Following a contentious day on the Senate floor Thursday, Neil Gorsuch was officially confirmed to the United States Supreme Court early Friday afternoon in a 54-45 vote.
The vote to confirm Gorsuch comes after Senate Republicans deployed the so-called “nuclear option” Thursday, which the rules to allow Supreme Court nominees to be confirmed by a simple majority, rather than the 60 votes that were previously required. The move inspired an outcry from Senate Democrats, who complained the new rules were unfair (while apparently forgetting their own party went nuclear back in 2013 to confirm then-President Obama’s cabinet nominees).
Democrats had been filibustering Gorsuch’s nomination for several days before the GOP voted to change the confirmation rules.
Sen. Chuck Schumer, who vowed to vote against Gorsuch despite having voted to confirm him as a federal judge back in 2006, claimed changing the rules on Senate confirmation votes ignored the minority opinion.
“The nuclear option means the end of a long history of consensus on Supreme Court nominations,” Schumer alleged Thursday. “It weakens the standing of the Senate as a whole as a check on the president's ability to shape the judiciary. In a post-nuclear world, if the Senate and the presidency are in the hands of the same party, there is no incentive to even speak to the Senate minority.”
Probably should have thought about that four years ago, Chuck.
Three Democrats voted to confirm Gorsuch Thursday, including Sen. Joe Donnelly (Ind.), Sen. Heidi Heitkamp (N.D.), and Sen. Joe Manchin (W. Va.)
Gorsuch will fill the Supreme Court's ninth judicial seat, which has been vacant since the sudden death of former Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia in February of last year.