Justice Amy Coney Barrett is, and always has been, an originalist and a conservative. As such, she understands her proper role as a judge: to say what the law is, not what she wishes it to be. Unfortunately, some activists do not care about the rule of law Barrett and her fellow originalist justices uphold. Instead, they want politicized outcomes, whatever the cost.
In recent years, activists have increasingly threatened harm to the justices and their families. On July 14, Barrett and Justice Elena Kagan testified before Congress requesting increased security funding in response to that threat. Barrett told members of Congress that, in the wake of Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, she had to explain to her 12-year-old son what bulletproof vests are and why she needed to wear one.
