Robert Reich: No vote on Gorsuch until Senate and FBI investigate Trump's Russia connections

Former Labor Secretary Robert Reich believes the Senate should not take up the nomination of  Court of Appeals Judge Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court until it is has been established that President Donald Trump is the "legitimate" president of the United States.

Writing on Facebook, Reich said talk about the conservative judge's "credentials or his ideology" should be set aside as it "normalizes the Trump presidency."

According to Reich, questions about the 2016 election -- including Russian involvement -- need to be answered before handing Gorsuch a lifetime seat on the Supreme Court with no mechanism in place to remove him should there be evidence of outside vote tampering or interference.

Reich then made his appeal to Senate Democrats.

"Insist that no vote be made on Gorsuch until Trump’s legitimacy as a president is established," Reich wrote. "Which means the Senate intelligence committee and F.B.I. must conclude that Russian operatives were not responsible for Trump’s electoral victory, Trump must reveal his taxes, and he must put his assets into a blind trust."

According to Reich, President Obama's selection of  Court of Appeals Justice Merrick Garland was allowed to sit on the shelf based on the notion that Obama was on his way out the door, writing of Trump, "Here, we have a president whose term itself may not be legitimate."

"A Supreme Court pick is the most important nomination a president can make, affecting how the Constitution and laws are interpreted, and potentially affecting generations to come," he continued. "There should be no cloud over the legitimacy of the president who makes such a pick"

Accordingly, Reich called on Senate Democrats to block Gorsuch's appointment, adding, "Senate rules requiring cloture ... Democrats should vote against consent orders to proceed with the nomination."

You can read Reich's entire post here.