SUNY Oswego Professor weighs impact of Gorsuch appointment to U.S. Supreme Court
Photo courtesy of Whitehouse.gov
OSWEGO, NY — Vice President Mike Pence announced the official appointment of Neil Gorsuch as Supreme Court Justice Friday morning.
Gorsuch’s move from the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals has been met with resistance from Senate Democrats, which came in the form of a filibuster. Democrats are most worried about how Gorsuch will influence rulings on abortion, voting rights and Affirmative Action. Despite these concerns, SUNY Oswego political science professor Helen Knowles said Oswego County voters have put their priorities elsewhere.
“If you scratch the average person who voted for Trump, they didn’t vote based on who he would put on the Supreme Court,” said Knowles. “I think they voted mostly based upon their pocketbook and is he going to bring jobs back to the Rust Belt.”
Knowles said Gorsuch’s nomination will not have major effects on the Supreme Court’s decision making.
“At the end of the day, Justice Kennedy remains the swing vote on the court,” said Knowles. “I don’t think Gorsuch is any more likely to pull him to the conservative side in issues Kennedy feels more moderate about than Justice Scalia was.”
The appointment of Gorsuch swings the majority back to conservatives, 5-4.
