- I was an acting solicitor general for President Barack Obama; Judge Gorsuch has strong conservative bona fides and was appointed to the 10th Circuit by President George W. Bush. But I have seen him up close and in action, both in court and on the Federal Appellate Rules Committee (where both of us serve); he brings a sense of fairness and decency to the job, and a temperament that suits the nation’s highest court.
To whom? Democrats' biggest problem is getting people who would never vote Republican to bother voting for them, not getting people on the fence to vote for them, as there are far fewer fence-sitters today than when Bill Clinton started triangulating. I don't think being more pugilistic would hurt, and might even help with those precious idealists who won't vote unless they're inspired.
I could see how it could spark some more enthusiasm to support the Democrats. I'm almost certain there will be a filibuster for this nomination, and the Republicans will make a HUGE deal out of it, like with the cabinet nominations. Hell, Republicans in the Senate literally changed the Senate rules to confirm Trump's cabinet positions during a Democrat boycott. The Republicans will definitely try to play any obstruction as horribly as they can to the public, but it seems to be the only real means of retaining any power. This is just a mess.
Yeah, but the reason the democrats can't filibuster jags like Sessions is because Harry Reid changed the confirmation rules for cabinet secretaries in 2013. Was a bad idea then, and continues to be a bad idea now. The GOP was filibustering almost 100% of stuff at that time, so you could say what choice did he have, but that's a cliff you don't want to fall off of.
well, I mean, looks like Trump is going the "religious freedom" route next (read anti-LGBT, anti-reproductive rights), and Gorsuch did side with Hobby Lobby so I'm not convinced.