All-night Democrat talk-a-thon opposes Supreme Court pick

WASHINGTON (AP) — A Democratic senator held the Senate floor through the night and was still going today in an attention-grabbing talk-a-thon highlighting his party's opposition to President Donald Trump's Supreme Court nominee, Neil Gorsuch.

But Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell claimed the votes necessary to change Senate rules and thwart the Democratic filibuster in a showdown that could alter the course of the Senate and the court.

Oregon Sen. Jeff Merkley started talking Tuesday evening and was still going more than 13 hours later as he accused Gorsuch of siding with corporations over regular people, likening Gorsuch's approach to that of Antonin Scalia, the justice who died last year.

Though Justice Scalia died 14 months ago, Republicans held the seat open so President Donald Trump could fill it, sparking enduring Democratic fury.

Merkley stood in front of a blow-up of the preamble to the Constitution, still talking this morning.

He said Gorsuch "is much like his idol and role model Antonin Scalia and other far-right conservatives on the Supreme Court. And while this unbalanced approach might make for interesting reading the courtroom is not an academic paper each case involves real people with real problems."

Merkley's lengthy speech made for drama but had no chance to change the outcome. In votes set for Thursday, Democrats will try to block Gorsuch's confirmation, but McConnell will then change Senate rules to lower the threshold required to advance Supreme Court nominees from 60 votes to a simple majority in the 100-member Senate.