Ian Haney López quoted by International Business Times, Feb. 2, 2017
“Affirmative action for white men is not social repair. Affirmative action for white men is a stunt to mock the moral and social importance of integration and to increase social strife,” he said.
Holly Doremus quoted by High Country News, Feb. 1, 2017
“(Republicans’) only thought is: We need less government and this is how we’ll get it,” says Holly Doremus, a professor at UC Berkeley Law School “They’ll find the job of governance requires regulations.”
Daniel Farber quoted by The Recorder (registration required), Feb. 1, 2017
UC Berkeley law professor Daniel Farber called the Gorsuch pick “a surprisingly reasonable choice for Trump.” Farber, who clerked at the U.S. Supreme Court for former Justice John Paul Stevens, said that Gorsuch looks “principled enough and like he’s got enough backbone to rule against Trump when he goes over the line.”
Daniel Farber writes for Politico Magazine, Feb. 1, 2017
The key thing about Gorsuch from my point of view is that he’s principled—and he seems to have enough backbone to stand up to Trump. We could use that on the court. The fact that Gorsuch has spoken against judicial deference to the executive branch in matters of statutory interpretation makes it more likely that he won’t rubber-stamp Trump’s actions.
Ian Haney López quoted by CNBC, Feb. 1, 2017
UC Berkeley law professor Ian Haney Lopez said Wednesday that affirmative action programs were undertaken “to welcome historically excluded and dehumanized groups into every school, neighborhood and workplace. Affirmative action for white men is not social repair. Affirmative action for white men is a stunt to mock the moral and social importance of integration and to increase social strife,” he told CNBC.
Melissa Murray quoted by The Press Democrat, Feb. 1, 2017
Gorsuch would restore the court to the conservative tilt it held with Scalia on the bench, but Trump’s choice “makes it very difficult for Democrats to contest this nomination because he is so qualified,” said Melissa Murray, interim dean of the University of California at Berkeley law school.
Daniel Farber writes for Politico Magazine, Feb. 1, 2017
Gorsuch wrote a clear, persuasive opinion in favor of upholding the renewable energy law. What I have read about his other opinions—and what I have heard from colleagues who knew him at earlier points in his life—reinforces my view that he is a thoughtful, principled judge, albeit one who is more conservative than I would like.
Andrew Bradt quoted by Buzzfeed, Jan. 31, 2017
“We’re not dealing in a world where various interest groups have had time to strategize a litigation approach. Rather, we have a bit of a free for all. And when there’s a free for all, that’s when intervention makes sense, because courts want to make sure that all of the relevant parties have a seat at the table,” Bradt said.
John Yoo quoted by Las Vegas Review Journal, Jan. 31, 2017
The Gorsuch nomination “is a great pick and a safe pick,” former George W. Bush attorney John Yoo opined. “It’s the most conservative person who could get confirmed. It’s very hard to see how the left is going to ‘Bork’ him,” said Yoo, now a University of California, Berkeley law professor, in a reference to the harsh vetting that killed the 1987 nomination of Judge Robert Bork.
John Yoo quoted by US News & World Report, Jan. 31, 2017
“This is a big mistake,” Yoo says. “Such a policy would prevent the U.S. from targeting Anwar al-Awlaki, for example. It would create a force field around any U.S. citizen who joins al-Qaida or ISIS. Al-Qaida and ISIS leaders would immediately start recruiting Americans, even more heavily than now, and placing them in leadership positions.”