State lawmakers split along partisan lines in their reaction to President Donald Trump’s nomination Tuesday of Neil Gorsuch, a judge on the Colorado-based Federal Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit, to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Saying residents of Colorado “of all parties and persuasions” can be proud of the news, Senate President Kevin Granthan, R-Cañon City, pointed out that Gorsuch would be the first Coloradan to sit on the high court since Justice Byron “Whizzer” White, who was nominated 55 years ago by President John F. Kennedy.

“Judge Gorsuch is widely recognized as someone who respects and reveres the U.S. Constitution and decides cases on the basis of law, not personal whims or prejudices,” Grantham said in a statement. “If confirmed, he will make an outstanding addition to the Court, and I invite all Coloradans to join me in applauding this outstanding nomination.”

Across the aisle, state Sen. Daniel Kagan, D-Littleton, praised Gorsuch’s intellect but urged federal lawmakers to exercise caution considering the nomination.

“Even a cursory examination of Judge Gorsuch’s record leaves no doubt that he is a sophisticated legal thinker,” said Kagan, an attorney and the ranking Democratic member of the Senate Judiciary Committee. “But that same record, including, for example, his concurrence in Hobby Lobby v. Sebelius, raises legitimate, troubling questions about his willingness to uphold the values we hold dear in Colorado. The U.S. Senate owes it to the people that Judge Gorsuch’s nomination be thoughtfully questioned, thoroughly vetted, and considered without haste.  I urge the Senate to proceed with the utmost caution, lest our freedoms be imperiled for a generation.”

Trump nominated Gorsuch to fill the Supreme Court seat left vacant nearly a year ago by the death of Justice Antonin Scalia.

Gorsuch wrote the 2013 appellate court majority decision – upheld by a 5-4 Supreme Court vote the next year – in the Hobby Lobby case. The ruling allowed the closely held corporation to cite religious grounds when claiming exemption from federal regulations involving contraceptives.

Colorado Attorney General Cynthia Coffman, a Republican, expressed high praise for the jurist in a statement.

“Judge Neil Gorsuch is an extremely qualified and well respected U.S. Supreme Court nominee,” she said. “He not only has a brilliant legal mind but has both the experience and the temperament needed to serve on our nation’s highest court. Judge Gorsuch’s deep understanding and reverence of the law will serve him and the American people well.”

– ernest@coloradostatesman.com