On the recordFebruary 2, 2017
Madam President, I rise today to discuss President Trump's Supreme Court nominee, Judge Neil M. Gorsuch. As you know, the vacancy exists because last year Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia died suddenly at the age of 79, leaving an unexpected vacancy on our Nation's highest Court. As I said at the time of his passing, replacing Justice Scalia, one of the Court's strongest defenders of our Constitution, would be extremely difficult. For nearly three decades, with his brilliant legal mind and animated character, Justice Scalia fiercely fought against judicial activism and legislating from the bench. To say our next Justice has big shoes to fill would be an incredible understatement. That is why the decision was made early on by Leader McConnell and others to give the American people a voice in this process, by waiting to confirm the next Justice until the 45th President was in office and able to nominate someone him or herself. We held that belief, even when it looked like our party would not win the Presidency. As we have been reminded before, elections have consequences. The American people chose to elect President Trump, who throughout his campaign said that he would nominate someone in the mold of the late Justice Scalia. With his pick of Judge Gorsuch, President Trump made an excellent choice in fulfilling that promise.…





