Amy Coney Barrett Is the Lightning Rod July 2, 2026, 5:04 a.m. ET Credit...Will Matsuda for The New York Times Ms. Bazelon is a staff writer for The Times Magazine and the Opinion section. Mr. French is an Opinion columnist. They both hold law degrees. Emily Bazelon: Hi, David. You are a more upbeat and conservative person than I am, so I think you are going to have a more optimistic take on the Supreme Court’s final batch of decisions.