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<p>WILKES-BARRE &#8212; U.S. Sen. Bob Casey on Thursday sat down with President Donald Trump&#8217;s Supreme Court nominee Judge Neil Gorsuch to talk about his background and discuss his nomination to the highest court in the nation.</p><p>Pennsylvania&#8217;s other senator, U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey, met with Gorsuch on Tuesday.</p><p>The two Pennsylvania senators &#8212; Casey a Democrat and Tommey a Republican &#8212; offered comments on their discussions with Gorsuch.</p><p>Casey, D-Scranton, said he and Gorsuch discussed &#8220;some real concerns&#8221; Casey has about Gorsuch&#8217;s judicial philosophy and some of his opinions as a 10th Circuit judge that were in conflict with federal agency decisions focused on protecting the health and safety of workers.</p><p>&#8220;The Roberts Court has ruled overwhelmingly in favor of big corporations and Judge Gorsuch&#8217;s judicial record suggests he may continue that trend,&#8221; Casey said.</p><p>Casey said he and Gorsuch also discussed some of his decisions pertaining to critical civil rights laws protecting individuals with disabilities, like the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.</p><p>&#8220;The rights of those with disabilities, particularly the right to an equal education, must be vigorously protected by the courts,&#8221; Casey said.</p><p>Casey said during the 2016 campaign, far right groups who he said have worked to undermine the rights of workers, presented an edict to then-candidate Donald Trump: commit to nominating a justice from our approved list in exchange for our support.</p><p>&#8220;President Trump&#8217;s decision to give in to their demand and choose from only their list of nominees was unprecedented,&#8221; Casey said. &#8220;It is essential that the next Supreme Court justice be truly independent so the court can fulfill its vital institutional role in our system of checks and balances.&#8221;</p><p>Casey said the decisions made by the next Supreme Court justice will be extraordinarily consequential.</p><p>&#8220;The next justice will be the deciding vote on a range of cases impacting the lives of tens of millions of Americans for a generation or more,&#8221; Casey said.</p><p>Casey said he will continue to review Gorsuch&#8217;s record and closely follow his answers to questions during his hearing before the Judiciary Committee in March and in his written responses to questions submitted afterward.</p><p><strong>Toomey and Gorsuch met on Tuesday</strong></p><p>Toomey, R-Zionsville, said he and Gorsuch enjoyed a wide-ranging discussion.</p><p>&#8220;It is clear to me that Judge Gorsuch is eminently qualified and understands the proper role of a judge,&#8221; Toomey said. &#8220;I believe he will apply the law and U.S. Constitution as written, and not pick winners and losers based on personal or partisan policy preferences.&#8221;</p><p>Toomey said the late Justice Antonin Scalia has left big shoes to fill, but he said he is optimistic that Gorsuch is up to the task.</p><p>&#8220;Our discussion indicates to me he will neutrally apply the law, even when doing so leads to a policy outcome he personally opposes,&#8221; Toomey said.</p><p>Toomey said Gorsuch&#8217;s record indicates that he has the character, intellect and experience to make an excellent addition to the U.S. Supreme Court.</p><p>&#8220;I have long held that when considering judicial nominees, objective qualifications are more important than partisan politics, and senators should work across the aisle to fill the federal bench with highly qualified jurists,&#8221; Toomey said.</p><p>Toomey said he and Casey have worked on a bipartisan basis to fill 16 vacancies on the federal bench in Pennsylvania.</p><p>&#8220;And, although I knew I would disagree with many of her decisions, I supported President Obama&#8217;s nomination of Judge Sonia Sotomayor to the U.S. Supreme Court,&#8221; Toomey said. &#8220;I plan to apply the same standard of fairness to the nomination of Judge Neil Gorsuch.&#8221;</p><p>Toomey said he hopes his colleagues in the Senate will do the same and review Gorsuch&#8217;s record with an open mind.</p><p>&#8220;And I hope they will remember that the test is not whether we agree with every decision Judge Gorsuch has rendered, but whether Judge Gorsuch understands the proper role of a judge and has the character, intellect and experience to merit confirmation,&#8221; Toomey said.</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">U.S. Sen. Bob Casey, left, met with Supreme Court nominee Judge Neil Gorsuch Thursday in Washington. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/web1_CASEY-GORSUCH.jpg</photo0><caption0>U.S. Sen. Bob Casey, left, met with Supreme Court nominee Judge Neil Gorsuch Thursday in Washington. </caption0><photoCredit0>Submitted Photo </photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/web1_Toomey-10-09-2016_mug-cmyk.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Toomey </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/web1_Toomey-10-09-2016_mug-cmyk.jpg</photo1><caption1>Toomey </caption1><photoCredit1>Submitted Photo </photoCredit1></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Bill O&#8217;Boyle</p><p>boboyle@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Bill O&#8217;Boyle at 570-991-6118 or on Twitter @TLBillOBoyle.</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Sens. Bob Casey and Pat Toomey meet Supreme Court nominee