Conservatives were effusive in their praise on Tuesday evening for President Donald Trump’s choice for the U.S. Supreme Court, Neil Gorsuch.
Faith & Freedom Coalition Chairman Ralph Reed said:
President Trump won 81 percent of the evangelical vote in no small measure because he made an ironclad pledge that if elected he would fill the vacancy on the US Supreme Court with a strict constructionist who would respect the Constitution and the rule of law, not legislate from the bench. We never doubted then-candidate Trump’s sincerity or commitment, and by nominating Judge Gorsuch, he has now kept that promise. Judge Gorsuch is a widely respected jurist whose razor-sharp intellect is complemented by his temperament and the knowledge of the law. He is exactly who the nation needs as a Supreme Court Justice in the model of the late Antonin Scalia. Faith & Freedom Coalition is thrilled by this nomination and will work tirelessly for the confirmation of Judge Gorsuch.
Michael A. Needham, CEO of Heritage Action for America, said:
Judge Neil Gorsuch is a nominee ‘very much in the mold’ of the late Justice Antonin Scalia. President Trump deserves credit for fulfilling his campaign pledge by nominating an individual who will, based on his record, interpret the text of the Constitution rather than create unwritten rights supposedly hidden between the lines. The usurpations of the rule of law, substituting for the will of the people as embodied in democratically enacted legislation rights nowhere to be found in our Constitution itself, only serves to divide our nation. Judge Gorsuch is an outstanding choice, and now the Senate must prepare to carry out its “Advise and Consent” role as it has for the past 227 years.
Tea Party Patriots President and co-founder Jenny Beth Martin said:
Tea Party Patriots and our network of supporters and grassroots activists across the country thank President Donald Trump for nominating Neil Gorsuch to be our next Supreme Court Justice. President Trump promised to nominate someone who is both exceptionally qualified and has a demonstrated record of interpreting the Constitution and our laws and by nominating Judge Gorsuch, he has kept his promises. Judge Gorsuch has a distinguished record that demonstrates he will be fair to all Americans, no matter their background or beliefs. Like Justice Scalia, he believes that judges should base their decisions on the actual text of the Constitution and our laws, not on personal policy preferences. During the campaign, President Trump took the unprecedented step of sharing a list of names from which he promised to choose a Supreme Court nominee. Exit polls showed that one in five voters named the Supreme Court as their top issue. President Trump has a clear mandate to choose our next Justice, and our network of grassroots activists will work very hard to ensure the Senate quickly moves to confirm Judge Gorsuch.
Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning said:
The election of 2016 was a referendum on who would get to select the next Supreme Court justice to replace the late Antonin Scalia. President Trump’s wise and thoughtful selection of Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court should be respected by the Senate, which has the constitutional responsibility to provide for a fair and expedited hearing process, and an up or down vote decided by a simple majority of the Senate. If Senate Majority Leader McConnell faces the sort of obstruction that has been promised by some in the minority, including the use of the filibuster, to block consideration of Gorsuch, it will be incumbent on him to use all means necessary to ensure that this qualified and outstanding jurist is confirmed.
It is time for the Senate minority to reconcile itself to the fact their party lost the election, and stop behaving like spoiled children who didn’t get a candy bar in the grocery store.
Republican National Committee (RNC) Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel said:
Neil Gorsuch is a mainstream conservative choice who fulfills President Trump’s promise to the American people to appoint a justice who represents their views. In this past presidential election, the American people gave their support to President Trump in large part because he vowed to appoint a justice in the mold of the great Justice Scalia. Neil Gorsuch’s sterling track record of faithfully interpreting the Constitution, protecting individual rights, and ensuring limited government is complemented by his discerning approach to every case and a high personal integrity. Democrats who plan on obstructing President Trump’s choice are only scheming to deprive the American people of their rightful voice on the nation’s highest court. Americans are clearly in support of this thoughtful and qualified choice, and it’s time for Democrats to honor the will of the people so the Supreme Court can once again have nine justices.
Public Interest Legal Foundation President and General Counsel J. Christian Adams said:
Former colleagues speak of Judge Gorsuch’s tested adherence to the honorable tradition of strict constructionism just like the late Justice Antonin Scalia before him. The Rule of Law is on firmer ground tonight, and we will have Judge Gorsuch to thank for that.
Former Senator and presidential candidate Rick Santorum said:
Judge Gorsuch has proven himself to be one of the great legal scholars of his generation. His rulings on the Circuit Court have shown that he understands our Founders’ intent and will rule with the strict constructionist legal mindset our nation needs. Justice Antonin Scalia was known for his robust legal rulings, and Judge Neil Gorsuch will surely follow in his footsteps.
Carl Anderson of the Knights of Columbus said:
We applaud the president’s nomination of Judge Neil Gorsuch to serve on the Supreme Court of the United States. From his writings and his record it is clear that he will interpret the Constitution as it was written, including our first Amendment right to religious freedom, and the right to life of every person. Judge Gorsuch was confirmed without opposition to the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals in 2006, and has received a “unanimously well qualified” rating from the American Bar Association. It is hard to imagine a better, and more qualified, candidate. The Senate should swiftly confirm Judge Gorsuch to the Supreme Court.
Former Ohio Secretary of State Ken Balckwell said:
President Trump hit a home run in his choice of Judge Gorsuch, an extremely well qualified and widely respected jurist with a deep commitment to upholding the Constitution and the vision of founders. President Trump took an unprecedented step during the campaign by sharing his list of potential nominees with the American public and the people responding by electing him president. With the nomination of Judge Gorsuch, the President has clearly delivered on his campaign commitment to appoint a Justice in the mold of Antonin Scalia who would be guided by the Constitution and not by their ideological or personal views.
Gorsuch has been nominated to fill the seat vacated last year by Justice Antonin Scalia, who passed away suddenly on vacation. Some Senate Democrats say they want to force Republicans to overcome the 60-vote filibuster threshold to confirm Judge Gorsuch.
Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News. He was named one of the “most influential” people in news media in 2016. His new book, How Trump Won: The Inside Story of a Revolution, is available from Regnery. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.