faithfully and impartially discharge my duties under the united states constitution. i have no illusions that the road ahead of me will be easy, either for the short term or the long haul. i never imagined i would find myself in this position. but now that i am, i assure you that i will meet the challenge with both humility and courage. members of the united states senate, i look forward to working with you during the confirmation process, and i will do my very best to demonstrate that i am worthy of your support. thank you.

[ applause ] >> come on up, family. i want to acknowledge attorney general bill barr, thank you very much for being here. chief of staff, thank you very much, chief. doing a great job. and all of the senators, please, we really appreciate it, and i know you're going to have a busy couple of weeks, but i think it's going to be easier than you might think. thank you very much for being here. thank you all, thank you all very much. thank you. congratulations, amy. [ applause ] ♪ >> we have been watching

president trump announce his nomination to the united states supreme court. of course, he has selected amy coney barrett to fill the seat that is now open after the passing of ruth bader ginsburg, let me bring back into the conversation, the reverend al sharpton and the president of the national action network, claire mccaskill, jonathan lemire and alicia menendez joins us, the host of american voices here on msnbc. let me start with you, while we were on the air, i want to point out some of the atmospherics. kelly ann conway was there, certainly amy coney barrett is celebrated among right wing

conservative activists who have been pining for an appointment like this one today for a very long time. as that picture was playing out on our screen, all of our phones were exploding with statements from democratic senators and from former vice president biden. let me just read you, vice president biden's statement that came through while that ceremony was under way. >> president trump has nominated amy coney barrett, she has a written track record of disagreeing with the u.s. supreme court's decision upholding the affordable care act. she critiqued john roberts majority opinion of holding the law in 2012. the u.s. people know the supreme court decisions affect their every day lives. that moment is now, and their voice should be heard. the senate should not act on

this vacancy until after the american people select their next president and the next congress. alicia? >> to your point, nicole, i was struck more by what was not said during that ceremony than what was said. you didn't have any reference to what you and all of the panelists have been talking about in the runup to taking that ceremony, which is not having the emphasis be on the nominee, but the timing of this nomination, given the proximity to an election. so struck by the fact that they did not talk about that, also struck by the fact that you had the president rattling through a list of issues that he would expect coney barrett if confirmed to rule on, not references abortion. since you brought up some of the people that were in that audience, let's remind everyone, four years ago, when donald trump was a candidate. he made a pledge to only nominate prolife nominees to the supreme court. he has already made good on that

promise twice, now he's doing it a third time. she passes his anti-choice litmus test that he has laid out crystal clear. you look at the things she's said about abortion, and you look at her time in the 7th circuit, where she's had two cases, abortion related, come up before her, both times she's ruled in favor of restricting access. that's not talking about roe v. wade, we're talking about 17 cases related to abortion that are one step away from the supreme court. three of them could come up as soon as next year, to say nothing of the dozen other cases that are making their way through the judicial system. and so all of that happens in light of the fact that the person she was replacing would be replacing, was one of the most ardent supporters of abortion access rights. so that is what is going to make

this fight so heated. >> you know, neil, i want to come back to you. this is the message that democratic senators have been communicating over the last 20 minutes, senator schumer, a judge for amy coney barrett is a vote to eliminate health care. senator blumenthal, i will oppose the confirmation of judge amy coney barrett. something else that msnbc had up on the screen, i'll share it with you, that when judge barrett was in the -- under scrutiny for her last appointment, information came out about her time and her relationship with a christian organization called people of praise. now, this is some of what we know about that group, some of what was scrutinized last time she was evaluated. members of the group, people of

praise, swear a lifelong oath of loyalty called a cover nen the to one another, and are held accountable to a personal adviser, the group teaches that the husbands are the heads of their wives and should take authority of the family. because the rush donald trump feels, because of the way the process is so condensed, these sorts of things become part of our coverage even on a day there's a ceremony in the rose garden. what do you think the line of questioning will be about that association? >> i think the rush to confirm someone is itself going to be a problem. by all accounts, she's a qualified nominee in the sense of being steeped in the law, and all of that, you normally have a long vet to make sure there isn't anything in anyone's background. this has been rushed so much, that there hasn't been that.

with respect to this specific thing about this organization, i don't know that that's going to come up. i don't know that it should. i think what should be the focus of discussion is her views, and it seems that her view, she does meet the senator josh holly test, he will only vote to confirm someone who will overturn roe vs. wade. that to me is where the focus will be less about her personal views. donald trump just said one thing i agree with, she deserves a respectful and dignified hearing. i absolutely agree. i think that respectful and dignified hearing should occur after january 20th if he's still the president. >> johnathon, let me come back to you with some of what the white house staffers who will be tapped with ushering this nomination through in an unprecedented rush.

it's never been done in this timetable that donald trump has said publicly he wants to see. brian fallin will likely be on the other side of that effort. here's what he has to say. the executive director of demand justice. the organization that opposes ygs of a trump nominee said democrats should focus intensely on judge barrett's public statements on roe vs. wade and the affordable care act. she may vote to overturn. jonathan, my question for you is, this is a campaign that is not focused on any issues other than preserving the monuments to the confederacy, law and order, which has turned out to be a fabrication, it hasn't yielded the political result that i think even donald trump hoped it would. do they think they're in a position to introduce a fight about whether or not roe is settled law? something 67% of all americans

believe it should be in the affordable care act. which has upwards of 60% support from the public. >> as you and i have talked about a number of times. this trump campaign really is desperate to change the conversation from the president's hand elling of the coronavirus pandemic. this has not been a choice election. this has been a referendum. the polling suggests americans think he has not done a good job. they have been trying to talk about anything else, with their over arching theory. if there's a day where the head linings aren't about the pandemic, that's a day the trump campaign feels like they can win. we're under 40 days. they're welcoming this fight. i think there is -- certainly some degree of caution about making this squarely about roe vs. wade for exactly the reasons you pointed out. the majority of americans

believe, if they oppose abortion, they believe there should be access to a safe legal abortion. there are -- the affordable care act is also largely popular in the united states now. these are tricky, perhaps even third rails for this campaign. but they are -- we know what this president has done. there's been little to no attempt to reach across the aisle to win new voters, this is all about firing up the base and trying to win back some republicans or independents, perhaps, who took a chance on trump in 2016, sort of fell out of love with him, if you will, because of his rhetoric or policies, and maybe this is a way to wing them back. it can cut both ways. we have seen the democrats show extraordinary enthusiasm since justice ginsburg has died. the fund-raising, record totals by act blue and other organizations, certainly, there is a belief in the suburbs, suburban women, a group the

president is already struggling with. that they may break hard against him. and this is -- it remains to be seen how this will play out in the next few weeks. certainly from the president's point of view, they are looking for another issue to talk about something else and to try to again maximize the turnout of their supporters, even believing -- knowing that their base of supporters are smaller than those that oppose him. >> you know, as jonathan took us through his reporting. and i think that's spot on about how the white house views this, i'm thinking back to michelle obama's convention speech. the part where she says, now, it could be challenging this year, wear your sneakers, pack a lunch, bring a mask, but vote. this seems like, if she could update that speech, you could almost hear michelle obama articulate the importance, where if you are one of the 7 million

americans that have been infected with covid, and some of the estimates are that the actual number of cases could be a multiple of ten times that, and that counts as a pre-existing condition. you are nowhere'sville in terms of access to health care. if you believe as 67% of americans do that roe is settled law, whether you are -- whatever side of the personal way that that affects you, you might do as michelle obama said, wear comfortable shoes, pack a lunch, wear a mask and vote, whereas you wouldn't have if this hadn't been thrust into the final 39 days. >> i think it remains to be seen, whether mitch mcconnell has this vote before or after the election. there are some that think he may wait. especially if those senators in tough states ask him to wait. the republicans that are hanging on and frankly some of them that may be gone at this point based

on consistent polling. so i think don't underestimate how mitch mcconnell will try to make this all about politics and his personal power. that's what motivates that man. the other thing that will be interesting as we talk about the litmus test of roe vs. wade. josh holly and tom cottonen have been outspoken about the fact that they have been bitterly disappointed by justices that joined the supreme court and didn't do what they were supposed to do by the far right standards, especially on some of the cultural issues. he has made very clear that he will expect this nominee to state whether or not they will overturn roe vs. wade. keep in mind, this is not how these hearings have worked in the past. in the past it's always, i

respect settled law. it will not surprise me if senators force an answer to the question on roe v. wade, josh holly has said he will not vote for anyone that doesn't clearly state they are committed to overturning roe v. wade. once again, i think that makes it difficult for president trump to win over suburban women because frankly they think he's a jerk. >> i want to ask you what you heard when donald trump talked about what he expected from amy coney barrett. he made clear from the podium at the white house rose garden that he expects the justice to uphold our heritage, we all know what that means, and our second

amendment rights. how do you think donald trump's branding as someone who will uphold our heritage and our second amendment rights impacts the confirmation process. >> i took serious note of him saying our heritage, what is he talking about there, and a clear signal from this president of him seeing the heritage of this country a lot different than many of us that see the heritage of this country quite differently. i also thought it was very ironic that he asked for a dignified hearing, when they would not give dignified hearings to justice garland, who was nominated by president obama ten months before an election. this judge is being nominated while an election is going on. let's not forget, people are already early voting in virginia and minnesota. the election is going on as we speak.

when you talk about what the president said, it is almost offensive for him to brag about her adopting children from haiti, which is honorable. he called haiti the s-hole country. he's sitting there in the height of hypocrisy in terms of his own rhetoric. usually supreme court nominees go and visit senators in their office as they campaign for confirmation. if you're going to have an expedited hearing, in two weeks, how does she even go to visit democrats? i think what needs to happen is that the public needs to put pressure on those republicans that are in close races, that they need to come out now and say they will delay this pasts the election or they will enmass vote against it. the pressure point could be a

lot of the public dealing with those candidates that are facing races right now, including mitch mcconnell who's facing a race in kentucky where we have the breonna taylor case that just happened. i think that now's the time for people and many of us in the civil rights community are going to do that to use this time to put pressure on those that have to hear what the public say because they're facing elections, and some of those elections are already in progress right now. i think that for this president, though, mr. s-hole country to stand up there and brag about something like this, and for him to stand there and talk about a dignified hearing that was never given justice garland, we need to -- before we deal with yes, i'm concerned about roe vs. w e wade, i'm concerned about voting rights. i was sitting in the supreme court with john lewis and martin luther king iii when scalia

called the voting rights act a racial entitlement. there's a lot of reasons for us to be concerned. not to mention, that was the least diverse audience i've ever seen in around announcement like this. i was glad her two kids did come out, i couldn't find too many other people of color in that audience. >> it was an interesting look for a moment like this in this presidency. and a decision so monumental. we need to sneak in a quick break. one of the places where the public will have to sift through what this means is her attack on john roberts. chief justice john robert the voted with the liberal wing of the supreme court in helping to preserve the affordable care act. i'd read you what she said about that and her support for the dissent when we come back, don't go anywhere. hot liquid medicine.

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want conservative judges on i'the court.vative, this may make you feel better, but i really don't care. if an opening comes in the last year of president trump's term and the primary process has started we'll wait to the next election. i want you to use my words against me. you're on the record. yeah, hold the tape. lindsey must go and the lincoln project are responsible for the content of this ad.

hi, everyone, we're back with msnbc's special coverage of the supreme court nomination of amy coney barrett. we talked before the break about digging a little deeper about how she may be expected to vote or rule on obamacare when it comes before the supreme court as it's expected to do. you're going to have to help me out with this, i want to share with our viewers some window

into how she talked about the 2015 ruling, when she was a law professor, and it's more than tea leaves. these are her public statements about chief justice roberts siding with the liberals. she said the dissent has a better legal argument, she said this of chief justice roberts. he pushed the affordable care act beyond its plausible meaning to save the statute. by saying that, by slamming roberts, it endeared her to conservatives and won her the admiration of president trump. talk about the legal and political on significance with obliterating obamacare in the middle of a global pandemic, that's taken the lives of 200,000 americans. predicted to take 3488,000 americans from the families, from their families, schools or hospitals, our nursing homes, by the end of this year, donald

trump today nominated someone who was brutal in her assessment of chief justice roberts, siding with the liberals. what does that portend. >> i think that's a big deal. i expect this to be a big focus of the conversation. it gives us a window into her views, but because as jonathan lemire said earlier to you, trump has been gleeful about this nomination, he thinks it allows him to change the topic of conversation from his pathetic coronavirus response and to something like this, the problem is, judge barrett's nomination puts the aca and pre-existing conditions front and center because of her own writings. at a time when 7 million americans have pre-existing conditions just from coronavirus alone. and at a time when president trump's own justice department is going in to the supreme court the week after the election to

try to say supreme court strike down the affordable care act and the pre-existing condition coverage. boy, i mean, it's not a change in topic, it's a magnification of this. the timing of this also stinks. the fact is, they're rushing this nomination through 40 days before an election, when i think a lot of americans are saying, if you can rush stuff through before an election, what about coronavirus legislation. what about unemployment protections, what about protections for the economy. for people like me who love the supreme court and really reveer the institution, it works because of votes like chief justice roberts' vote to uphold the affordable care act. >> 14 of the last 18 justices have been reported by republicans. but what's made the institution work is a healthy resmekt on both sides. president trump is trying to install a nominee through -- in a rush, to try to disrupt that. and the last thing i'll say is,

rev rands sharpton talked about the crowd. almost no one was wearing masks. this is the moment when the eyes of the country are all on the white house, and they could have sent a signal of the way that americans should behave. and instead, there are very few wearing masks. they're not getting away from their coronavirus response with this nomination. >> i mean, to neil's point. they're not getting away from it, they're pretending it doesn't exist. let me share reporting from nbc's white house unit. they talked about attendees including, vice president pence, bill barr, the national security adviser. chris christie was spotted, maureen scalia was singled out by the nominee and the president. former adviser kelly ann conway was there. i mentioned before, laura inning ran in the front row. but to neil's -- to both neil's

good points, claire mccaskill, this is a president's prerogative to fill the seat, to make an appointment. but the president's failures are on display as well. in this maskless nonsocially distanced crowd in the push of a justice who is in media interviews and rulings very disdainful towards the affordable care act at a moment when more americans are sick. a mass casualty event happens in this country every single day. a thousand people a day on average die. and they are playing russian roulette with the only health care most americans can turn to right now. >> i think it will be really clear when these hearings are over that the affordable care act is done. it's over. they have the votes to confirm this woman. it's math. and she will vote to overturn the aca. preexisting conditions protection also be gone.

now, that has to be emphasized, underlined and repeated often, because who is left in congress and in the white house after the supreme court with the help of this woman undoes the protection for preexisting conditions, there needs to be a congress and a president that will reinstate them, that will pass laws that will protect them. not an executive order that cannot do what he pretends it can do. he is writing things on paper and acting like they're law. they're not. so i think this is a very big deal in this election, the protection of people with preexisting conditions. the other thing to remember about this nomination is until very recently, this woman wouldn't have been confirmed even for the job she has now. she got 55 votes. 43 votes against her. up until 2013, she would have had to have 60. and up until donald trump and mitch mcconnell joined up in a

duo, she would have to have 60 for a supreme court position. she would never have been nominated if the 60 rule was still there. we are now going down a path where people will be nominated based on how much they appeal to the base of a party, not how thoughtful they are, how willing they are to forge compromise, how moderate or willing they are to bring the country together. but no. now all you need are the votes from the party that nominates you. and so no more will judges be striving to be thoughtful and find that common ground. now they're going to want to be proving that they're as far right or far left as they can possibly be. it is a terrible, terrible thing for the supreme court of the united states. >> claire, i want to stay with you, and i want to put you on the spot, because i know this from every time that you come on my show. you are giving voice to the pain i think that a lot of democrats

have, the fear that they have, that donald trump is going to try to steal this election, the pain they have that justice ruth bader ginsburg lost her battle against cancer while donald trump was president, and the angst over what you just described, that because of the way the rules were changed in the senate, some of the fringiest nominees can be confirmed to the highest court in the land. how do you feel right now? >> you know, i am -- i'm anxious. i am scared. i am determined. i think there are -- i look at the polls. i study them. i read the cross tabs. i do think there is some energy out there among particularly women as it relates to ruth bader ginsburg. i mean, listen. i think this committee hear willing be respectful of this woman, and i have a great deal of respect for her. as neil said, this isn't about

the nominee. this is about the nomination. but the notion, that ruth bader ginsburg, who stood for everything that she stood for would be replaced by someone who wants to wipe all that off the map is really hard for women i think to get their arms around. and i think it -- i hope it will mean there will be record turnout. but i guarantee you, there is no one watching this ceremony today that cares about gay rights, voting rights, women's rights that doesn't have a stomachache. . >> neal katyal, i'm going put you on the spot with a twist. how do you feel as someone whose reverence for the supreme court is one of the gifts you give to all of our viewers? how do you feel about the supreme court if claire is right becoming a 6-3 quite conservative majority? >> well, first of all, just the loss of justice ginsburg, no matter who replaced her is a

devastating blow to the court as an institution and as a beacon of justice. so i think we have to acknowledge that loss first. and then second, as we think about the replacement, i mean just even if judge barrett, you know, does act in a balanced way as a jurist on the supreme court, the problem is the process has been so broken and this rush to put her through, to get her confirmed because the president is worried he'll lose his reelection and the fact that he says stuff like in the nomination like about protecting america's heritage and stuff, all of this to me really does undermine the beautiful institution of the supreme court. and i think that's been trump's plan all along. he is resistant and wants to destroy any institution that stands in his way. so he is gleeful if this takes down the respect for the supreme court. and i think all of us lose in the process. the right thing to do would have

been to do what abraham lincoln did is to say wait and do this after the election. >> to claire and neal especially, thank you for getting personal and being real with us. yes going to sneak in a quick break. no one goes anywhere. we'll be right back. we'll be right back. the antes been upped. to lead the charge... good had to be amazing... and amazing had to become the expectation. the drivers feel it every time they get in. ♪ the power... ...has shifted.

rioting is not protesting. looting is not protesting. it's lawlessness, plain and simple. and those who do it should be prosecuted. fires are burning and we have a president who fans the flames. he can't stop the violence because for years he's fomented it. but his failure to call on his own supporters to stop acting as an armed militia in this country shows how weak he is. violence will not bring change, it will only bring destruction. it's wrong in every way. if i were president, my language would be less divisive. i'd be looking to lower the temperature in this country, not raise it. donald trump is determined to instill fear in america because donald trump adds fuel to every fire.

this is not who we are. i believe we'll be guided by the words of pope john paul ii, words drawn from the scriptures. be not afraid. i'm joe biden and i approve this message. i'm joe biden tonight, i'll be eating a veggie cheeseburger on ciabatta, no tomatoes.. [hard a] tonight... i'll be eating four cheese tortellini with extra tomatoes. [full emphasis on the soft a] so its come to this? [doorbell chimes] thank you. [doorbell chimes] bravo. careful, hamill. daddy's not here to save you. oh i am my daddy. wait, what? what are you talking about?

i want to thank everyone who joined us for the hour, especially the rev al sharpton who is the rightful of this

hour. jonathan lemaire, claire mccaskill and neal katyal. thank you so much for watching. "american voices" with alicia and more special coverage comes now. alicia, what have you got? >> all right, nicole, thank you so much. hello, everyone, i'm alicia menendez. the big story is the breaking news. the president has picked a replacement for ruth bader ginsburg. how his nominee will change the court and affect its decisions. we'll talk about what's at stake, the affordable care act, abortion, and access to an election is already under way. thank you for being here on an important and historic saturday. this is "american voices." ♪ >> just a short time ago, president trump announced that he is nominating amy coney barrett to fill the seat