Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett delivered her opening statement in her Senate confirmation hearing this Monday — a relatively straightforward recounting of her life story and her position on the role of the courts — setting the stage for intensive questioning yet to come this week.

Democrats have expressed widespread opposition to Barrett’s nomination, and emphasized that she could solidify a 6-3 conservative majority on the high court that could overturn the Affordable Care Act and undo Roe v. Wade. In her opening remarks, Barrett did not touch on specific cases or issue areas, but emphasized that she viewed the Court’s role as a body that’s not intended to create policy — a commonly used Republican talking point.

“Courts have a vital responsibility to enforce the rule of law, which is critical to a free society,” Barrett said. “But courts are not designed to solve every problem or right every wrong in our public life.”

“The policy decisions and value judgments of government must be made by the political branches elected by and accountable to the people,” she continued. “The public should not expect courts to do so, and courts should not try.”

Barrett also offered some indication of the influences behind her approach to the law. She spoke, for example, about her respect for the late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, whom she clerked for and whose judicial philosophy she’s widely expected to emulate. Since that clerkship, Barrett has served as a law professor at Notre Dame University and as a Seventh Circuit Court judge.

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