NEW YORK – On April 6, the Senate refused to invoke cloture on President Trump’s Supreme Court nominee, Neil Gorsuch. Emma Greenman, Director of Voting Rights & Democracy at the Center for Popular Democracy released the following statement:

“Americans understand what is at stake if Judge Neil Gorsuch is confirmed to the Supreme Court. His record of siding with corporations and wealthy donors over everyday people and voters has galvanized hundreds of thousands of people across the country to demand that their Senators uphold their responsibility to protect our democracy and reject a nominee who has repeatedly ruled against the interests of working people. Heeding these calls, almost every Democratic Senator stood up to oppose moving Gorsuch’s confirmation forward.

Today, Gorsuch failed to win the support needed for his confirmation. The 200 year old Senate rule that Supreme Court nominees must pass a 60 vote threshold to move forward allows the Senate to check and balance the power of the President, and ensures the Supreme Court nominee is independent of a president’s partisan interests and the interests of a single political party.

The Center for Popular Democracy supports the Senators who are standing firm on the side of workers, consumers, voters, marginalized communities, and everyday people who have the most to lose if Gorsuch is elevated to the Supreme Court. In this tumultuous moment, the Supreme Court is the last line of defense to protect the rights of all Americans in our democracy.

The next justice must be one who will ensure that every American’s vote will be counted and everyone’s voice will be heard, not just those with big checkbooks. Gorsuch could not garner the necessary support to move forward in the Senate because his record of favoring the wealthy and powerful at the expense of the rest of us indicates he is not the justice our country needs.

If a nominee to our highest court cannot get the required 60 votes in the Senate, it is time to change the nominee, not the Senate rules.”

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www.populardemocracy.org

The Center for Popular Democracy promotes equity, opportunity, and a dynamic democracy in partnership with innovative base-building organizations, organizing networks and alliances, and progressive unions across the country. CPD builds the strength and capacity of democratic organizations to envision and advance a pro-worker, pro-immigrant, racial justice agenda.