Neil Gorsuch, the federal judge President Donald Trump nominated to the US Supreme Court on Tuesday, once criticized lawmakers for “grossly mistreating” judicial nominees.
Gorsuch wrote an article in 2002 reflecting on Justice Byron White, a John F. Kennedy appointee who died in April that year after serving for 31 years on the Supreme Court bench.
Gorsuch’s article praised White and slammed lawmakers for delaying the confirmations of Merrick Garland and John Roberts, who were both appointed to the US Court of Appeals in Washington — Garland in 1995 and Roberts in 2001.
“Both are widely considered to be among the finest lawyers of their generation,” Gorsuch wrote, “Garland was left waiting for 18 months before being confirmed … Roberts, nominated almost a year ago, still waits for a hearing,” the 2002 article read.
Notably, Gorsuch now faces his own confirmation process as Trump’s Supreme Court pick, less than a year after former President Barack Obama nominated Judge Merrick Garland for the same post.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell vowed not to hold any hearings on Garland, putting Garland in the same limbo for which Gorsuch criticized lawmakers 15 years ago.
In a statement following Gorsuch’s nomination Tuesday, McConnell, who led the blockade against Garland, praised Trump’s decision and called for Gorsuch to receive “fair consideration.”
