--- title: Supreme Court Showdown After Democrats Get Filibuster Votes description: Democrats now have the votes they need to filibuster Neil Gorsuch's nomination to the Supreme Court, prompting a showdown with Republicans canonical: https://time.com/4723223/democrats-filibuster-neil-gorsuch-supreme-court/ author: Tessa Berenson article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-04-03T17:23:51.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-08T08:26:52.636Z article:section: Politics og:title: Democrats Secure Enough Votes to Filibuster Neil Gorsuch’s Vote. Now What? og:description: Republicans could change the rules og:url: https://time.com/4723223/democrats-filibuster-neil-gorsuch-supreme-court/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt27cebc54eecd9e10/6988bf57196cf4705a03f545/gettyimages-656106460.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 3000 og:image:height: 1688 og:image:alt: Senate Holds Confirmation Hearing For Supreme Court Nominee Neil Gorsuch og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Democrats Secure Enough Votes to Filibuster Neil Gorsuch’s Vote. Now What? twitter:description: Republicans could change the rules twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt27cebc54eecd9e10/6988bf57196cf4705a03f545/gettyimages-656106460.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Democrats Can Filibuster Neil Gorsuch’s Vote. Will Republicans Trigger the ‘Nuclear Option?’ > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: September 2026. ## TIME D.C. Brief: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition D.C. Brief is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. Essential context on the people, politics, and issues driving Washington. D.C. Brief goes beyond the Washington headlines to explain the politics, personalities and power dynamics shaping what happens next. Senior correspondent Philip Elliott brings sharp context to the issues driving the capital, connecting the decisions made in Washington to the institutions, industries and people they affect. 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It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, twice a week. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/newsletters?i=d60608e3-8de6-4e7b-8b73-018049f870e2&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1) ## Video: Chuck Schumer Announces He Will Oppose Gorsuch Nomination [Watch (HLS stream): Chuck Schumer Announces He Will Oppose Gorsuch Nomination](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/IWjKvMQE.m3u8) (1:36)  _Published 2017-03-23. Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer announced Thursday that he will oppose President Trump's nominee on a cloture vote, prepping the way for a potential filibuster._  by [Tessa Berenson](https://time.com/author/tessa-berenson/)  ## Tessa Berenson Apr 3, 2017 5:23 PM UTC Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer announced Thursday that he will oppose President Trump's nominee on a cloture vote, prepping the way for a potential filibuster.  by [Tessa Berenson](https://time.com/author/tessa-berenson/)  ## Tessa Berenson Apr 3, 2017 5:23 PM UTC Democrats now have the votes they need to filibuster Neil Gorsuch’s nomination to the Supreme Court — prompting a showdown with their Republican colleagues who have vowed to change the Senate’s rules in order to get him a seat on the bench. The party sewed up the votes during the Senate Judiciary Committee vote on Gorsuch’s nomination Monday, when three Democrats on the committee who hadn’t yet taken a position —California Sen. Dianne Feinstein, Vermont Sen. Patrick Leahy and Delaware Sen. Chris Coons — announced they would oppose Gorsuch’s nomination and vote against cloture, which ends debate. “I have decided that I will not support Judge Gorsuch’s nomination in the judiciary committee today,” Coons said. “I am not ready to end debate on this issue, so I will be voting against cloture.” Coons was the 41st senator to announce he would oppose cloture, and his remarks marked the moment Democrats secured the votes they needed for a successful filibuster. “Unfortunately, based on Judge Gorsuch’s record at the Department of Justice, his tenure on the bench, his appearance before the Senate and his written questions for the record, I cannot support this nomination,” Feinstein said. Her office confirmed that she will also oppose cloture. Senate Republicans have signaled that they’re prepared to trigger the so-called nuclear option, which would change Senate rules and allow them to confirm Gorsuch without garnering the [60 votes](http://time.com/4713796/neil-gorsuch-confirmation-democrats-filibuster/?iid=sr-link1) needed to overcome a filibuster. Coons said going nuclear would “be tragic.” Leahy bemoaned the imminent rule change, but said that did not influence his choice to filibuster the nomination. “I cannot vote solely to protect an institution when the rights of hardworking Americans are at risk,” he said. “Because I fear the Senate I would be defending no longer exists. I’ve often said the Senate at its best can be and should be the conscience of the nation. But I must first and foremost vote my conscience, both today and later this week.” Multiple Democratic senators on the committee cited a few cases in particular that concerned them about Gorsuch’s record when they announced their opposition —the [frozen trucker case](http://time.com/4702354/neil-gorsuch-chuck-schumer-decisions/?iid=sr-link1), about an employee who was fired when he abandoned his job for fear of his health and safety, and the Luke P. case, about an autistic child’s educational standards. The Supreme Court unanimously [struck down](http://time.com/4709234/neil-gorsuch-confirmation-hearing-supreme-court-decision/?iid=sr-link2) Gorsuch’s Luke P. decision, in which he ruled education standards for the child must be “merely more than _de minimis_,” while he was in his confirmation hearing. Other senators, including Leahy, expressed frustration with Gorsuch’s [refusal to answer questions](http://time.com/4708107/neil-gorsuch-confirmation-hearing-day-two/?iid=sr-link1) about specific issues and cases during his hearing. Leahy called Gorsuch’s approach to the committee “patronizing” and said, “He was actually excruciatingly evasive.” This will be the [first partisan filibuster](http://new.time.com/4659403/neil-gorsuch-filibuster-abe-fortas/) of a Supreme Court nominee. (No Republicans have said they will oppose cloture, but three Democrats have said they will support Gorsuch.) Some Republicans [see benefits](http://time.com/4720478/neil-gorsuch-filibuster-republicans-reaction) in the Democratic obstruction of Gorsuch, since going nuclear now will pave the way for future Supreme Court fights. But others are resigned to changing the rules out of necessity, with little joy in the vote. “The Senate traditions are going to change over this man based on the times in which we live,” Republican judiciary member Sen. Lindsey Graham said Monday. “I find it ironic and sad that we are going to change the rules over somebody who has lived such a good life, who has been such a good judge for such a long time. It says more about the Senate that it does Judge Gorsuch.” ## Transcript [00:00] After careful deliberation, I've concluded that I cannot [00:04] support Judge Neil Gorsuch's nomination to the supreme [00:08] court. Judge Gorsuch was unable to sufficiently convince [00:11] me that he'd be an independent check on a President who [00:15] has shown almost no restraint from executive overreach. [00:20] Second, he was unable to convince me that he would be a [00:24] main stream justice who could rule free from the biases [00:28] of politics and ideology. His career and judicial [00:32] record suggest not a neutral legal mind, but someone with [00:36] a deep seeded conservative ideology. He was groomed [00:40] by the Federalist Society and has not shown one inch [00:45] of difference between his views and theirs. And [00:50] finally, he is someone who almost instinctively favors [00:54] the powerful over the weak, corporations over working [00:58] Americans There could not be a worse time for [01:03] someone with those instincts. They don't even mind that [01:06] this investigation is moving forward under a cloud of an FBI [01:10] investigation of the president's campaign. The republican [01:14] tell the Supreme court she'd open free her under [01:16] Democratic president, who was under no investigation. But [01:21] now, we're rushing to fill the seat, for a President whose [01:25] campaign is under investigation. It is unseemly [01:30] and wrong, to be moving so fast on a lifetime appointment [01:34] in such circumstances. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4723223/democrats-filibuster-neil-gorsuch-supreme-court/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4723223/democrats-filibuster-neil-gorsuch-supreme-court/"},"headline":"Democrats Can Filibuster Neil Gorsuch’s Vote. 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