Sen. Cory Booker asked Barrett if she believed that presidents should commit to the peaceful transfer of power, and she didn’t answer.
Booker asked, “Do you believe that every president should make a commitment unequivocally and resolutely to the peaceful transfer of power?”
Barrett answered, “Well, senator, that seems to me to be pulling me in a little bit into this question of whether the president has said that he would not peacefully leave office and to the extent, this is a political controversy right now as a judge I want to stay out of it and I don’t want to express a view on –”
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Amy Coney Barrett won't say that Trump should commit to a peaceful transfer of power. pic.twitter.com/OlcFT3jpaT
— Sarah Reese Jones (@PoliticusSarah) October 13, 2020
Booker’s question was the equivalent of asking a general question like do you believe in democracy?
Sen. Booker didn’t ask about Trump or mention his name.
Barrett refused to commit herself to the idea that a peaceful transfer of power is one of the pillars of a stable democracy. Booker’s question was so easy that she wouldn’t have lost any Republican votes if she would have said all presidents should strive for a peaceful transfer of power because that it what democracy special. The people speak and those in power abide by their decision.
Judge Barrett appears to be leaving the door open for Trump to contest and challenge the election if it is close.
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Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
