Senate hearings for Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett continue

The battle is heating up on Capitol Hill as confirmation hearings for Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett will continue on Tuesday. They are set to go through the end of Thursday. California Senators Dianne Feinstein and Kamala Harris are in the center of all of it as they are part of the Senate Judiciary Committee and will get to ask Barrett questions.

"If confirmed, it would be the honor of a lifetime to serve alongside the Chief Justice and seven Associate Justices," said Barrett on Monday during her opening statement.

Barrett took center stage Monday in Washington D.C. as the battle between Democrats and Republicans wages on in the midst of the Senate confirmation hearings.

"I believe we should not be moving forward on this nomination," said Senator Dianne Feinstein of California.

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Republicans were quick to fire back saying they will have the votes to confirm Barrett.

"Unless something really dramatic happens, all republicans will vote yes, and all democrats will vote no," said Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina.

San Jose State University professor Donna Crane says so far Democrats and Republicans are talking to the American public, not each other.

"What I think they're trying to do is they're trying to influence the public debate and persuade people one way or another in the elections," says Crane. Elections that are now less than three weeks away and ones that could change the look of the White House, the Senate, and the Supreme Court.

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In the next two days, Sen. Kamala Harris will begin her questioning of Barrett not only as a California Senator but as a Vice Presidential candidate.

"By replacing Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg with someone who will undo her legacy, President Trump is attempting to roll back Americans' rights for decades to come," said Harris.

On Monday, no questions of Barrett were asked during the five-hour hearing but that all changes Tuesday and will last until the hearings are over late Thursday.