Washington (October 26, 2020) – Senator Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) released the following statement after voting against the nomination of Judge Amy Coney Barrett to the United States Supreme Court.

“Judge Amy Coney Barrett’s confirmation to the Supreme Court is illegitimate,” said Senator Markey. “Now, the very outcome of the presidential election and fate of the Affordable Care Act are in question as the Supreme Court is poised to weigh in on both. Judge Barrett’s impartiality was brought into question when President Trump himself confessed that he needed her on the Supreme Court to decide any election disputes, and when he said he’d only appoint a justice who would vote to overturn the Affordable Care Act. Judge Barrett must recuse herself from the Affordable Care Act case and any election cases that reach the Supreme Court, as federal law requires.

“Now that Republicans have succeeded in stealing yet another Supreme Court seat and secured a 6-3 conservative majority, as soon as the Democrats take back control of the Senate in January, we must abolish the filibuster and expand the Supreme Court. We cannot allow the corrupt partisanship of Donald Trump and Senate Republicans to take precedence over justice and liberty in our country.”