Schumer Says He'll Vote 'No' On Trump Supreme Court Pick Neil Gorsuch
WASHINGTON (CBSNewYork/AP) -- Several Democratic leaders have expressed that they would not be voting "no" on President Donald Trump's Supreme Court nominee after Judge Neil Gorsuch emerged unscathed from days of tough questioning at his confirmation hearing.
New York Sen. Charles Schumer said he would lead a filibuster against Gorsuch and that the judge "almost instinctively favors the powerful over the weak."
"After careful deliberation, I have concluded that I cannot support Judge Neil Gorsuch's nomination to the Supreme Court," Schumer tweeted. "Judge Gorsuch's nomination will face a cloture vote & as I've said, he will have to earn sixty votes for confirmation. My vote will be 'No.'"
Schumer said he doesn't think Gorsuch would serve as a check on Trump or be a mainstream justice. He blasted Gorsuch for refusing to answer "question after question after question" in hearings this week.
Press Secretary Sean Spicer said Thursday that he found Schumer's announcement "truly disappointing.
"Because it breaks with the tradition of how the Senate has handled the Supreme Court confirmation votes in modern time, and represents the type of partisanship that America has grown tired of," Spicer said.
Spicer then called on Schumer to "abandon this attempt to block Judge Gorsuch from receiving a fair up-or-down vote that he and the American people voted for."
Sen. Bernie Sanders, of Vermont, said Gorsuch has refused to answer legitimate questions and "brought the confirmation process to a new low in a thick fog of evasion."
"We cannot risk a Supreme Court that would put in jeopardy the privacy rights of all Americans and a woman's right to control her body," Sanders added.
We cannot risk a Supreme Court that would put in jeopardy the privacy rights of all Americans and a woman's right to control her body.
— Bernie Sanders (@SenSanders) March 23, 2017
But Sanders said in a press release Thursday that Americans deserve a justice who respects the rights of workers to be treated fairly instead of bowing to big business.
Pennsylvania Democratic Sen. Bob Casey said Gorsuch possesses a "rigid and restrictive judicial philosophy" and writes opinions to satisfy his conservative beliefs rather than "grapple with the complex circumstances faced by ordinary Americans."
"I do not believe Gorsuch's approach will ensure fairness for workers and families in PA," Casey tweeted.
I do not believe Gorsuch's approach will ensure fairness for workers and families in PA. https://t.co/UXmgkysyGu pic.twitter.com/unlOoSe3xn
— Senator Bob Casey (@SenBobCasey) March 23, 2017
Democrats remain livid that Republicans last year killed former President Barack Obama's nominee, Judge Merrick Garland, without a hearing.
Democrats Jeff Merkley of Oregon, Kirsten Gillibrand of New York, Sherrod Brown of Ohio, Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin, Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Ed Markey of Massachusetts have also declared their opposition.
On Thursday, the panel heard from the American Bar Association, which already gave Gorsuch a unanimous "well qualified" rating.
The American Bar Association's Nancy Scott Degan said the committee evaluating Supreme Court nominees doesn't give a well-qualified rating lightly. She says it's based on integrity, professional competence and temperament.
Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein is also noted that President Barack Obama's nominee to the court, Judge Merrick Garland, received the ABA's well-qualified rating, but didn't get a hearing. Republican Sen. Orrin Hatch of Utah says he agrees Garland is a wonderful person and well qualified.
The Gorsuch nomination appears headed for a filibuster showdown that could lead Republicans controlling the Senate to change the chamber's rules to confirm Gorsuch.
(© Copyright 2017 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)