The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Conservative judge picked for high court
Trump’s choice of Gorsuch, 49, likely to spark fight
President Donald WASHINGTON — Trump on Tuesday nominated Judge Neil Gorsuch, a federal appeals court judge in Denver, to fill the Supreme Court seat left open by the death of Justice Antonin Scalia, elevating a jurist whose conservative bent and originalist philosophy fit the mold of the man he would succeed.
“Judge Gorsuch has outstanding legal skills, a brilliant mind, tremendous discipline and has earned bipartisan support,” Trump said, standing beside Gorsuch and the judge’s wife, Louise, in the East Room of the White House. “It is an extraordinary résumé — as good as it gets.”
If confirmed, Gorsuch would restore the 5-4 split between liberals and conservatives on the court and once again hand Justice Anthony Kennedy, 80, who votes with both blocs, the swing vote.
At 49, Gorsuch is the youngest nominee to the Supreme Court in 25 years, underscoring his potential to shape major decisions for decades to come. In choosing him, Trump reached for a reliably conservative figure in the Scalia tradition but not someone known to be divisive.
Trump, who recognized Scalia’s wife, Maureen, in the audience as he announced his choice, heaped praise on the “late, great” jurist, saying his “image and genius was in my mind throughout the decision-making process.”
Gorsuch said he was humbled by his “most solemn assignment.”
“I will do all my powers permit to be a faithful servant of the Constitution and laws of this great country,” he said. He also praised Scalia as “a lion of the law.”
The announcement presaged a bitter political battle on Capitol Hill, where Democrats in the Senate, still stung by the Republican refusal to confirm President Barack Obama’s nominee for the seat, Judge Merrick Garland, have promised stiff resistance.
A Colorado native who was in the same class at Harvard Law School as Obama, Gorsuch is known for his well-written, measured opinions that are usually, though not exclusively, conservative. He holds a Ph.D. from Oxford University, where he was a Marshall Scholar, and a pedigree as a law clerk at the Supreme Court to Justices Byron White and Kennedy. President George W. Bush nominated Gorsuch to the federal bench in 2006.
Gorsuch’s personal connections to Kennedy are no accident. By choosing a familiar figure, several officials said, the White House is sending a reassuring signal to Kennedy, 80, who has been mulling retirement.
Choosing a more ideologically extreme candidate, the officials said, could tempt Kennedy to hang on to his seat for several more years, depriving Trump of another seat to fill.
Still, Gorsuch’s conservative credentials are not in doubt. He has voted in favor of employers, including Hobby Lobby, who invoked religious objections for refusing to provide some forms of contraception coverage to their female workers. And he has criticized liberals for turning to the courts rather than the legislature to achieve their policy goals.
There had been speculation that Trump would choose someone with a less elite background for the court. The other finalist for the post, Judge Thomas Hardiman, was the first person in his family to graduate from college, and helped pay for his education by driving a taxi.
The White House had stoked suspense over Trump’s court choice in the hours before announcing it. A senior Trump administration official said both Gorsuch and Hardiman, the apparent runner-up, were summoned to Washington for the nomination ceremony. But only Gorsuch appeared at the ceremony shortly after 8 p.m.
In an allusion to the intense foreshadowing he and his team had done to build speculation over the pick, Trump interrupted his own announcement to marvel at his showmanship: “So was that a surprise?” the president said after announcing Gorsuch’s name. “Was it?”
The East Room was filled with White House officials, Republican lawmakers and reporters as Trump revealed his choice.
The president, staring down what is likely to be a bitter partisan battle over Gorsuch’s confirmation, expressed hope that he could avoid such a dispute.
“I only hope that both Democrats and Republicans can come together for once, for the good of the country,” Trump said.
Gorsuch is the son of Anne Gorsuch Burford, who became the first female head of the Environmental Protection Agency under President Ronald Reagan. He attended Georgetown Preparatory School, outside Washington, before going to Columbia University.
Democrats, who declined invitations from Trump to attend the White House announcement ceremony, seemed unlikely to be satisfied with Trump’s choice. Sen. Chuck Schumer of New York, the Democratic leader, quickly expressed “serious doubts” that Gorsuch is within what Democrats consider the legal mainstream — a stance that could touch off a Senate showdown.
Gorsuch will need to draw the support of at least eight Democrats to join the 52 Republicans in the Senate to surmount a filibuster and move forward with an up-ordown confirmation vote. But Trump is already urging Republicans to change long-standing rules and push through his nominee on a simple majority vote.