Trump denies discussing issues with Barrett

President Donald Trump says he didn't ask Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett whether she'd rule in his favor should the Supreme Court have to decide the 2020 election.

Trump and Republicans have cited the election as one reason they've rushed to seat Barrett on the court. Trump said he does not know whether she'd rule in his favor in any litigation over the vote.

Trump said Thursday at his town hall event: "It would be totally up to her."

The president acknowledged he changed his standard for court appointments this year. In 2016, he argued that President Barack Obama should not be able to fill an empty seat eight months before the election. This year he is pushing Barrett through less than three weeks before Election Day.

Trump said the reason was Democratic opposition to his last nominee, Justice Brett Kavanaugh, who was accused of sexual harassment in his 2018 confirmation. "The whole ballgame changed when I saw the way they treated Judge Kavanaugh," Trump said. "I have never seen a human being treated so badly."

Trump also broke with many in his party in refusing to answer whether he would like to see Roe v. Wade overturned. The law guarantees women the right to an abortion.

Trump said that he didn't "want to do anything to influence anything right now," suggesting that taking a position on the issue might appear as though he's trying to influence his supreme court nominee.