How we got here: The battle over Amy Coney Barrett's nomination to the Supreme Court, recapped
Nicholas WuWASHINGTON – Supreme Court confirmation hearings are set to begin Monday for President Donald Trump's Supreme Court nominee Judge Amy Coney Barrett as the fight to fill Ruth Bader Ginsburg's seat on the Supreme Court moves into its final phase.
Though Republicans are speeding the process along, Barrett's confirmation will still take time. They plan to hold four days of confirmation hearings and to fill the seat by Election Day. Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham said Sunday on Fox News, "I believe she'll be confirmed no later than Tuesday, a week before the election."
Democrats cite the proximity to the election in arguing the Senate should wait to consider a Supreme Court nominee.
Here is how we got to this point:
More:Read Trump Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett's opening statement for Monday's Senate hearing
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Sept. 18: Ruth Bader Ginsburg dies
Ginsburg, 87, died on Sept. 18. According to National Public Radio, Ginsburg dictated a statement to her daughter before her death: "My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed."
McConnell said the same evening that Trump's nominee "will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate."
Democrats said they would oppose any of Trump's nominees before the election in the hopes Democrats could win the White House and flip the Senate in November. Democrats cited Republicans' obstruction of President Barack Obama Supreme Court nominee Merrick Garland in 2016, when Republican senators argued Obama could not fill the seat during an election year.
Sept. 19: White House officials call Barrett
Barrett's candidate questionnaire revealed she had been called by White House officials about the Supreme Court nomination one day after Ginsburg's death, on Sept. 19, and formally offered the position during a Sept. 21 meeting with Trump at the White House.
Sept. 21: Senate Republicans coalesce around confirmation
Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, often a Trump critic, announced Sept. 21 he would support moving forward on a Supreme Court nomination, meaning Senate Republicans all but locked up the votes to advance the as-yet-unnamed nominee.
The Senate is split 53-47, meaning Democrats would need at least four Republicans to break with their party to block a nomination from moving forward. In the days after Ginsburg's death, two Republican senators, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Susan Collins of Maine, said they opposed moving forward on a Supreme Court nomination before Election Day.
Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., the top Democrat on the Judiciary Committee, acknowledged Sept. 24 she did not have the power to block Trump's nominee from passing through the Republican-controlled Senate.
"Neither this committee nor the Senate should consider a nomination at this time," she said Thursday during a meeting of the Senate Judiciary Committee. "I recognize I don’t have the power to carry that through, but I feel it very deeply."
More:What to watch for when Kamala Harris questions Amy Coney Barrett at her nomination hearing this week
Sept. 26: Trump picks Barrett
Trump announced Barrett, a federal appeals court judge, as his nominee in a ceremony in the Rose Garden.
"Her qualifications are unsurpassed, and her record is beyond reproach. This should be a straightforward and prompt confirmation," Trump said. The same day, Graham announced her confirmation hearings would begin on Oct. 12, with the goal of forwarding her nomination to the full Senate by Oct. 26.
At the ceremony, Trump spoke to a largely unmasked crowd of over 200 people without much distance between seats. Since then, the president, a number of top aides, and lawmakers all tested positive for COVID-19, and top health experts, including the nation's top infectious disease expert Dr. Anthony Fauci, called it a "superspreader" event for COVID-19.
Two members of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., and Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, tested positive for COVID-19 earlier this month, but they are expected to attend the confirmation hearings either virtually or in person.
Sept. 29: Barrett meets with GOP senators
Barrett started one-on-one meetings on Capitol Hill with senators, all Republicans, on Sept. 29. After meeting with her, Graham praised her as "one of the most qualified people ever nominated to the Supreme Court" and "really good at everything" she has chosen to do in life.
The nominee tested negative for COVID-19 after her meetings with the senators.
Several Democratic senators opted to skip the meetings with Barrett, calling the nomination "illegitimate."
A Democratic senator did not meet with Barrett until Oct. 1, when Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.V., a moderate Democrat who voted for both of Trump's previous Supreme Court nominees, met with Barrett. Altogether, at least seven Democrats met or spoke with Barrett by phone, including Sens. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., and Cory Booker, D-N.J. Both Booker and Klobuchar served on the Senate Judiciary Committee.
