If Democrats do obstruct new Supreme Court nominee Judge Neil Gorsuch GOP senators should trigger the nuclear option to push him through, President Trump said Wednesday.
He said the decision remains with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, but said he wants to see his pick on the bench.
“If we end up with that gridlock, I would say, ’If you can, Mitch, go nuclear.’ Because that would would be an absolute shame if a man of this quality was put up to that neglect,” Mr. Trump said. “I would say it’s up to Mitch, but I would say, ’Go for it.’”
Democrats have already said they’ll attempt to filibuster Judge Gorsuch. But it’s unclear whether they’ll be able to earn the votes needed to sustain the filibuster and force the constitutional showdown.
Only one Supreme Court nominee has ever faced a partisan filibuster attempt. Democrats tried to derail Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. in 2006, but fell short, and he was confirmed.
Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer said Wednesday that Judge Gorsuch will become the second.
“This administration, at least at its outset, seems to have less respect for the rule of law, than any in recent memory,” Mr. Schumer said. “There’s a special burden on this nominee to be an independent jurist.”
The New York Democrat has long dismissed the argument that judges should evaluated based on their legal credentials rather than on their judicial philosophy. Mr. Schumer has been unabashed in saying his goal is to force an ideological shift, and said the Gorsuch nomination will be a major test of that.
• Stephen Dinan can be reached at sdinan@washingtontimes.com.
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