Senator Mazie Hirono (D-HI) got her point across.
The Hawaiian senator gave a thumbs down and said an audible ‘hell no’ when asked about her vote to confirm Justice Amy Coney Barrett Monday night, The Independent reports. Hirono has been vocal about her opposition in the weeks throughout the confirmation process.
In a Twitter thread, Hirono gave several reasons for not supporting the nomination, including Barrett’s ‘ideological agenda.’
“Barrett has… expressed willingness to overturn Supreme Court precedent,” Hirono tweeted. “Her agenda poses a direct threat to health care, a woman’s right to control her body, the rights of LGBTQ Americans, and other individual and civil rights.”
“I oppose her nomination and will fight to deny her a lifetime position on the United States Supreme Court, and in doing so, will tell the American people the danger she poses to hard-won rights,” the senator continued.
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Hirono also criticized Coney Barrett’s use of ‘sexual preference’ during her confirmation hearings, when discussing the LGBTQ+ community, The Independent reports.
“It is used by the anti-LGBTQ activists to suggest that sexual orientation is a choice. It is not,” Hirono said, according to The Independent. “Sexual orientation is a key part of a person’s identity… So if it is your view that sexual orientation is merely a ‘preference,’ as you noted, then the LGBTQ community should be rightly concerned whether you will uphold their constitutional right to marry.”
According to Daily Mail, Barrett was voted in with a 52-48 vote. Her confirmation sets a 6-3 conservative majority on the Supreme Court.
Barrett was later sworn in on the White House South Lawn by Justice Clarence Thomas, Daily Mail reports. President Trump, who was present, emphasized Coney Barrett’s ‘towering intellect’ and ‘impeccable credentials.’
“I pledge to you and to the American people that I will discharge my duties to the best of my ability,” Coney Barrett said, Daily Mail reports. “I will do my job without any fear or favor and that I will do so independently of both the political branches and my personal preferences.”
Note: The Daily Mail footage mistakenly spells Sen. Hirono’s name as ‘Marie Hizono,” rather than Mazie Hirono.
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