(AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)WASHINGTON – The Latest on the confirmation of Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court (all times local):9:30 p.m.Amy Coney Barrett is pledging to carry out her duties as a Supreme Court justice “without any fear or favor” toward the other branches of government or her own beliefs. Barrett spoke Monday after taking the first of two oaths that will allow her to officially join the high court. The scene at an outdoor White House ceremony for Amy Coney Barrett looked very different from the previous White House event where President Donald Trump introduced her as his nominee. __9:17 p.m.Amy Coney Barrett has taken the first of two oaths she needs to officially join the Supreme Court. Barrett is the first Supreme Court justice to be confirmed so close to a presidential election.

Amy Coney Barrett is reportedly President Donald Trump's pick to fill a Supreme Court vacancy. Credit: Rachel Malehorn/Creative CommonsPresident Donald Trump plans to name Judge Amy Coney Barrett to the U.S. Supreme Court, according to multiple reports. If confirmed by the Senate, Barrett, who sits on the Illinois-based 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, will replace the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg who died on Sept. 18. "It's humbling and an immense honor to be considered for the Supreme Court," Cruz said.

Despite the rally, the S&P 500 still posted its fourth straight weekly loss, extending Wall Street's September swoon. The S&P 500 rose 1.6% after flip-flopping between small gains and losses a few times in the early going. The S&P 500 came within striking distance of a 10% drop from its all-time high earlier this week, what Wall Street calls a correction. The S&P 500 rose 51.87 points to 3,298.46. Norwegian Cruise Line notched the biggest gain in the S&P 500, vaulting 13.7%.

NEW YORK (AP) – A presidential campaign that was already tugging at the nation’s most searing divides has been jolted by the death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, potentially reshaping the election at a moment when some Americans were beginning to cast ballots. On Saturday, Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, said she believes the winner of the Nov. 3 election should nominate Ginsburg’s replacement. That decision cast a long political shadow, prompting Pete Buttigieg, the former South Bend, Indiana, mayor who mounted a spirited bid for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination, to make expansion of the Supreme Court a centerpiece of his campaign. Some Democrats privately concede that the Supreme Court vacancy could shift attention away from the virus, which has been a central element of Biden’s campaign. The president, seeking to build the same type of energy that surrounded his 2016 bid, released another list of potential Supreme Court nominees this month.