Judge Gorsuch is evidence that Trump isn’t a despot

Neil Gorsuch was recently confirmed to a seat on the Supreme Court of the United States. Citizen freedoms and limits on government are set out in the Constitution. Except for Constitutional Amendment, the Supreme Court is the final protector and arbiter of our freedoms and rights under the laws passed by Congress.

Many letters to the editor, including one of mine prior to the election, expressed fear that President Trump might have tendencies toward fascism. As fascism and socialism both infringe on an individual’s freedom and diminish individual rights, a Supreme Court justice who looks to the original words and meaning of the Constitution could interfere with fascistic or socialistic programs of any president or Congress.

While it is unclear exactly where Justice Gorsuch might come down in interpreting the Constitution, Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s floor speech in which she said she was unable to vote for his confirmation because he refused to be flexible may give us a clue.

If President Trump wished to be a despot, he would have named another flexible justice more in the mold of Justices Stephen Breyer, Ginsberg, Elena Kagan and Sonia Sotomayor.

This story was originally published April 14, 2017 at 2:04 PM with the headline "Judge Gorsuch is evidence that Trump isn’t a despot."