Senate

Grassley: Gorsuch will fall short of 60 votes

by Jordain Carney - 03/30/17 5:41 PM ET

Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) predicted on Thursday that Supreme Court nominee Neil Gorsuch will fall short of the 60 votes needed to overcome a Democratic filibuster.

Asked how he was feeling about Gorsuch’s nomination ahead of next week’s vote, the Judiciary Committee chairman told reporters that President Trump’s pick “gets 57 or 58 votes.”

Asked if his estimation was based on conversations with Democrats, Grassley replied, “No, but other people have, and I’ve heard what over people say. But it’s kind of a gut feeling that’s based on the proposition that some people up for reelection cannot justify such a well-qualified person not getting on the Supreme Court.”

{mosads}Gorsuch will need 60 votes, including the support of at least eight Democratic senators, to overcome an initial procedural hurdle for his nomination. Republicans have signaled they are willing to go “nuclear” and change the Senate rules if Democrats block his nomination.

Grassley’s comments come as Sen. Joe Manchin (W.Va.) and Heidi Heitkamp (N.D.) became the first two Democratic senators to announce that they will support Gorsuch.

The two are among a group of 10 Democratic senators up for reelection in 2018 in states won by Trump who are facing a mountain of pressure from both sides in the Supreme Court fight.

Red-state Democratic Sens. Claire McCaskill (Mo.), Joe Donnelly (Ind.) and Jon Tester (Mont.), who are also up for reelection next year, are thus far undecided on Gorsuch’s nomination.

Sen. Michael Bennet (D-Colo.) is also under pressure because of his home-state connections to the appeals court judge.

Grassley’s committee is scheduled to vote on Gorsuch’s nomination on Monday with a full Senate vote expected on Friday.

Tags Chuck Grassley Claire McCaskill Heidi Heitkamp Joe Donnelly Joe Manchin Jon Tester Michael Bennet