Donald Trump, who lost the popular vote by 2,864,974 votes, wants to put Colorado judge Neil Gorsuch on the Supreme Court. I keep seeing headlines that are like "OMG do we even know he's bad on abortion, who can say?"
Well! I think his record on reproductive rights—and imposing religion on government—says quite a lot on its own. Here are some things we know about Colorado judge Neil Gorsuch:
• He has sided with religious organizations that didn't want to comply with the Affordable Care Act's birth control coverage mandate. Remember the Hobby Lobby case? Yeah, so Gorsuch apparently thinks that your boss' discomfort with sex is more important than your ability to have your healthcare covered without undue interference from your employer. Holy shit! That's a legitimately crazy idea, and a classic case of government-approved gaslighting—you know, the old "you aren't allowing me to discriminate against women, but what about not discriminating against me and my desire to discriminate against women?" Behold: the amazing MC Escher-like elliptical logic of conservative fragility.
• He has come out against physician-assisted suicide. That's bad enough on its own, but the religious right tends to use similar messaging against both physician-assisted suicide and abortion. A firm opposition to one doesn't guarantee opposition to the other, but it does suggest it.
• And finally, the piece de résistance that explains where all this garbage is coming from: Gorsuch is one of those 10 Commandments go everywhere! people, which I can't. I just have too much respect for the American value of the separation of church and state. Sorry. Essentially, it seems Gorsuch's got a pattern of imposing religion on governing. Yeah, not someone worthy of sharing a bench with my beloved Notorious RBG.
What a pity that when the "president" said he wanted to only nominate judges who don't support abortion rights, he actually meant it. Here's hoping Senate Dems grow enough of a collective spine to release the filibuster, as Oregon Senator Jeff Merkley has suggested. Because, come on, it's the left's turn to be obstructionist pests. Let's not squander it.
