Schumer Calls for Blocking Gorsuch So Long as Trump Camp Under FBI Investigation

Senate Democrats have a new plan for blocking Neil Gorsuch's nomination to the Supreme Court.

The strategy, which the Senate majority leader announced Tuesday, calls for obstructing the nomination so long as the FBI is investigating members of the Trump campaign's communications with Russian officials.

"You can bet if the shoe were on the other foot, and the Democratic president were under investigation by the FBI, the Republicans would be howling at the moon about filling the Supreme Court seat in such circumstances," Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said during a floor speech Tuesday. "After all, they stopped the president who wasn't under investigation from filling the seat with nearly a year left in his presidency."

"It is unseemly to be moving forward so on confirming a Supreme Court justice with a lifetime appointment while this big, great grey cloud of an FBI investigation hangs over the presidency," Schumer said.

Here are his full remarks:        

"Before I move on to another topic, I'd like to point out that it is the height of irony that the Republicans held this Supreme Court seat open for nearly a calendar year while President Obama was in office, but are now rushing to fill the seat for a President whose campaign is under investigation by the FBI. Even Rep Nunes, the Republican chairman of the House Intelligence Committee said the investigation, confirmed yesterday by the FBI Director Comey, puts a big grey cloud over this administration. You can bet if the shoe were on the other foot, and the Democratic president were under investigation by the FBI, the Republicans would be howling at the moon about filling the Supreme Court seat in such circumstances. After all, they stopped the president who wasn't under investigation from filling the seat with nearly a year left in his presidency. It is unseemly to be moving forward so on confirming a Supreme Court justice with a lifetime appointment while this big, great grey cloud of an FBI investigation hangs over the presidency."