U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-Willsboro, thinks Neil Gorsuch, President Donald Trump’s nominee for the U.S. Supreme Court, “has a very impressive and distinguished background,” said Tom Flanagin, a spokesman for Stefanik.

“The Senate has the role of confirming Supreme Court justices and Congresswoman Stefanik looks forward to hearing from Judge Gorsuch during the Senate confirmation process,” Flanagin wrote in a two-sentence prepared statement, responding to a Post-Star request to speak with the congresswoman about the nomination.

U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., said in a statement on Wednesday she plans to oppose Gorsuch’s nomination.

“Judge Gorsuch has proven to have a judicial philosophy outside of the mainstream and time and time again has subjugated individual rights to those of corporations,” Gillibrand said. “I fundamentally disagree with his ruling that a boss should be able to make family planning decisions for an employee and that corporations are people.”

As a 10th Circuit Court of Appeals judge, Gorsuch decided in a lawsuit involving the Hobby Lobby craft store chain that private companies that raised religious objections did not have to pay contraception coverage under employee health care plans.

U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y. has said he has “serious doubts” about the nomination.

Former U.S. Rep. Bill Owens, D-Plattsburgh, said he expects the Senate will confirm the nomination of Gorsuch.

“Clearly, he is a conservative in the Scalia school of jurisprudence. I think it is likely he will be confirmed,” Owens, a lawyer, said in a telephone interview.

“From a personal perspective, the things that trouble me are not necessarily his conservative views on commercial issues, such as regulations and things of that nature, but rather, what his social views may be,” Owens said.

Owens said he hopes Gorsuch “believes in the concept of settled law,” and will not attempt to arbitrarily revisit previous Supreme Court decisions on topics such as gay marriage and civil rights.

“That’s a doctrine that essentially says don’t go back and revisit things unless there is something truly momentous that has changed,” Owens explained.