Topline
President Donald Trump reposted a tweet blasting Justice Amy Coney Barrett on Wednesday, singling her out in his latest jab against the Supreme Court, which has made multiple rulings throughout his second term that do not align with his administration’s agenda.
Barrett was appointed in 2020.
Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
Key Facts
Trump reposted on Truth Social a tweet from right-wing political commentator Tim Pool saying Barrett is “clearly terrified of the left.”
The post from Pool comments on data that claims Barrett has increasingly broken from the conservative majority on the Supreme Court following Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization in 2022, which held the Constitution does not provide a right to abortion.
Trump has appeared more conflicted with the conservative Supreme Court justices since February, when the court struck down his sweeping global tariffs in a 6-3 vote supported by Chief Justice John Roberts, Justice Neil Gorsuch and Barrett.
The Supreme Court is in its annual summer recess and will convene in October.
When Has Barrett Broken With Trump?
In addition to voting against Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariffs, Barrett sided with Roberts and the Supreme Court’s three liberal justices to reject Trump’s attempt to withhold and freeze nearly $2 billion in foreign aid. Barrett also provided a dissenting opinion in Fischer v. United States, arguing a federal law against “obstructing an official proceeding” applied to the January 6 Capitol rioters. The Supreme Court ruled to narrow the application of that law, ultimately benefiting the rioters.
Key Background
Barrett was appointed by Trump to the Supreme Court in 2020, succeeding the late Ruth Bader Ginsburg. She has largely followed a conservative voting pattern, helping overturn Roe v. Wade, expanding gun rights in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen, which rejected a New York law that placed strict limits on concealed carry handguns in public, and striking down affirmative action in Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard. Barrett’s recent breaks with Trump’s agenda have made her the target of ire from the right, with Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., calling for her removal from the bench after she sided with liberal justices to oppose a push against mail-in voting practices. Trump has privately expressed frustrations about Barrett in particular, according to ABC News.