Senate Democrats express skepticism of Gorsuch

WASHINGTON — Democratic senators said Tuesday night they are skeptical that Supreme Court nominee Neil Gorsuch will stand up to President Trump and be an independent jurist, but most stopped short of saying they would block a vote on his confirmation.

Republicans overwhelmingly cheered Gorsuch's nomination, describing him as a mainstream conservative judge who will not overreach and behave like a legislator making new laws.

Under current Senate rules, 60 Senators have to agree to proceed to an up-or-down vote on Gorsuch, who currently serves as an appeals court judge in Colorado. Republicans have 52 seats in the Senate. But GOP leaders could employ the "nuclear option" to change the rules and allow Gorsuch to be confirmed with a simple majority of 51 votes.

"The Senate must insist upon 60-votes for any Supreme Court nominee, a bar that was met by each of President Obama’s nominees," said Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y. "The burden is on Judge Neil Gorsuch to prove himself to be within the legal mainstream and, in this new era, willing to vigorously defend the Constitution from abuses of the executive branch and protect the constitutionally enshrined rights of all Americans."

"Given his record, I have very serious doubts about Judge Gorsuch’s ability to meet this standard," Schumer continued. "Judge Gorsuch has repeatedly sided with corporations over working people, demonstrated a hostility toward women’s rights, and most troubling, hewed to an ideological approach to jurisprudence that makes me skeptical that he can be a strong, independent Justice on the Court. Make no mistake, Senate Democrats will not simply allow but require an exhaustive, robust, and comprehensive debate on Judge Gorsuch’s fitness to be a Supreme Court Justice."

Republicans praised Gorsuch as a well-qualified jurist who was so non-controversial that he was confirmed to the appeals court by Congress in 2006 by voice vote with no opposition.

"When the Senate previously confirmed him to the appellate court, the bipartisan support in the Senate was so overwhelming, a roll call vote was not even required," said Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky.  "I hope members of the Senate will again show him fair consideration and respect the result of the recent election with an up-or-down vote on his nomination, just like the Senate treated the four first-term nominees of Presidents Clinton and Obama."

Democrats said they are especially wary of Gorsuch's apparent lack of support for abortion rights.

"President Trump said he would appoint justices who would overturn 40 years of jurisprudence established in Roe v. Wade," said Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., a senior member of the Judiciary Committee, which will vote on Gorsuch's nomination before sending it the full Senate for action. "Judge Gorsuch has shown a willingness to limit women’s access to health care that suggests the President is making good on that promise. ... I intend to ask Judge Gorsuch about these and other important issues in the coming months."

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Gorsuch would fill the spot left vacant by the death of Justice Antonin Scalia nearly a year ago. The GOP-led Senate angered Democrats last year by refusing to even consider President Obama's nominee, Merrick Garland, to succeed Scalia.

"Filling Justice Scalia’s seat with a principled conservative who will interpret the Constitution rather than legislate from the bench should be our top priority," said Sen. Jeff Flake, R-Ariz., who is considered relatively moderate, and has sparred with Trump. "I am confident that Judge Neil Gorsuch fits the bill, and I'll do whatever I can to see that he receives an up-or-down vote on the floor of the Senate."

Democrats indicated that Gorsuch could face a tougher confirmation process than most nominees because he is being appointed by a president whom they view as having already violated the Constitution with the travel restrictions he has put on refugees from Syria and other predominantly Muslim countries.

"Given President Trump’s actions in defiance of our Constitution and our values during these early moments of his administration, I will also insist that Judge Gorsuch meet and exceed the highest bar before being approved by the United States Senate," said Sen. Tom Carper, D-Del. "My Democratic colleagues will insist on a fair, open and transparent process, and I implore my Republican colleagues to remember that minority rights must be preserved to prevent further politicization of the judiciary."

Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., reflecting the bitterness that some Democrats still feel about Republicans refusal to vote on Garland, vowed to try to block Gorsuch's confirmation.

“If President Trump were serious about healing the divisions in America and undoing the damage wrought by Senate Republicans last year, he could have named Merrick Garland to fill this seat. Garland is a centrist jurist who is respected on both sides of the aisle. Instead, he doubled down on division by picking an ideological and extreme nominee to satisfy the far right.

"This is a stolen seat being filled by an illegitimate and extreme nominee, and I will do everything in my power to stand up against this assault on the Court," he said.

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