On the recordMarch 15, 2017
I rise today to once again address the nomination of Judge Neil M. Gorsuch to be the next Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. I am extraordinarily pleased that the President has nominated such an outstanding individual to fill the seat that was held by my friend, the late Justice Antonin Scalia, for nearly three decades. In the weeks since Judge Gorsuch's nomination, I have done my best to make the case that he is exactly the kind of Justice that we need: one that will--in the timeless words of Marbury v. Madison--say what the law is, not what he wishes the law would be. In my view, his outstanding credentials and his understanding of the proper role of a judge under our Constitution make him a choice that should command universal support. Unfortunately, this feeling does not appear to be as broadly shared as it should be. Leftwing activists are demanding a scorched-earth approach to Judge Gorsuch's nomination, and I am afraid that some of my colleagues on the other side of the aisle appear to have been swept up in this fervor. Their opposition stems from two different sources and has taken two different forms. The first cause is the visceral reaction among some to our new President. After last year's bitterly fought election campaign, many on the left simply refuse to accept the legitimacy of the new administration and are dead set on all-out opposition to every initiative, every policy, and every nominee of this President.…
