Roman Catholics account for a bit more than 20% of the U.S. population, yet they are on track to hold six of the Supreme Courts nine seats now that President Donald Trump is expected to nominate Amy Coney Barrett to fill its vacancy.
Its a striking development given that the high court, for most of its history, was almost entirely populated by white male Protestants. Catholic academics and political analysts offer several explanations for the turnaround related to Catholics educational traditions, their interest in the law, and in the case of Catholic conservatives an outlook that has appealed to recent Republican presidents filling judicial vacancies.
Barrett, a favorite of conservative activists for her views on abortion and other issues, will likely be an ideological opposite of liberal icon Ruth Bader Ginsburg,…
