Area federal representatives are reacting to President Donald Trump's nomination of Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court.
Congressman Chris Collins (R-Clarence) had this statement:
“President Trump showed America his commitment to conservative principles with tonight’s Supreme Court nomination,” said Congressman Chris Collins. “Judge Neil Gorsuch will be a strong voice on the Court for years to come. I fully anticipate that he will continue interpreting laws as they are written and defend the constitutionally protected rights all Americans hold dear. I urge my Democrat colleagues in the Senate to recognize the clear message American voters sent on Election Day and quickly confirm Judge Gorsuch.”
Congresswoman Louise Slaughter (D-Fairport) released this statement:
“President Trump has already promised to nominate a justice to the Supreme Court that will overturn the landmark Roe v. Wade decision protecting a woman’s Constitutional right to have an abortion. No president before has ever bragged about such a litmus test. Regardless of what is said publicly in the coming months, I’m deeply concerned about what could have been said behind closed doors as the president made this decision. Judge Gorsuch is a proponent of the same radically conservative judicial philosophy as Justice Scalia and would go even further by eliminating Chevron deference, which would dangerously undermine the regulatory process. I’m also deeply concerned about Judge Gorsuch’s troubling record of condemning those who have often turned to the courts to live up to our nation’s ideals of equality, women’s rights, and civil rights.”
Senator Charles Schumer (D-Brooklyn), Senate Minority Leader:
(Associated Press) Senate Democratic Leader Charles Schumer says he has "serious doubts" that Supreme Court nominee Neil Gorsuch is within what Democrats consider the legal mainstream.
Schumer said in a statement Tuesday night that 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."
Schumer says the Senate "must insist" on 60 votes for any Supreme Court nominee, meaning the nominee would have to receive bipartisan support.
Schumer has not said whether he would attempt a filibuster, a procedural maneuver that would require 60 votes. However, any senator can move to filibuster and Oregon Sen. Jeff Merkley has suggested he will.
U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-Albany):
“All branches of the federal government should stand on the side of the citizens they were created to serve. The Supreme Court is supposed to be the ultimate arbiter of justice for our citizens. Unfortunately, Judge Gorsuch has proven to have a judicial philosophy outside of the mainstream and time and again has subjugated individual rights to those of corporations. I fundamentally disagree with his ruling that a boss should be able to make family planning decisions for an employee and that corporations are people. I plan to stand up for individuals over corporations and oppose his nomination, and I will insist that his nomination meet a traditional 60 vote threshold.”