WASHINGTON: In nominating Amy Coney Barrett for a lifetime job on the U.S. Supreme Court, President Donald Trump has selected a federal appeals court judge who has staked out conservative legal positions on key hot-button issues in three years on the bench.
Trump on Saturday at the White House introduced Barrett, a favorite of religious conservatives, as his nominee to replace liberal Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died on Sept. 18.
Barrett, 48, was appointed by Trump to the Chicago-based 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in 2017. She has proven reliably conservative in that post, voting in favor of one of Trump’s hardline immigration policies and showing support for expansive gun rights. She also authored a ruling making it easier for college students accused of campus sexual assaults to sue their…