On This Day In 2017
Trump's partners go to extraordinary lengths to seize Conservative power for decades
A Supreme Controversy
In March 2016, Obama had nominated Merrick Garland to fill an empty seat on the Supreme Court. But the GOP-led Senate simply ignored their constitutional obligation to evaluate Obama’s nominee. They spouted a novel theory that because an election was coming up in nine months, somehow Obama was no longer permitted to carry out his constitutionally-mandated duty to propose a new justice.
It was among the more egregious, unwarranted power grabs in United States history. But that was only half of what Mitch McConnell and the GOP needed to do to “win” their Supreme Court war.
OTDI 2017, just days into his term, Trump nominated Neil Gorsuch to the fill the seat for which Garland had been nominated nearly a year prior.
But, there was a problem. Gorsuch was sufficiently unpopular among the full Senate that his confirmation seemed unlikely. So, Republicans then had to invoke the “nuclear option” to change long-standing Senate rules; under the old rules, they wouldn’t have been able to get Trump’s guy approved.
A True Conservative
Gorsuch’s ascension to the bench helped ensure that the Supreme Court would remain Republican-dominated. His positions have been particularly bad for women’s rights, disability rights, immigration rights, citizenship rights, affirmative action, transgender rights for the military, etc…
Although he occasionally surprises by aligning with left-leaning justices, overall “He’s everything conservatives hoped for and liberals feared,” noted Erwin Chemerinsky, dean of UC Berkeley School of Law.
Also, questions about his ethics: Outside the courthouse, Gorsuch has seemed to be unusually cozy with the GOP lawmakers who orchestrated his appointment. He arrogantly gave a speech at the GOP clubhouse known as the “Trump International Hotel,” and appeared side-by-side with his Senatorial angel Mitch McConnell in Kentucky.
These overt displays have “erased any possibility that he is anything other than a partisan,” assessed Nan Aron, president of Alliance for Justice.
For good measure, Gorsuch also sold property to a lawyer who frequently appears before the court, in a seemingly-obvious conflict-of-interest.
BTW: Gorsuch is still only 56 years old. We may be in for another 30 years of his rulings. Courts matter.
Sources and further reading
From Time, “Neil Gorsuch is already acting like he’s been on the Supreme Court for years”
Reuters wrote about the criticism surrounding Judge Gorsuch’s Trump hotel speech
Trump nominates Neil Gorsuch | stunning power grab