The White House is preparing to have Justice Clarence Thomas swear in Judge Amy Coney Barrett tonight after she is confirmed by the Senate to the Supreme Court.
Barrett is all but guaranteed confirmation by the Republican-held Senate on Monday evening.
A senior White House official told reporters in a statement Monday afternoon that “Justice Clarence Thomas will administer the official Constitutional Oath to Judge Amy Coney Barrett at the White House tonight.”
Trump told reporters during a campaign trip to Pennsylvania Monday, “We’re going to see [an event] probably at the White House later on this evening.”
Trump said it would be a small event — after many attendees at Barrett’s Sept. 26 unveiling in the Rose Garden, including Trump, caught COVID-19.
“No, not a large event. Just a very nice event,” Trump said.
Barrett, 48, will be Trump’s third confirmed justice on the nine-person court — a frequent campaign-trail boast ahead of the Nov. 3 election. She will replace liberal icon Ruth Bader Ginsburg, potentially shifting the ideological balance of the court for decades.
Barrett is a favorite among religious conservatives and emerged unscathed from Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearings. The top Democrat on the committee, Sen. Dianne Feinstein of California, enraged fellow Democrats by saying it was “one of the best set of hearings that I have participated in.”
Barrett, an Indiana resident and judge on the US Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit, contracted COVID-19 earlier this year and is believed to be immune.
It’s unclear if Vice President Mike Pence will attend the ceremony at the White House. Five Pence aides, including his chief of staff, Marc Short, reportedly were diagnosed with COVID-19 in the past week. Pence has been testing negative for the virus.