Gorsuch: Republican nominee is highly qualified for Supreme Court seat

President Trump's nominee for the Supreme Court, Neil Gorsuch, has proven himself to be a superior candidate, one that would uphold an independent-minded court -- something the country needs -- and he deserves confirmation from the Senate.

Democrats are fighting against Gorsuch, saying the Colorado appellate court judge is too conservative. But most of their opposition is politically charged. They are still angry over Republicans' refusal to consider President Obama's nominee for the same post and would oppose most any candidate offered up by Trump.

But the thing to remember is that the vacant seat was held by a conservative -- the late Antonin Scalia -- and to appoint another conservative would keep the court balanced. Democrats don't like bringing that up.

What Democrats really fear is the fact that Trump could well wind up replacing a liberal justice with a conservative one and tip the balance on the court in favor of the conservatives. Several of the liberal minded justices are at least 80 years old or nearing it.

Published in Editorials on March 31, 2017 9:36 AM