Congressional Democrats are angry. And they may be rightfully so.
Trump hadmade it a primary campaign issue in 2016to get rid of the federally protected right to abortion, and he was only three months into his presidency when he announced his first nominee.
In Gorsuch’s confirmation hearings, Democratic senators grilled the former U.S. Court of Appeals judge about his official stance on abortion and the precedent thatRoeestablished. Gorsuch seemingly agreed with Democrats thatRoewas in fact settled case law.
Fast forward a little less than a year and a half toJustice Brett Kavanaugh’s confirmation hearings, where he uttered the same sentiments aboutRoe v. Wadeas his now colleague, saying, “It is important precedent of the Supreme Court that has been reaffirmed many times.”
Kavanaugh went even further and referred toPlanned Parenthood v. Casey, the case that reconsidered and reaffirmedRoein 1992, as “precedent on precedent.”
Rep.Alexandria Ocasio-Cortezof New York, along with Rep.Ted Lieuof California, have formally asked the Senate to determine whether Justices Gorsuch and Kavanaugh lied under oath to the Senate Judiciary Committee during their respective confirmation hearings.
The letter, sent to Senate Majority LeaderChuck Schumer, alleges that both Gorsuch and Kavanaugh “misled the American people during their confirmation hearings about their views onRoe v. WadeandCasey v. Planned Parenthood,” and specifically accused both of directly lying to senators.
Justice Amy Coney Barrett, Trump’s third Supreme Court nominee, was not mentioned in the letter.
“We respect the right of individual Justices to have their own views on various constitutional issues,” Ocasio-Cortez and Lieu added. “But we cannot have a system where Justices lie about their views in order to get confirmed. That makes a mockery of the confirmation power, and of the separation of powers.”
The House members are hoping for the Democratic-led Senate to ultimately conclude that Gorsuch and Kavanaugh did lie to the Senate and give them written firepower to go after the justices. What would happen next is unclear, though.
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Congressional Democrats may also want the Senate to confirm their allegations simply to damage Americans' trust in Republicans ahead of the November midterms. Abortion is a contentious topic throughout the country and will certainly impact countless federal and state elections this year.
source: people.com
