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Tags: cornyn | amy coney barrett | hearing | oath of office

Sen. Cornyn: Dems' Suggestion Barrett Will Violate Oath of Office 'Insulting'

cornyn in a suit and light blue tie
Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas (Zach Gibson/Getty Images)

By    |   Tuesday, 13 October 2020 02:33 PM EDT

Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, on Tuesday rebuked Democrats for suggesting Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett would violate her oath of office and rule unfairly based on her personal beliefs, the Daily Caller reports.

"Judge, the best I can understand the objections to your nomination are not to your qualifications, your experience or training, but it is that you have — or you will — violate your oath of office," Cornyn said during confirmation hearings for Barrett before the Senate Judiciary Committee.

"I find that terribly insulting. They suggest that you cannot be unbiased in deciding a case you have not even participated in yet. I find that insulting as well.

"Now, maybe almost as pernicious as attacking someone for their faith and suggesting that that disqualifies them from holding a public office is the attack on independence, something Chief Justice [William] Rehnquist, among others, observed as the crown jewels of the American Constitution and the American system," he added.

The Senate is pushing Barrett's confirmation to a quick vote before Election Day on Nov. 3.

Her religious views and past leadership role in a Catholic faith community pose a challenge for Democrats as they try to probe her judicial approach to abortion, gay marriage, and other social issues without veering into inappropriate questioning of her faith. So far, though, Democrats have declined to raise her religion during the hearings.

Barrett has described her approach to the law as conservative and fair and on Tuesday repeatedly emphasized that she has no political agenda.

Americans "deserve an independent Supreme Court that interprets our Constitution and laws as they are written," she told the panel Monday, laying out her judicial philosophy, which she has likened to that of her conservative mentor, the late Justice Antonin Scalia.

Information from the Associated Press was used in this report.

Solange Reyner

Solange Reyner is a writer and editor for Newsmax. She has more than 15 years in the journalism industry reporting and covering news, sports and politics.

© 2026 Newsmax. All rights reserved.


Politics
Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, on Tuesday rebuked Democrats for suggesting Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett would violate her oath of office and rule unfairly based on her personal beliefs, the Daily Caller reports. "Judge, the best I can understand the objections to your...
cornyn, amy coney barrett, hearing, oath of office
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2020-33-13
Tuesday, 13 October 2020 02:33 PM
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