Judge Neil Gorsuch has moved one step closer to becoming the next U.S. Supreme Court Justice.
The U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary approved Judge Gorsuch’s nomination by a 11-9 vote on April 3. The vote was a strict party line vote with 11 Republicans voting in favor of Judge Gorsuch and 9 Democrats voting against him.
During his remarks on April 3, Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) called Judge Gorsuch an eminently qualified nominee who will keep politics out of the judicial process.
“He’s a mainstream judge who’s earned the universal respect of his colleagues on the bench and in the bar,” Sen. Grassley said. “He applies the law as we in Congress write it – as the judicial oath says, ‘Without respect to persons.’ And he refuses to compromise his independence. This nominee … is a judge’s judge. He’s a picture of the kind of justice we should have on the Supreme Court.”
Conversely, Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) expressed opposition to Judge Gorsuch, criticizing his past rulings and calling his answers during his nomination hearing vague and ambiguous.
“As I’ve said, our job is to assess whether the nominee will protect the legal and constitutional rights of all Americans and whether the nominee will recognize the humanity and justice required when evaluating the cases before him,” Sen. Feinstein said before the vote. “Unfortunately, based on the judge’s record at the Department of Justice, his tenure on the bench, his appearance before the Senate, and his written questions for the record, I cannot support his nomination.”
The full Senate is expected to vote on Judge Gorsuch’s nomination on April 7.
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