Dems force delay on judge’s confirmation
4 more say they likely will oppose Gorsuch next week
Senate Democrats force a one-week delay in a committee vote on Supreme Court nominee Neil Gorsuch, who remains on track for confirmation with solid Republican backing.
WASHINGTON — Senate Democrats on Monday forced a one-week delay in a committee vote on President Donald Trump’s Supreme Court nominee, who remains on track for confirmation with solid Republican backing.
Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, chairman of the Judiciary Committee, announced that, as expected, Democrats have requested a postponement. The committee vote on Judge Neil Gorsuch now will be held April 3.
As the committee readies to vote, four additional Democrats said they are likely to vote against the Denver-based appeals court judge. Minnesota Sen. Al Franken, Florida Sen. Bill Nelson and Hawaii Sen. Mazie Hirono said they will vote against Gorsuch, and Vermont Sen. Patrick Leahy tweeted that he still was undecided but inclined to oppose him. Leahy is a senior member of the Judiciary panel and a former chairman.
Gorsuch “has an extreme record on everything from corporate accountability and workers’ rights to women’s health, and I fear that as a Supreme Court justice he will guarantee that the highest court in the land continues to favor powerful interests over the rights of average Americans,” Franken said in a statement.
That means at least 18 Democrats and independents, led by Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York, have announced their opposition to the Denverbased appeals court judge, ar- guing that Gorsuch has ruled too often against workers and in favor of corporations.
The Democrats who have announced their opposition also have said they will try to block the nominee, meaning Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., will have to hold a procedural vote requiring 60 votes to move forward.
The Senate GOP has a 52-48 majority, meaning McConnell will need support from at least eight Democrats or independents.
It was unclear whether he would be able to get the 60 votes. If he doesn’t, McConnell seems ready to change Senate rules and confirm him with a simple majority.
Republicans had hoped that they’d see some support from the 10 Democrats running for re-election in states won by Trump in the presidential election, but four of those senators — Nelson, Pennsylvania Sen. Bob Casey, Ohio Sen. Sherrod Brown and Wisconsin Sen. Tammy Baldwin — already have said they will oppose the nominee.
Leahy, however, signaled that he may be willing to break from Schumer and vote with Republicans on the procedural vote, while also signaling in a separate tweet he’d vote against Gorsuch in the final, up or down vote.
Several Democrats have expressed frustration with the lack of answers Gorsuch gave during two lengthy days of questioning at his confirmation hearing last week, criticizing him for declining to give his personal views on most issues, including abortion, campaign finance and others they asked him about.
They also expressed concerns that he wouldn’t be an independent voice from Trump, who nominated him in January.
California Sen. Dianne Feinstein, the top Democrat on the Judiciary panel, also noted at the brief committee meeting Monday the “depth of feeling” among Democrats after Republicans blocked former President Barack Obama’s nominee for the same seat, Merrick Garland.