GovExec Daily: The Barrett Nomination, Ethics and Democracy

When Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg died on September 18, a number of questions arose about the immediate future of the Supreme Court and how her spot will be filled. Some asked about the 2016 death of Antonin Scalia and the court’s vacancy that lasted more than a year, while others questioned how the vacancy will factor into November’s presidential and senate election. President Donald Trump nominated Judge Amy Coney Barrett eight days after Ginsburg’s death to fill the spot.

The ethics of filling the seat was also called into question, considering the last four years of the Trump administration’s relationship with government ethics and its nominees to other positions. Donald K. Sherman is Deputy Director of the Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington. He has a post on our site now headlined “Rush to Fill Supreme Court Vacancy Is an Attack on Democracy” and he joined the show to talk about the vacancy, democracy and ethics in the Trump era.