Althouse: Justice Gorsuch.

April 7, 2017

Justice Gorsuch.

The Senate confirms.

82 comments:

readering said...: Still 2 weeks of hearings this term. Wonder if he gets an opinion of the Court to author from among them.; 4/7/17, 11:25 AM
mockturtle said...: Hip, hip, hooray! :-); 4/7/17, 11:25 AM
Mike (MJB Wolf) said...: Yay!; 4/7/17, 11:26 AM
Mike (MJB Wolf) said...: So he got some Dem votes and a greater proportion overall than Clarence Thomas. Nice.; 4/7/17, 11:31 AM
exiledonmainstreet, green-eyed devil said...: Good news! The news about Syria has overshadowed how badly the Democrats played this one.; 4/7/17, 11:32 AM
MayBee said...: Yay!!!; 4/7/17, 11:33 AM
Jake said...: Does he just get to walk over to the Court now and move in? What's the remaining process if any? How long before he's in his robe and participating?; 4/7/17, 11:37 AM
readering said...: He gets sworn in and gets to work.; 4/7/17, 11:42 AM
Francisco D said...: This was the easy one.

Although Democrats tried to payback Republicans for Merrick Garland, Judge Gorsuch seemed squeaky clean and was endorsed by some liberal academics. He was an easy sell.

Expect Anthony Kennedy to retire in the next year. That fight will be really nasty if POTUS Trump nominates a "conservative" who is less squishy than Kennedy. Prior and Sykes come to mind.

If Breyer or Ginsburg retire, it will be nuclear war.; 4/7/17, 11:42 AM
MikeR said...: Wow. Unbelievably badly played by the Democrats, presumably because of their base. Could be two more very conservative Justices as a result.
It's okay to be partisan, but you need to be _competent_ at it.; 4/7/17, 11:45 AM
MikeR said...: 'Expect Anthony Kennedy to retire in the next year. That fight will be really nasty if POTUS Trump nominates a "conservative" who is less squishy than Kennedy.' The Democrats have used up their only card: the reluctance of some Republicans to invoke the Nuclear Option. It was stupid, but it was real. Now they have nothing at all. Any nominee that can get 51 Republican votes cannot be stopped.; 4/7/17, 11:52 AM
eric said...: So now if one of the liberals leaves the court, or even two of them, what will the Dems do?

Please Lord give us 8 years of Trump and at least 2 more on SCOTUS.; 4/7/17, 11:55 AM
Yancey Ward said...: I just love this part of the NYTimes article:

"The confirmation saga did not help the reputation of the Supreme Court, either. The justices say politics plays no role in their work, but the public heard an unrelentingly different story over the last year, with politicians, pundits and well-financed outside groups insisting that a Democratic nominee would rule differently from a Republican one."

The public didn't hear a "story"- they heard the truth.; 4/7/17, 12:02 PM
Drago said...: "If Breyer or Ginsburg retire, it will be nuclear war."

It's already "nuclear" war, but the dems, fully consciously, brought a knife to a nuke war.

I don't blame Schumer. His base has become a lunatic fringe and what do you feed lunatics?

Lunacy.; 4/7/17, 12:05 PM
Drago said...: readering, I believe I read somewhere that Gorsuch will take his seat in about 11 days and that Roberts has "slow walked" several key cases where a 4-4 deadlock appeared imminent.

Gorsuch will make his presence felt in short order in cases that will have far-reaching effects.; 4/7/17, 12:07 PM
BarrySanders20 said...: "would rule differently . . ."

Interesting assumption about what judges do. Maybe there isn't much difference between issuing opinions, or "rulings," and the assumption that judges "rule."; 4/7/17, 12:09 PM
AlbertAnonymous said...: Democrats ended up looking like petulant children to all but the hard core left. Thanks. Keep doing what you're doing...

Next time it'll be judge Pryor and the dems heads will explode, but they wont be able to do anything about it.; 4/7/17, 12:09 PM
sparrow said...: Elections have consequences, glad this window of vulnerability is closing.; 4/7/17, 12:12 PM
Francisco D said...: Drago said: "It's already "nuclear" war"

You are right. I was surprisingly unaware of my ironic use of the term "nuclear."

What I was trying to convey is that Democrats and their MSM allies will go unbelievably apeshit if Trump gets to nominate a conservative to replace Breyer or Ginsburg.

There are plenty of lying sociopathic Anita Hill types out there. We will get to hear from all of them ... some represented by Gloria Allred in a lawsuit against the nominee.; 4/7/17, 12:18 PM
Anonymous said...: And that's why I voted for Trump. -- Jessica; 4/7/17, 12:25 PM
mccullough said...: Can't wait for Gorsuch to write an opinion overturning one of Garland's opinions.; 4/7/17, 12:26 PM
Yancey Ward said...: Gorsuch will be allowed to affect the cases where it was apparent there was a 4-4 split- all of those are likely to be the last opinions issued by the court when it finishes this year's term at the end of June. Roberts controls when opinions are released.; 4/7/17, 12:27 PM
Earnest Prole said...: A reminder of how profoundly our politics have changed in the past twenty-five years: Scalia was confirmed 98-0; Ginsburg 96-3.; 4/7/17, 12:33 PM
readering said...: Drago, you probably read the first hearing is in 11 days. I'm sure he'll participate in the next conference a week from today where they vote on new cases. Kagan to no longer answer knocks on the door.

Interesting to hear if he participates in the pooling of cert memos. Assume he has to at the start. All but Alito do. Don't know if tenth circuit has a memo pool and if so whether he participates. the pool has been criticized as a main factor in the decline in cases taken by the Court. Clerks believed to be timid in recommending cases as cert worthy to not just their own boss but 7 others.

Winter White House logistics may complicate issuance of commission and formal ceremony but I assume he can be sworn in privately sooner and then re-sworn for cameras.; 4/7/17, 12:35 PM
readering said...: Mccullough: Be patient. Per Scotusblog,The Supreme Court has not granted cert in any case in which Garland wrote the court of appeals' opinion.; 4/7/17, 12:39 PM
Greg Hlatky said...: Woo! On deck for the next seat: Roland Freisler!; 4/7/17, 12:51 PM
Francisco D said...: Greg Hlatky wrote: On deck for the next seat: Roland Freisler!"

Of course, a dead Nazi. That was very clever sonny.

Democrats are more likely to nominate socialists, as in members of the National Socialist German Workers Party.; 4/7/17, 1:08 PM
Trumpit said...: I object to the launching of Tomahawk cruise missiles unless they are aimed at Mitch McConnell's office. It is Merrick Garland's seat, and Gorsuch knows it. Neil has to show some moral training and backbone and announce that he is not a usurper and that he won't be a party to this scandalous heist of a Supreme Court seat by Trump and the Republican members of the Senate. May all the Republicans freeze to death when their breaks give out on the highway. You rent-seeking, corporate welfare cowards know what case I'm talking about.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rent-seeking

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corporate_welfare; 4/7/17, 1:11 PM
Swede said...: Did I just hear RBG sneeze?; 4/7/17, 1:11 PM
tcrosse said...: It is Merrick Garland's seat

Boo Hoo; 4/7/17, 1:14 PM
Qwinn said...: Trumpit:

Riiiiight, so if RBG dies/retires, you'll be the first in line to say the seat belongs to whoever Trump nominates first, rather than to liberals because it's "RBG's seat", right?

So much full of shitness here, it's astounding.; 4/7/17, 1:18 PM
Matt Sablan said...: "It is Merrick Garland's seat, and Gorsuch knows it."

-- Does anyone mourn about a seat being Bork's? What about the people that Dems prevented from getting confirmed to lower courts because they didn't want Republicans promoting minorities? Do they have a seat somewhere that people need to consider them?; 4/7/17, 1:19 PM
Matt Sablan said...: [Also: Garland not getting a vote is because Obama greatly mismanaged his relationship with Congress from the word go. What you saw is eight years of failed leadership culminating in the people he had abused (and literally spied on) finally saying, "You know what? Live by your own [Biden] rules for once." And the left did not like living by their own rules.]; 4/7/17, 1:22 PM
tcrosse said...: Maybe it would have been better if the Senate had considered Garland's appointment long enough to filibuster it. The Dems would not have had the votes for cloture, and the end result would have been the same.; 4/7/17, 1:25 PM
Todd said...: Now that this is out of the way, Trump should nominate another strong originalist, get them on the court and then do it again!

The "9 Supremes" is not in stone, lets up the volume to 11 and watch the fireworks!; 4/7/17, 1:26 PM
Mike Sylwester said...: I am beginning to think that Citizens United might not be overturned.

Furthermore, I am beginning to think that gun manufacturers will not be sued because their products have been used to commit crimes.; 4/7/17, 1:32 PM
Mike Sylwester said...: After Ronald Reagan won the 1980 election, there was a 12-year period of Republican Presidents, who appointed six justices to the Supreme Court.

History might repeat itself.; 4/7/17, 1:33 PM
Mike Sylwester said...: This is a bad day for so-called "Judge" James Robart.

From now on, all his bogus temporary restraining orders are doomed.; 4/7/17, 1:35 PM
Michelle Dulak Thomson said...: Kennedy and Ginsburg are unlikely to live out the next four years in office. The Court will end up looking very different, whether Trump lasts in office or not, because at the moment it's Republicans all the way down. How many candidates would you have to impeach to reach an actual Democrat?; 4/7/17, 1:37 PM
Trumpit said...: Wikipedia:

The Robert Bork Supreme Court nomination refers to the 1987 nomination by President Ronald Reagan of Judge Robert Bork to serve as an Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court. The U.S. Senate, with 54 Democrats, rejected his nomination, 42–58.[1]

Clarence Thomas, who is a well-known intellectual midget & sexual harasser in the workplace, was barely and shamefully confirmed by the Senate 52-48 without filibuster after he lied repeatedly to the senators during the Anita Hill affair (1991). He is a shameless disgrace on the court, and is ignored by the rest of the court.; 4/7/17, 1:38 PM
eric said...: Blogger Mike Sylwester said...
After Ronald Reagan won the 1980 election, there was a 12-year period of Republican Presidents, who appointed six justices to the Supreme Court.

History might repeat itself.

Let's choose better justices this time around.; 4/7/17, 1:44 PM
Qwinn said...: I see Trumpit is intent on annihilating whatever tiny bit of regret the rest of us might've been feeling about too much schadenfraude.

After reading him, I positively want to approach every liberal I see and scream "Suck it!" to their face. I won't because I'm not a liberal and I have the ability to control my feels. But GOD do they deserve it.; 4/7/17, 1:44 PM
Ignorance is Bliss said...: Trumpit said...

It is Merrick Garland's seat, and Gorsuch knows it.

Unlike liberal Supreme Court Justices, Gorsuch is able to read and comprehend the Constitution. As such, he knows that the seat does not belong to someone unless they get the consent of the Senate. Which he got. And Garland did not.; 4/7/17, 1:52 PM
Drago said...: Trumpit: "Clarence Thomas, who is a well-known intellectual midget.."

They told me if I voted for Trump the racists would be coming out of the woodwork.

And they were right!; 4/7/17, 1:53 PM
Drago said...: Trumpit: ".....stuff....More stuff....Even more stuff..."

And every word more unhinged, disconnected and unintentionally hilarious than the last.

Really, almost "lifelong republican" Chuck lunacy, but not quite there.

In fact, I would have to say that Trumpit is sort of the "Merrick Garland" of lunatics. He's pretty good at lunacy but, in the end, there was someone much better at it.

Alas.; 4/7/17, 1:57 PM
exiledonmainstreet, green-eyed devil said...: "May all the Republicans freeze to death when their breaks give out on the highway"

Gimme a brake.; 4/7/17, 2:03 PM
Francisco D said...: Drago said: "Really, almost "lifelong republican" Chuck lunacy, but not quite there."

I'm not so sure about that. They both seem pretty irrational.

Trumpit lives in a world where he makes shit up (like the NYT) and believes it is fact. Justice Thomas is awaiting your apology, Trumpit.

Chuck lives in a world where he is a life long Republican who defends Obama, hates Trump for being a vulgarian (no self-awareness there) and never found vote fraud in Detroit.; 4/7/17, 2:06 PM
exiledonmainstreet, green-eyed devil said...: "In fact, I would have to say that Trumpit is sort of the "Merrick Garland" of lunatics."

I'm sort of fascinated, if you want to know the truth. Trumpit sounds like Elizabeth Warren would after 7 drinks and a tab of acid.; 4/7/17, 2:12 PM
Mike Sylwester said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 4/7/17, 2:17 PM
Mike Sylwester said...: Another reason to rejoice today is that Justice Ginsburg ignored all the suggestions that she retire during the Obama Administration.

I would love to know how two people reacted to Trump's victory on Election Night.

1) Hillary Clinton

2) Ruth Ginsburg

Both of them must have become extremely drunk and thrown tantrums.; 4/7/17, 2:17 PM
I Callahan said...: Clarence Thomas, who is a well-known intellectual midget & sexual harasser in the workplace, was barely and shamefully confirmed by the Senate 52-48 without filibuster after he lied repeatedly to the senators during the Anita Hill affair (1991). He is a shameless disgrace on the court, and is ignored by the rest of the court.

Complete and utter nonsense from beginning to end. Thomas has more class and knowledge in his left pinky toenail than Trumpit X 10.

Trumpit is definitely beyond our resident lifelong Republican. Trumpit should never be anywhere near explosives or heavy machinery...; 4/7/17, 2:18 PM
Todd said...: I Callahan said...
Clarence Thomas, who is a well-known intellectual midget & sexual harasser in the workplace, was barely and shamefully confirmed by the Senate 52-48 without filibuster after he lied repeatedly to the senators during the Anita Hill affair (1991). He is a shameless disgrace on the court, and is ignored by the rest of the court.

Complete and utter nonsense from beginning to end. Thomas has more class and knowledge in his left pinky toenail than Trumpit X 10.

Trumpit is definitely beyond our resident lifelong Republican. Trumpit should never be anywhere near explosives or heavy machinery...

4/7/17, 2:18 PM

I like explosives and heavy machinery...

(said in the voice of the kid in this commercial); 4/7/17, 2:39 PM
HoodlumDoodlum said...: Thank you for voting for Trump, Chuck et al.; 4/7/17, 2:43 PM
Professional lady said...: This is why I voted for Trump.; 4/7/17, 2:46 PM
Drago said...: HoodlumDoodlum: "Thank you for voting for Trump, Chuck et al"

There is no evidence to support that.; 4/7/17, 2:56 PM
readering said...: I bet Gorsuch can't wait for his first day of hearings. Three cases up, one constitutional:

Perry v. Merit Systems Protection Board
Issue: Whether a Merit Systems Protection Board decision disposing of a “mixed” case (one which challenges certain adverse employment actions and also involves a claim under the federal anti-discrimination laws) on jurisdictional grounds is subject to judicial review in district court or in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.

Town of Chester v. Laroe Estates, Inc.
Issue: Whether intervenors participating in a lawsuit under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 24(a) must have Article III standing, or whether Article III of the Constitution is satisfied so long as there is a valid case or controversy between the named parties.

California Public Employees’ Retirement System v. ANZ Securities, Inc.
Issue: Whether the filing of a putative class action serves to satisfy the three-year time limitation in Section 13 of the Securities Act with respect to the claims of putative class members.; 4/7/17, 3:36 PM
Anonymous said...: My God, Trumpit! Such unabashed racism. Disgusting.; 4/7/17, 4:03 PM
heyboom said...: @Drago

All of the news reports I've heard about this confirmation is that Justice Gorsuch (yes!!!) will start on Monday.; 4/7/17, 4:20 PM
rcocean said...: Well, we dodged a bullet didn't we? No thanks, to national review, bill kristol, Mitt Romney and all the other #Nevertrump assholes who tried to elect Hillary.

Its only because of Trump that we got Goresuch, and we don't have to worry about Chief Justice Kagan an what crazy nonsense that court would've given us.

A constitutional right for open borders? The 2nd Amendment violates Civil Rights? Laws against Polygamy unconstitutional?

Who knows what crap a Left-wing court with 4 Left-wing Jews and a "Wise Latina" who'd given us.

Thank God for Trump.; 4/7/17, 4:33 PM
Achilles said...: Trumpit is a moby trying to make the left look bad. Don't fall for it.; 4/7/17, 4:39 PM
Swede said...: We need a wise Latino on the bench.

I eagerly await Justice Cruz replacing Ruth Buzzy Ginsburg.; 4/7/17, 5:15 PM
buwaya said...: "Laws against Polygamy unconstitutional?"

I support legalized polygamy.
In its place, it works, among peoples of those religions. As long as they aren't too many.
And, moreover, I see it as a conservative measure. It is ancient after all, and in its cultural context, respectable.

Consider this -
In a country of confused and hopelessly entangled cultural threads, the only hope for conservatism is to increase the confusion, whereby ones enemies cannot unite either.
Polygamy cannot be reconciled with feminism, and it cannot be opposed without rejecting multiculturalism, and both allies and enemies (Muslims and Mormons) will adopt it. A paradox, an indigestible mouthful.

I am not American however.; 4/7/17, 5:38 PM
Trumpit said...: "Who knows what crap a Left-wing court with 4 Left-wing Jews and a "Wise Latina" who'd given us." -rcocean

You would have fit right in as an SS guard at Auschwitz. You would have enjoyed pushing Jewish children, and old people into the gas chambers.

Someone has to call you hateful monsters out. I won't let you enjoy your grotesque life unscathed. You've crossed a red line, and deserve a Tomahawk to pay a visit on your crumbling infrastructure house.; 4/7/17, 5:48 PM
tcrosse said...: Twumpit thwow a tantwum.; 4/7/17, 5:56 PM
Bob Loblaw said...: Expect Anthony Kennedy to retire in the next year. That fight will be really nasty if POTUS Trump nominates a "conservative" who is less squishy than Kennedy. Prior and Sykes come to mind.

If Breyer or Ginsburg retire, it will be nuclear war.

That's what made the election so contentious. Since the court is making all the decisions these days, in the domestic sphere this is a president's most important and enduring power.

I'm not sure what Congress does any more.; 4/7/17, 6:20 PM
Bob Loblaw said...: You would have fit right in as an SS guard at Auschwitz. You would have enjoyed pushing Jewish children, and old people into the gas chambers.

So, basically you got nothing?; 4/7/17, 6:21 PM
Bob Loblaw said...: What I was trying to convey is that Democrats and their MSM allies will go unbelievably apeshit if Trump gets to nominate a conservative to replace Breyer or Ginsburg.

We're playing by progressive rules now - a will to power is all that matters and the penumbras will emanate accordingly. The "living constitution" is going to be living in a conservative direction and there's nothing they can do about it.; 4/7/17, 6:26 PM
Michael K said...: Trumpit;

"He is a shameless disgrace on the court, and is ignored by the rest of the court."

You are a shameless disgrace to this group and you are ignored by most of us. especially me.

You are sick and need help.; 4/7/17, 6:45 PM
Michael K said...: I still would like to see Janice Rogers Brown nominated for the next vacancy. I know she is 67 years old but she was robbed by Democrats filibuster because they did not want Bush to be able to nominate a black woman to the USSC.

I think Miguel Estrada has moved on and he would have been the first Latino nominated but for the Democrats' filibuster.; 4/7/17, 6:48 PM
Michael K said...: "You would have enjoyed pushing Jewish children, and old people into the gas chambers."

Ann, do you really want this crazy person fouling your blog ?; 4/7/17, 6:49 PM
rcocean said...: "You would have fit right in as an SS guard at Auschwitz. You would have enjoyed pushing Jewish children, and old people into the gas chambers."

Wow, that seems to be a bit of an overreaction. All I said is that Kagan,Breyer, Garland, Ginsberg, and "The Wise Latina" would've made a crazy SCOTUS of 4 left-wing Jews and a Sotomeyer.

Are Kagan, Garland, Breyer, and Ginsberg, NOT Left-wing Jewish?

The New York Times notices how many Women, Whites, Catholics, Blacks, and Protestants are on the SCOTUS. Am I supposed to NOT notice that Obama and Clinton nominated 4 Jews to the SCOTUS and one Hispanic? Is there something wrong with being Jewish?
I don't think so - but maybe you do.; 4/7/17, 7:26 PM
Anonymous said...: buwaya: I support legalized polygamy.
[...]
And, moreover, I see it as a conservative measure. It is ancient after all, and in its cultural context, respectable.

Polygamy isn't conservative in a Western context. It's radical, anti-traditional, anti-conservative.

Traditions and (real not Real) conservatism are always particular and parochial. There's no such thing as a universal "conservatism".

Polygamy cannot be reconciled with feminism, and it cannot be opposed without rejecting multiculturalism, and both allies and enemies (Muslims and Mormons) will adopt it. A paradox, an indigestible mouthful.

It won't be indigestible for the progs because in the end they won't be the ones doing the devouring and digesting.; 4/7/17, 7:49 PM
Mr. Majestyk said...: RBG will never leave the Court willingly while Trump is President. I somehow doubt Kennedy will retire soon either.; 4/7/17, 11:09 PM
Drago said...: Trumpit: "You would have fit right in as an SS guard at Auschwitz. You would have enjoyed pushing Jewish children, and old people into the gas chambers."

We know the lefts beloved islamists feel that way. We know that because they say so. Remember, Free Palestine From the River to the Sea (and without those pesky jews!)

The lefties love them some campus islamist radicals, don't they?

Trumpit: "Someone has to call you hateful monsters out. I won't let you enjoy your grotesque life unscathed. You've crossed a red line, and deserve a Tomahawk to pay a visit on your crumbling infrastructure house."

Whoa there tiger! "Red" line? Tomahawk? Crumbling Infrastructure? Are you alluding to Elizabeth Warren?

I understand she is a potential "heap big" candidate for the dems in 2020.; 4/7/17, 11:12 PM
Drago said...: Mr. Majestyk: "RBG will never leave the Court willingly while Trump is President. I somehow doubt Kennedy will retire soon either"

There have been far too many reports from folks who should know that Kennedy is giving retirement serious consideration.

However, I'd think he would really enjoy serving on a court with with his former clerk Gorsuch.

Of course, according to Trumpit, Gorsuch is some sort of (insert random senior Nazi Party Member Name here), so maybe that isn't true.; 4/7/17, 11:15 PM
Bay Area Guy said...: Justice Gorsuch is an honorable man and a great jurist. This is a win for Trump, a win for Conservatives, and, most importantly, a win for the country. I'm happy.

This validates a vote for Trump in 2016, and moves many folks towards a vote for Trump in 2020.; 4/7/17, 11:17 PM
JAORE said...: Trumpit:

" Neil has to.."

No he doesn't. He really doesn't.; 4/7/17, 11:30 PM
Mr. Majestyk said...: I had not heard about reports that Kennedy was seriously considering retirement. But if those reports are true, I believe that Trump will give us another good nominee. Maybe Trump picking Gorsuch, a former Kennedy clerk, has given Kennedy some comfort that Trump will pick wisely and has made Kennedy feel better about giving up his seat.

By the way, Drago, I love reading your comments. In particular, our "notes to self" a few days ago regarding your "patient" (Chuck) were hilarious.; 4/8/17, 12:22 AM
Mr. Majestyk said...: That should be: "your" notes to self; 4/8/17, 12:24 AM
Rosa Marie Yoder said...: Blogger Mr. Majestyk said..
By the way, Drago, I love reading your comments. In particular, our "notes to self" a few days ago regarding your "patient" (Chuck) were hilarious.

I second that emotion!; 4/8/17, 5:59 AM
cubanbob said...: Not mentioned but highly important in terms of Administrative law is Trump's appointment for
Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) in the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).; 4/8/17, 9:53 AM
Rusty said...: Blogger Trumpit said...
"Who knows what crap a Left-wing court with 4 Left-wing Jews and a "Wise Latina" who'd given us." -rcocean

"You would have fit right in as an SS guard at Auschwitz. You would have enjoyed pushing Jewish children, and old people into the gas chambers.

Someone has to call you hateful monsters out. I won't let you enjoy your grotesque life unscathed. You've crossed a red line, and deserve a Tomahawk to pay a visit on your crumbling infrastructure house."

How the fuck old are you? Twelve?
Christ in a fucking sidecar. Grow the fuck up.; 4/8/17, 10:02 AM