Richard Wolf

USA TODAY

WASHINGTON — Supreme Court nominee Neil Gorsuch refused Tuesday to address tough questions from Democrats on abortion, guns, campaign spending and a host of other issues that he said could come before the court in the future.

President Trump's nominee to fill the seat left vacant by the death of Justice Antonin Scalia 13 months ago said his caution wasn't related to his personal views, which he steadfastly kept to himself. In fact, he said that if Trump had asked him whether he would overrule the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision legalizing abortion as a condition of being nominated, "I would have walked out the door."

Raising his voice at times, the 49-year-old federal appeals court judge said he rules fairly on facts and the law in each case that comes before him. Beyond that, he would not give hints about his ideological leanings, his opinions of past Supreme Court precedents or his likely votes in future cases.

“I have offered no promises on how I’d rule in any case to anyone, and I don’t think it’s appropriate for a judge to do so,” he said, pledging to keep "an open mind."

Gorsuch largely sailed through more than 10 hours of sparring with the Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday, with another round to come Wednesday, despite efforts by Democrats to criticize many of his decisions -- as well as the president who nominated him.

Asked about Trump's disparaging comments in relation to federal judges who have ruled against him, most recently on two versions of his immigration travel ban, Gorsuch carefully distanced himself from those comments. “When anyone criticizes the honesty, integrity or motives of a federal judge, I find that disheartening, I find that demoralizing, because I know the truth," he said.

Asked if he would be comfortable ruling against Trump in a future case, he said repeatedly, "No man is above the law."

Sen. Dianne Feinstein of California, top Democrat on the committee, sought to get Gorsuch's views on Roe as well as the 2000 Bush v. Gore case that decided that year's election, the 2008 Heller decision allowing the use of guns for self-defense, 2010's Citizens United case allowing corporations to spend unlimited sums in elections, and others.

The judge avoided direct answers because, he said, similar issues could come before the Supreme Court in the future. Pressed on Roe, he said, "It has been reaffirmed many times." But later, when Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., asked about the impact of increased corporate spending on elections permitted by Citizens United, he said a potential fix "falls in your court."

Feinstein also dug into Gorsuch's brief tenure at the Justice Department in 2005-06, when he wrote memos and was involved in litigation dealing with such issues as torturing detainees and wiretapping Americans. Regardless of what he said or wrote at the time, Gorsuch said, "I was a lawyer for a client" — the government.

Throughout the grueling day of testimony, which went well into the evening, Gorsuch appeared dapper, folksy and well prepared. When senators asked about his rulings against the "little guy" in several cases, he was prepared with a list of examples in which he had ruled the other way, in favor of individuals battling their employers or the government.

"There are plenty of them," he said, adding that anyone appearing before him "is going to get a fair and square deal from me."

Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., tried to drag Gorsuch into the dispute over Republicans' refusal to grant a hearing last year to federal appeals court Judge Merrick Garland, President Obama's choice for the seat left vacant by Scalia's death.

"I can't get involved in politics," Gorsuch pleaded. "I think it would be very imprudent for judges to start commenting on political disputes."

At times, the normally mild-mannered judge showed frustration, even anger at the tone of questions coming from Democrats. Pressed repeatedly by Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., to say whether those spending more than $10 million on his behalf should be identified, he demurred time and time again.

Finally, the married father of teen-age daughters said, “There’s a lot about the confirmation process today that I regret ... I regret putting my family through this.”

Despite submitting a 68-page questionnaire, which arrived with 20 appendices, as well as some 175,000 pages of records produced by the Justice Department and the George W. Bush Presidential Library, Gorsuch arrived at this week's hearing unknown to most Americans. He has spent the past 10-plus years sitting on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit in Denver.

Gorsuch said he has agreed with the majority opinion 99% of the time on the appeals court, belying criticism that he is somehow out of the mainstream. He also contradicted his critics' portrayal of him as hostile to "the little guy" by pointing out that he has decided cases in favor of Native American tribes, Muslim prisoners, people fighting corporate polluters, and undocumented immigrants.

“One thing I like about you is sometimes your decisions seem to make everybody mad,” Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., quipped during the 11th hour of questioning.

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The committee, whose members range from liberal Sen. Al Franken, D-Minn., to conservative Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, is slated to vote in early April on whether to recommend Gorsuch for full Senate confirmation. It likely will take 60 votes to advance Gorsuch's nomination past a Democratic filibuster, so he must attract support from eight Democrats. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., has expressed confidence that Gorsuch can get those votes. But if that doesn't happen, McConnell has the option of invoking the "nuclear option" to change Senate rules, allowing Gorsuch to be confirmed with 51 votes.

One way or the other, he would be sworn in before the Supreme Court's final oral arguments of the term in April — and available to rehear any cases that emerged from the shorthanded court in 4-4 ties, as four cases did last term.

But first, Gorsuch must survive this week's hearings which have expanded greatly from the version experienced by his mentor and fellow Coloradan, the late Justice Byron White -- two weeks in all, including a 90-minute hearing, during which White smoked cigarettes.