Justice Barrett Defends Court’s Impartiality Amid Same-Sex Marriage Challenge, New Book Release

In her first television interview since joining the Supreme Court in October 2020, Justice Amy Coney Barrett asserted that the law is “not an opinion poll,” emphasizing the Court’s role to interpret, not impose, values on the American people. These significant remarks precede the September 9 release of her new book, “Listening to the Law: Reflections on the Court and Constitution,” and come as the high court confronts a longshot petition to revisit its landmark 2015 ruling legalizing same-sex marriage.

Speaking with CBS News senior correspondent Norah O’Donnell, Justice Barrett underscored that the Court’s objective is to understand the will of the American people as expressed in the Constitution and statutes, rather than reflecting the personal views of its nine justices. She stated that the imposition of values falls within the purview of the democratic process, not the judiciary.

Barrett’s comments are particularly timely as the Supreme Court considers an appeal from Kim Davis, a former Kentucky county clerk, seeking to overturn the Obergefell v. Hodges decision. While legal analysts suggest Davis’s petition faces steep odds, the Court’s 2022 decision to overturn Roe v. Wade has heightened concerns among critics regarding the stability of other precedents, including those related to same-sex marriage and contraception, which are also grounded in the 14th Amendment.

Justice Barrett, who was part of the majority in the Roe v. Wade reversal, addresses these anxieties in her book, noting the Court’s historical recognition of fundamental rights such as marriage and the use of birth control. She also directly rebuffed predictions from figures like former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who suggested same-sex marriage rights could be returned to the states, stating that justices “have to tune those things out.”

The full interview with Norah O’Donnell is scheduled to air on “CBS Sunday Morning.”

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