Immaculate Heart student interviews Justice Barrett
By Poppy Seidler, age 13,
KidScoop Media correspondent
JUSTICE BARRETT with Poppy Seidler.
I had the privilege of interviewing Justice Amy Coney Barrett at the Ronald Reagan Library in Simi Valley recently. She was there to promote her book, “Listening to the Law.”
At first, I was nervous—it’s not every day you get to meet someone who helps make decisions for the entire country. But as soon as she walked in, she made everyone feel comfortable with her calm and kind personality.
She explained that at her family dinners, she can share what case she is hearing at the Court, but she can’t talk about her opinions or predict what the Court will decide.
When I asked her, “How did it feel to replace such an iconic justice like Justice Ginsburg,” she described her as smart, approachable, and gracious. She admitted it was intimidating to replace someone so brilliant and respected.
I also asked about how she chooses her law clerks. “When I hire law clerks, I want to hire people that are really smart, but who won’t just say, ‘Yes, Justice, I think what you think.’ I always want to hire clerks who are willing to push back and tell me if they think I got it wrong, because otherwise they are no good to me.” Another fun question I asked was about her favorite Smithsonian museum. She said the American History Museum and the Archives are her favorites, and she even plans to schedule next term’s clerks for a visit to the Archives.
Poppy Seidler, an 8th-grader at Immaculate Heart, is a resident of Larchmont Village.
Category: People
