NOT LIKING GORSUCH

Lucas, we have a nominee. Popular vote loser Donald Trump has named Judge Neil Gorsuch from the Denver-based 10th Circuit Court of Appeals, as his choice to replace Justice Antonin Scalia on the Supreme Court.

This will be a tough fight. Republicans chose a candidate cut from the same cloth as Chief Justice John Roberts—ideologically aligned with ultra conservative, Koch-funded Federalist Society and Heritage Foundation but looks and sounds great on camera. During his tenure, the Chief Justice has gone on to gut the 1965 Voting Rights Act, given religious extremists the right to discriminate, and sided with corporations over working people.

Like Roberts, Gorsuch has all the tools necessary to market right-wing ideology as mainstream values. What's more, at the age of 49, he could sit on the high court for decades, extending Donald Trump's horrendous legacy into the lives of our grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

Call Senator Kirsten E. Gillibrand at (202) 224-4451 and Senator Charles E. Schumer at (202) 224-6542. Tell them to publicly oppose and filibuster Judge Neil Gorsuch's confirmation to the Supreme Court.

Sample script:

Hi, I'm (say your name) from (say from where you're calling). I am one of the many grassroots activists that stands opposed to Donald Trump's spiteful, mean-spirited agenda. I am deeply concerned about Trump's nominee for Supreme Court. Democrats cannot allow him to shape this country's policy for the next few decades. Can I count on you to publicly oppose and filibuster Neil Gorsuch?

Once you've placed the call, please click here to tell us how it went.

Can't call? Send a personalized letter to your Senate Democrat(s): Do not allow Republicans to hijack a Supreme Court seat and subject the country to decades of extremist right wing ideology. Filibuster Judge Neil Gorsuch. In order to receive maximum impact, the form letter is blank. Your letter is more likely to be read if it is unique. Talking points and further direction are provided.

Consider these highlights from Gorsuch's record:

He was one of the 10th Circuit judges who ruled in favor of Hobby Lobby against the Obama administration—exempting the company from federal requirements to provide employees with insurance plans that included free contraceptive coverage because it violated their religious liberty. Religious liberty is exactly where the battles for LGBTQ rights and freedoms will be fought in years to come. As states across the country continue to pass anti-equality legislation, we can expect for the Supreme Court to rule and set precedent legalizing discrimination based on religious beliefs. Important note: While LGBTQ communities are already targeted, we should expect any protected class and other marginalized communities to be impacted by Supreme Court rulings.

Gorsuch has not written an opinion on Roe v. Wade. However, he has stated that he does not like seeing the courts used to decide social policy and instead believes it should be left up to the voters. In an article titled "Liberals'n'Lawsuits" posted to the conservative National Review, he writes,

"American liberals have become addicted to the courtroom, relying on judges and lawyers rather than elected leaders and the ballot box, as the primary means of effecting their social agenda on everything from gay marriage to assisted suicide to the use of vouchers for private-school education."

The majority should never have the ability to vote on the rights of the minority. Indeed, without the power of the courts we would not have integrated schools, Miranda rights, the right to choose, marriage equality or any number of other critical victories that have expanded and clarified civil rights. His opposition to litigating social policy suggests someone open to undoing precedent like Roe v. Wade or Griswold v. Connecticut, allowing instead for individual states to vote on a woman's reproductive care.

What's more, in his book, The Future of Assisted Suicide and Euthanasia, he argues that there is no "consitutional basis" for putting the life of a child ahead of the mother’s. He writes,

"In Roe, the Court explained that, had it found the fetus to be a “person” for purposes of the Fourteenth Amendment, it could not have created a right to abortion because no constitutional basis exists for preferring the mother’s liberty interests over the child’s life."

Gorsuch has been hailed as the natural successor to Scalia's seat: He is an ardent textualist, who tries to interpret the law as the Framers would have, leaving little room for context, history or circumstance. Considering the Founding Father's did not endure the modern realities of the Internet, climate change and global citizenship, it is concerning that we would only consider their limited viewpoint and experience over that of current truths.

Gorsuch has been noted as a leading spokesperson for impeding “progressive labor and environmental regulations.” As a regular speaker for the Federalist Society, Gorsuch voiced opposition to the Supreme Court's adherence to the Chevron doctrine, under which courts are supposed to defer to federal agencies when it comes to interpreting vague or ambiguous laws defining their responsibilities. In a 2016 opinion, he claimed that Chevron is “more than a little difficult to square with the Constitution of the framers’ design.”

Call Senator Kirsten E. Gillibrand at (202) 224-4451 and Senator Charles E. Schumer at (202) 224-6542. Tell them to publicly oppose and filibuster Judge Neil Gorsuch's confirmation to the Supreme Court.

Sample script:

Once you've placed the call, please click here to tell us how it went.

Can't call? Send a personalized letter to your Senate Democrat(s): Filibuster Judge Neil Gorsuch.

The best option for defeating a Trump's nominee is to mount a filibuster, which would require 60 votes to break (Republicans only hold 52 seats). Earlier this week, Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR) announced that he will filibuster Trump's nominee. After Gorsuch was announced as the nominee, Sens. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Ron Wyden (D-OR), Ed Markey (D-MA), and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) released strong statements in opposition to Gorsuch's confirmation. Opposing his nomination is good, filibustering his confirmation is better. We must keep pushing until Republicans have no path to 60 votes.

The world is changing at an increasingly accelerated pace. Conservative ideology doesn't make space for interpreting the Constitution with a real world application. We need a justice committed to upholding the Constitution's promise of equality and protection for all people and one who is able to address the issues of the day without the glare of extremist ideology. We cannot allow Trump's politics of hate to sully the promise of the U.S. Constitution. There is simply too much on the line.

Lest we forget, this is a stolen seat. Antonin Scalia died almost a year ago and Republicans refused to grant Merrick Garland—an accomplished and well-respected jurist—a fair hearing. Instead, they subverted the Constitution to appoint a justice who would push their extremist, anti-choice, anti-worker, anti-environment agenda. The ONLY name Senate Democrats should accept as Trump's Supreme Court pick is Merrick Garland.

Call Senator Kirsten E. Gillibrand at (202) 224-4451 and Senator Charles E. Schumer at (202) 224-6542. Tell them to publicly oppose and filibuster Judge Neil Gorsuch's confirmation to the Supreme Court.

Sample script: