Neil Gorsuch Faces Third Day Before Congress

CNN/Stylemagazine.com Newswire | 3/22/2017, 8:41 a.m.
Neil Gorsuch sits down Wednesday for his third day of confirmation hearings before the Senate Judiciary Committee, following an 11-hour …
Supreme Court nominee Neil Gorsuch

By Ashley Killough and Ariane de Vogue

CNN

(CNN) -- Neil Gorsuch sits down Wednesday for his third day of confirmation hearings before the Senate Judiciary Committee, following an 11-hour marathon session the day before.

On Tuesday, Gorsuch faced questions on a range of issues, from his previous rulings to abortion to the President's attacks on the judiciary.

Gorsuch tried refraining from directly commenting on cases and controversies in an effort to showcase his judicial independence.

"I'd like to convey to you, from the bottom of my heart -- is that I am a fair judge," he said.

Senators will again get the chance to ask Gorsuch questions, but Wednesday's hearing is not expected to last as long as Tuesday's. Each senator will only get 20 minutes to ask him questions.

Republicans on the committee appeared content with Gorsuch's answers, and fireworks rarely broke out between Democrats and the judge. He largely kept his composure throughout the day, navigating carefully structured questions so as not to hint how he would rule in future cases.

On the campaign trail, Trump said he would appoint a judge who would overturn Roe v. Wade, but Gorsuch said he was never asked during the selection process to make promises on certain decisions.

Pressed further on what he would have done if Trump had asked him to do so, Gorsuch said he "would have walked out the door."

"That's not what judges do," he continued. "They don't do it at that end of Pennsylvania Avenue and they shouldn't do it at this end either."

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