Gorsuch regrets ‘putting … family through this’

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By ERICA WERNER
and MARK SHERMAN
Associated Press

The Latest: Gorsuch regrets “putting…family through this”
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. Supreme Court nominee Neil Gorsuch says “there is a lot” he regrets about the confirmation process, including putting his family through it.

President Donald Trump’s pick appeared to grow somewhat testy after more than four hours of questioning before the Senate Judiciary Committee. Rhode Island Democratic Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse asked about a 2010 Supreme Court decision allowed for more money in politics. Gorsuch refused to offer an opinion on the case. But he replied: “There’s a lot about the confirmation process today that I regret. A lot. A lot.”

Gorsuch said the late Justice Byron White, a fellow Coloradan who was confirmed in 1962, had a hearing that lasted 90 minutes and smoked through it. Gorsuch also referred to “putting my family through this.”
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Gorsuch says a case involving a truck driver who was fired for disobeying a boss’ order “is one of those you take home at night.”

The appeals court judge dissented in a 2016 decision regarding a truck driver fired after his boss told him to stay with his cargo after the brakes on his trailer froze. But the driver himself reported freezing due to a heater malfunction, so he unhitched the trailer and drove off.

A majority of judges said federal law protected drivers from dismissal when they refuse to operate an unsafe vehicle. But Gorsuch said the driver wasn’t refusing to drive.

He told the Senate Judiciary Committee that his “job is to write the law and apply the law.”

Associated Press writer Mary Clare Jalonick also contributed to this report.