Civil and Human Rights Coalition Urges Senate to Reject Judge Gorsuch

WASHINGTON—Wade Henderson, president and CEO of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, issued the following statement following the Senate Judiciary Committee’s vote on the nomination of Judge Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court of the United States:

“Today’s party-line vote by the Senate Judiciary Committee is disappointing, but not surprising.  However, we remain confident that Judge Gorsuch will not meet the 60-vote threshold that nominees to the Supreme Court must meet. If Judge Gorsuch is unable to meet the threshold that the last six justices have met, the nominee, not the rules, must be changed.

Judge Gorsuch’s decade-long record on the federal bench; his writings, speeches, and activities throughout his career; and his hearing testimony demonstrate that he is a judge with an agenda, who will fail to serve as an independent check on our out-of-control executive branch. Throughout his career, Judge Gorsuch has consistently ruled in favor of corporations and employers at the expense of workers, women, discrimination victims, and children with disabilities. We can expect more of the same if he assumes the bench—namely, rulings against the interests of everyday Americans.

Today’s vote follows recent reports that Judge Gorsuch failed to honor requests for meetings by some senators. Individual meetings with senators are a longstanding and venerable tradition, and a critical element of the Constitution’s “advice and consent” function.  When coupled with his refusal to answer basic questions, even those answered by previous nominees, Judge Gorsuch perfected the art of ducking, dodging, and dissembling and failed to give the American people and the Senate a full picture of his record and views.

Senators must ask themselves if Judge Gorsuch will serve as the independent check that we need. They must ask themselves if he has adequately answered the questions posed to him. And they must ask themselves if he will be a fair and impartial justice, or whether he’ll put his thumb on the scale for the wealthy and the powerful. On all these points, the record is clear – Judge Gorsuch is unfit to serve on the Supreme Court. We urge the Senate to reject his nomination.”

Wade Henderson is president and CEO of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, a coalition charged by its diverse membership of more than 200 national organizations to promote and protect the rights of all persons in the United States. The Leadership Conference works toward an America as good as its ideals. For more information on The Leadership Conference and its 200-plus member organizations, visit www.civilrights.org.