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| Amy Coney Barrett set for Trump nomination to supreme court – live | Amy Coney Barrett set for Trump nomination to supreme court – live |
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| President will name replacement for Ruth Bader Ginsburg after evangelical leaders visit Oval Office – follow all the latest news live | President will name replacement for Ruth Bader Ginsburg after evangelical leaders visit Oval Office – follow all the latest news live |
| As we wait for Donald Trump’s press conference in which he will almost likely announce Amy Coney Barrett as his nomination for the supreme court (although with this president, nothing is a given), it’s worth looking at why he’s choosing her. | |
| She has a proven record in law. Since 2017, she has been a judge on the 7th US Circuit Court of Appeals, which covers Wisconsin, Illinois and Indiana. She has also been a law professor at Notre Dame since 2002. | |
| She is relatively young. The woman Barrett is likely to replace, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, served on the supreme court until her death at the age of 87. Barrett is 48, meaning she could be a conservative presence on the supreme court, which has no mandatory retirement age, for decades. | |
| She is a conservative. She showed her credentials from early on in her career, serving as a law clerk for Antonin Scalia, the rightwing justice who served on the supreme court until his death in 2016. In rulings during her career, she has shown her support for gun rights, opposition to abortion and a hardline on immigration. | |
| For more on Barrett’s background, you can read Soo Youn’s profile of the justice: | |
| As we approach Donald Trump’s press conference, in which he will almost certainly nominate Amy Coney Barrett to replace Ruth Bader Ginsburg on the supreme court, it’s worth reading my colleague Ed Pilkington’s report. He says the supreme court battle underscores how rigid partisanship overtook “the world’s greatest deliberative body” – which has never truly represented the majority view. | |
| In 2012, the political scientist Ross Baker spent a sabbatical brushing up on his congressional knowledge by spending time in the office of Harry Reid, the then Democratic majority leader in the US Senate. Baker vividly remembers Reid telling him a story about Mitch McConnell, his opposite number in the Republican party. | |
| “Reid told me he couldn’t get McConnell to go to the White House with him,” Baker recalled. “McConnell would say, ‘I don’t want to go to that place.’ Reid specifically told me, ‘Mitch hates to go there.’” | |
| For Baker, the distinguished professor of political science at Rutgers University, that exchange about McConnell’s resistance to even visiting Barack Obama in the White House provided a telling insight into how rigid in its partisanship the modern Republican party under his leadership had become. It resonated with McConnell’s comment two years previously, that “the single most important thing we have to achieve is for President Obama to be a one-term president”. | |
| Such a visceral determination to oust a sitting president was not in the spirit of the Senate as it had historically been conceived. The world’s “greatest deliberative body”, as the now fraying cliché goes, was meant to rise above party political point-scoring. | |
| “The Senate was once the place where problems got solved, where senators were able to converse across party lines,” Baker told the Guardian. “It was the place for the grown-ups. They thought of themselves as special. Well, they’re not special any more.” | |
| Just how far from special the US Senate has become has been exposed this week in the wake of Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s death. McConnell lost no time in pressing ahead with a ruthless overturning of a precedent that he himself had invented in 2016. | |
| You can read the full report below: | |
| Florida, which was hit hard by Covid-19 this summer and is still seeing more than 100 deaths from the virus on some days, is reopening slowly after governor Ron DeSantis announced the immediate opening of restaurants and other businesses at 100% capacity and the prohibition of fines against people who refuse to wear face masks. | Florida, which was hit hard by Covid-19 this summer and is still seeing more than 100 deaths from the virus on some days, is reopening slowly after governor Ron DeSantis announced the immediate opening of restaurants and other businesses at 100% capacity and the prohibition of fines against people who refuse to wear face masks. |
| Not all Floridians are happy with the ruling including his fellow Republican Francis Suarez, the mayor of Miami. “I think it’s going to have a huge impact. You know, I just don’t know how many people are actually going to do it now,” he told CNN. | Not all Floridians are happy with the ruling including his fellow Republican Francis Suarez, the mayor of Miami. “I think it’s going to have a huge impact. You know, I just don’t know how many people are actually going to do it now,” he told CNN. |
| Suarez added: “We’ll see in the next couple of weeks whether he’s right about his perspective. But if he’s wrong about his perspective … it’s going to be very, very, very difficult for him and it’s going to be a very difficult time, because it’s in the middle of flu season.” | Suarez added: “We’ll see in the next couple of weeks whether he’s right about his perspective. But if he’s wrong about his perspective … it’s going to be very, very, very difficult for him and it’s going to be a very difficult time, because it’s in the middle of flu season.” |
| Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell has attracted the ire of Democrats for his attempts to push through a conservative nominee to the supreme court before the election. | Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell has attracted the ire of Democrats for his attempts to push through a conservative nominee to the supreme court before the election. |
| Demonstrators went to his house in Washington DC today, painting a mural on his street that reads “Hey Mitch. We Call BS. Let The People Decide.” | Demonstrators went to his house in Washington DC today, painting a mural on his street that reads “Hey Mitch. We Call BS. Let The People Decide.” |
| Demand Justice, an organization that campaigns to balance the courts and March For Our Lives, which advocates for gun safety, were behind the protest. Donald Trump’s likely pick for the supreme court, Amy Coney Barrett, is a conservative who is a proponent for gun rights. Both organizations oppose nominating a replacement for Ruth Bader Ginsburg during a time when many Americans have already cast their votes in the presidential election. | Demand Justice, an organization that campaigns to balance the courts and March For Our Lives, which advocates for gun safety, were behind the protest. Donald Trump’s likely pick for the supreme court, Amy Coney Barrett, is a conservative who is a proponent for gun rights. Both organizations oppose nominating a replacement for Ruth Bader Ginsburg during a time when many Americans have already cast their votes in the presidential election. |
| “We’re outside of Mitch McConnell‘s house because he has the power to listen to the will of American people and fulfill RBG’s dying wish, just as he has had the power to bring bi-partisan house-passed common sense legislation to a vote. Unfortunately he has proven time and time again that he is beholden to the gun lobby and special interests over the desires of his constituents in KY and the American people,” Eve Levenson, the policy and government affair manager for March For Our Lives told CNN. | “We’re outside of Mitch McConnell‘s house because he has the power to listen to the will of American people and fulfill RBG’s dying wish, just as he has had the power to bring bi-partisan house-passed common sense legislation to a vote. Unfortunately he has proven time and time again that he is beholden to the gun lobby and special interests over the desires of his constituents in KY and the American people,” Eve Levenson, the policy and government affair manager for March For Our Lives told CNN. |
| The presidential election takes place on 3 November, but there is plenty of time to appoint Amy Coney Barrett to the supreme court by then. | The presidential election takes place on 3 November, but there is plenty of time to appoint Amy Coney Barrett to the supreme court by then. |
| CNN has reported on the likely timetable for the Senate Judiciary Committee’s hearing schedule for Barrett. The hearing would open on 12 October with two rounds of questions from members of the Senate on the 13th and 14th, before a closed hearing with outside witnesses on 15 October. That would allow a vote to occur on 29 October, in time for the election. | CNN has reported on the likely timetable for the Senate Judiciary Committee’s hearing schedule for Barrett. The hearing would open on 12 October with two rounds of questions from members of the Senate on the 13th and 14th, before a closed hearing with outside witnesses on 15 October. That would allow a vote to occur on 29 October, in time for the election. |
| It is likely that the Republican-held Senate would approve Barrett’s nomination, even though a small number of GOP senators are wavering. At the age of 48, Barrett could serve on the court for decades as the US, unlike other countries, does not have a mandatory retirement date for supreme court justices. | It is likely that the Republican-held Senate would approve Barrett’s nomination, even though a small number of GOP senators are wavering. At the age of 48, Barrett could serve on the court for decades as the US, unlike other countries, does not have a mandatory retirement date for supreme court justices. |
| Judge Amy Coney Barrett, who is all but certain to be Donald Trump’s nomination to replace Ruth Bader Ginsburg, was seen leaving her home in South Bend, Indiana a few hours ago. She was accompanied by her children and husband. The family were smartly dressed and carrying suitcases. | Judge Amy Coney Barrett, who is all but certain to be Donald Trump’s nomination to replace Ruth Bader Ginsburg, was seen leaving her home in South Bend, Indiana a few hours ago. She was accompanied by her children and husband. The family were smartly dressed and carrying suitcases. |
| Trump is expected to announce Barrett’s nomination at 5pm ET from the White House, which wouldn’t give the family much time to get to Washington DC, but that’s what private jets are for. | Trump is expected to announce Barrett’s nomination at 5pm ET from the White House, which wouldn’t give the family much time to get to Washington DC, but that’s what private jets are for. |
| Vice president Mike Pence will be in attendance at the White House tonight, and he must be happy with proceedings as he sees a fellow member of the religious right appointed to a high position. | Vice president Mike Pence will be in attendance at the White House tonight, and he must be happy with proceedings as he sees a fellow member of the religious right appointed to a high position. |
| For more on Barrett and why she makes a good pick for Trump and his supporters, read Soo Youn’s profile of the judge: | For more on Barrett and why she makes a good pick for Trump and his supporters, read Soo Youn’s profile of the judge: |
| Edward Helmore has news of a rise in cases of Covid-19 in some neighbourhoods of New York City: | Edward Helmore has news of a rise in cases of Covid-19 in some neighbourhoods of New York City: |
| Senior members of New York’s Orthodox Jewish community are hitting back after city officials attempted to address a rise in coronavirus cases. | Senior members of New York’s Orthodox Jewish community are hitting back after city officials attempted to address a rise in coronavirus cases. |
| Last week, the New York City Health Department threatened to shutter non-essential businesses in neighborhoods with large Orthodox communities in south Brooklyn that have been identified as leading a surge in Covid-19 cases called the “Ocean Parkway Cluster”. | Last week, the New York City Health Department threatened to shutter non-essential businesses in neighborhoods with large Orthodox communities in south Brooklyn that have been identified as leading a surge in Covid-19 cases called the “Ocean Parkway Cluster”. |
| In recent weeks, 4.71% of tests performed in the neighborhoods of Midwood, Borough Park and Bensonhurst have come back positive for Covid-19. The city’s overall positivity rate has hovered around 1% for more than two months. | In recent weeks, 4.71% of tests performed in the neighborhoods of Midwood, Borough Park and Bensonhurst have come back positive for Covid-19. The city’s overall positivity rate has hovered around 1% for more than two months. |
| On Friday, radio host and community activist Heshy Tischler disrupted a Covid-19 awareness meeting being held by New York city health commissioner David Chokshi, calling officials liars and comparing them to Nazis. | On Friday, radio host and community activist Heshy Tischler disrupted a Covid-19 awareness meeting being held by New York city health commissioner David Chokshi, calling officials liars and comparing them to Nazis. |
| “He’s lying! When a man lies, he has to be interrupted! You are a liar,” Tischler yelled, while refusing to wear a mask or keep six feet away from attendees. “Your reports are lies. You are lying and I won’t allow lies to be given out.” | “He’s lying! When a man lies, he has to be interrupted! You are a liar,” Tischler yelled, while refusing to wear a mask or keep six feet away from attendees. “Your reports are lies. You are lying and I won’t allow lies to be given out.” |
| A day earlier, the city’s health department issued a warning that it would close non-essential businesses if infection rates did not start to fall. Officials have pleaded with members of the Orthodox community to observe social distancing guidelines, and said the city will distribute masks, gloves and hand sanitizer. | A day earlier, the city’s health department issued a warning that it would close non-essential businesses if infection rates did not start to fall. Officials have pleaded with members of the Orthodox community to observe social distancing guidelines, and said the city will distribute masks, gloves and hand sanitizer. |
| New York mayor Bill de Blasio also noted the increase of cases in those neighborhoods. “It’s something we have to address with a very aggressive public health effort right away,” he said. | New York mayor Bill de Blasio also noted the increase of cases in those neighborhoods. “It’s something we have to address with a very aggressive public health effort right away,” he said. |
| The issue is not new. At the start of the pandemic, state officials called on Orthodox Jewish leaders in New York City and suburban neighborhoods, including Spring Valley and Monsey, which is 35% Orthodox, to take the safety measures seriously. | The issue is not new. At the start of the pandemic, state officials called on Orthodox Jewish leaders in New York City and suburban neighborhoods, including Spring Valley and Monsey, which is 35% Orthodox, to take the safety measures seriously. |
| The city does not break cases down by religion, but the area has a significant Orthodox Jewish population. Officials have previously criticized the community for holding funerals and religious events without apparent regard for social distancing measures. | The city does not break cases down by religion, but the area has a significant Orthodox Jewish population. Officials have previously criticized the community for holding funerals and religious events without apparent regard for social distancing measures. |
| Last month, De Blasio attributed 16 new cases in Borough Park to a large wedding. The mayor, along with other political leaders, has stopped short from explicitly mentioning Orthodox communities after De Blasio singled them out during a large funeral gathering in Williamsburg and received pushback from rabbinical leaders. | Last month, De Blasio attributed 16 new cases in Borough Park to a large wedding. The mayor, along with other political leaders, has stopped short from explicitly mentioning Orthodox communities after De Blasio singled them out during a large funeral gathering in Williamsburg and received pushback from rabbinical leaders. |
| Vox is out with a fascinating and very worthwhile piece about reports which have mistakenly said People of Praise, the Catholic group to which probable supreme court pick Amy Coney Barrett belongs, helped inspire Margaret Atwood’s dystopian novel The Handmaid’s Tale. | Vox is out with a fascinating and very worthwhile piece about reports which have mistakenly said People of Praise, the Catholic group to which probable supreme court pick Amy Coney Barrett belongs, helped inspire Margaret Atwood’s dystopian novel The Handmaid’s Tale. |
| Stephanie Kirchgaessner’s story for the Guardian on People of Praise does not make the erroneous link. It’s here: | Stephanie Kirchgaessner’s story for the Guardian on People of Praise does not make the erroneous link. It’s here: |
| Health officials in Florida reported at least 2,795 new cases of Covid-19 and at least 107 deaths on Saturday, according to the state’s department of health. | Health officials in Florida reported at least 2,795 new cases of Covid-19 and at least 107 deaths on Saturday, according to the state’s department of health. |
| The state has reported at least 698,682 coronavirus cases and 14,022 deaths since the start of the pandemic, according to the department. | The state has reported at least 698,682 coronavirus cases and 14,022 deaths since the start of the pandemic, according to the department. |
| Authorities said Florida’s overall positivity rate for all tests was 13.35% on Friday, which is above the 10% threshold that health officials say is necessary before scaling back local precautions. The World Health Organization advises societies can reopen when they can keep their overall positivity rate at 5% or below. | Authorities said Florida’s overall positivity rate for all tests was 13.35% on Friday, which is above the 10% threshold that health officials say is necessary before scaling back local precautions. The World Health Organization advises societies can reopen when they can keep their overall positivity rate at 5% or below. |
| On Friday, Florida governor Ron DeSantis announced the state would move to phase three of reopening, which includes the immediate opening restaurants and other businesses at 100% capacity and the prohibition of local fines against people who refuse to wear face masks. | On Friday, Florida governor Ron DeSantis announced the state would move to phase three of reopening, which includes the immediate opening restaurants and other businesses at 100% capacity and the prohibition of local fines against people who refuse to wear face masks. |
| A photo essay by Lexey Swall captures the scenes of mourning in Washington this week following the death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg. | A photo essay by Lexey Swall captures the scenes of mourning in Washington this week following the death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg. |
| New Jersey senator Bob Menendez, the ranking Democrat on the Senate foreign relations committee, said the US state department “owes an apology” to a Finnish journalist who saw the International Women of Courage Award, bestowed in part for her work on Russia, taken away because she criticized Donald Trump on social media. | New Jersey senator Bob Menendez, the ranking Democrat on the Senate foreign relations committee, said the US state department “owes an apology” to a Finnish journalist who saw the International Women of Courage Award, bestowed in part for her work on Russia, taken away because she criticized Donald Trump on social media. |
| Jessikka Aro, an investigative reporter for Finland’s public service broadcaster Ylewas, was due to receive the award in March 2019. Rescinding it, the state department insisted she had not been a finalist and blamed the confusion on a “regrettable error”. | Jessikka Aro, an investigative reporter for Finland’s public service broadcaster Ylewas, was due to receive the award in March 2019. Rescinding it, the state department insisted she had not been a finalist and blamed the confusion on a “regrettable error”. |
| “Secretary [of state Mike] Pompeo should have honored a courageous journalist willing to stand up to Kremlin propaganda,” Menendez said. “Instead, his department sought to stifle dissent to avoid upsetting a president who, day after day, tries to take pages out of [Vladimir] Putin’s playbook. The state department owes Ms Aro an apology.” | “Secretary [of state Mike] Pompeo should have honored a courageous journalist willing to stand up to Kremlin propaganda,” Menendez said. “Instead, his department sought to stifle dissent to avoid upsetting a president who, day after day, tries to take pages out of [Vladimir] Putin’s playbook. The state department owes Ms Aro an apology.” |
| But Foreign Policy magazine reported that Aro was punished “after US officials went through [her] social media posts and found she had also frequently criticized President Donald Trump”. | But Foreign Policy magazine reported that Aro was punished “after US officials went through [her] social media posts and found she had also frequently criticized President Donald Trump”. |