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After many years of founding and running entrepreneurial ventures, I have come to believe that cultural fit is darned near paramount in pulling together a team. It can't solely compensate for lack of competence (one obviously needs both), but if I was forced into a sub-optimal, either/or choice, I would go for culture over competence.At Gust, this fit is one of the things we start discussing with prospective employees early in the recruitment process. We share with them excerpts from our company handbook that deal with our philosophy and values, and we make sure that everyone is interviewed face to face by at least two or three people with whom they would be directly working, in addition to HR and their manager. Engineers and product people spend a day pairing with a team member one they pass our tech screen. The goal is to assess both their competence and their cultural fit.Here is a rather lengthy section from our employee manual that deals with culture:PrefaceWelcome to Gust! Although we’ve been around for over ten years, we consider ourselves very much a startup and embody all that the term ‘startup environment’ implies. This includes intense work, long hours, breaking new ground, creativity and teamwork, high expectations for personal production, and a chance to quite literally change the world.However...Given the above expectations, we are dedicated as a company to giving back to our team members as much as they give to the company. As a startup, we are small enough to be flexible, and as decent, rational (and pragmatic) people, we are well aware that team members who are personally challenged and fulfilled are our single biggest assets. We bend over backwards to sustain a humanistic, supportive environment.This new employee introduction was created to help you get up to speed on our processes and culture so you can quickly become a successful team member at Gust. Since we are still a small group, we take our values and culture very seriously and expect you to do the same. Please read through this introduction carefully and, if you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to ask.Gust Core ValuesSince Gust is a small startup, every single employee has a significant impact on the company’s growth and success. We work very closely as a team so it is crucial that we are all on the same page as far as what we are doing and what is expected of us. The following values and policies, which stem directly and passionately from our CEO’s personal philosophy, act as a guide to our day-to-day work to ensure just that—we are all on the same page and we don’t waste time with conflicting expectations. Everyone here is expected to fully adopt and embody these values in order to be a successful contributing member of the Gust team. (Note that this is not just lip service. We really believe in this stuff, and it guides all of our actions.)IntegrityThis one is simple and yet the most important: Do the right thing. We do not intentionally deceive others or practice business in a way that would cause harm to other companies or individuals. We have a zero tolerance policy for employees who do not display integrity in their work (and in this case, zero tolerance means exactly what it says. There are no second chances.)Some examples:Never, ever lie about anything related to our business; not to your subordinates, peers, managers, customers, partners, competitors or anyone elseNever cut corners, ethically or otherwise, even if you think it would be for the benefit of the companyOwn up to your mistakes, don’t try to cover them up or throw undeserving parties under the bus. Expect others to behave the same way.Keep protected client information confidential.RespectGust employees are extraordinary; we treat each other as such at all times. We are all working towards the same goals. We maintain mutual respect among all levels of management and employees. We treat all clients, partners, and anyone outside of the company with the highest level of respect as well.Some examples:Give credit where credit is due.Don’t let personal grievances affect work relationships or team dynamics.Never talk down to Gust clients or vendors.LoyaltyIf you are part of the Gust team and maintain the core Gust values, you will always remain connected to Gust (and to DSR), even after your departure from the company. We are a startup, and are realists, and as such cannot and do not guarantee perpetual employment. However, employees and management should back each other up whenever reasonable, and all employees should act with the company’s and their colleagues’ best interest in mind at all times.Some examples:Represent Gust in the best light at all times, and never talk down the companyAct as an owner – we should all be constantly looking for ways to improve the product or gain traction in our mission.Feel free to seek David’s expert advice on your personal projects.CollaborationAll of our teams depend on each other and work very closely together. We are more effective and successful as a team than we are as individuals. We do not work in silos; rather, we maintain a transparent and collaborative environment as we work together towards our shared goals.Some examples:Don’t view your job description as strict parameters – you are encouraged to assist in projects outside of your team if you have the time and can add value.Listen to your teammates, gather feedback, and if you have a question, ask.Gust Company Motto“Everyone gets one—but only one—chance to screw us.”We run a completely transparent culture of impeccable integrity, and that's what we demand from each other, and from our partners. We enter relationships—both partnering and employment—under the assumption that everyone is fully aware of our zero tolerance policy on this subject and is playing by the same rules. If that turns out to be the case, our policy provides the foundation for lasting and mutually beneficial relationships. If we find someone swings differently, then whatever we lost because of our “trust first” policy will have turned out to have been a cheap price to pay for learning quickly about the character of those involved.If your child is sick and you have an emergency with no one else to care for her, then we have no problem if you need to take a week off to deal with it. We are all on the same page, and know you will do what you can to keep moving things forward. The flip side is that since integrity is valued here above all else, if you were to take an afternoon to go to the doctor, and then be seen tweeting from a baseball game, it could be grounds for immediate discipline—even termination.Throughout this introduction we’ve been using the “Royal We” in speaking about the company. That’s because even though this is an official corporate document, and stems directly from the values and policies of our management, the philosophies that it describes are held by all of us. In late 2013 an outside consultant conducted a series of confidential interviews and surveys with everyone at Gust to see how what we said contrasted with what we actually believed. We found reassuring the resulting tag cloud of values generated from the anonymous responses:

First of Congratulations on the amount of success you have achieved in such short period of time. Secondly thank you for the A2A. Thirdly since you want to start a hedge fund before college i am hoping you are ready with a team and plan and most importantly the cash( in 2 parts. 1 the part you want to set as amount and 2 as the part of the total amount you need) Assuming that you have all the above criteria getting back to your answer. Oh yes most importantly Sorry for the huge answer before hand. Ok so here it goes.Becoming the manager of your own hedge fund will give you the opportunity to invest other people's money for them, which can be profitable for you and your investors. If you're an experienced financial advisor, it may be advantageous for you to step out from under the umbrella of the banking industry and strike your own path. To start a hedge fund, you'll need to create and register a fund and start an investment company to be the fund's general partner. In this endeavor, the investors will act as limited partners in a corporation.Part1Planning a Hedge FundLearn the basics of a hedge fund. Hedge funds are pools of investor money that use a large range of different strategies to both generate returns for investors and manage risk. Hedge funds are typically only available to sophisticated investors with large amounts of assets to invest (often over $1 million).[1]The term hedge fund comes from the practice of "hedging", which is the practice of reducing risk in an asset by taking a position in a related security to offset any downward price movements. These related securities often take the form of derivatives like futures, options, and forward contracts. Essentially, this allows the hedger to guarantee a certain minimum payout in the event that their asset loses value.[2]Hedge funds also use a wide range of complex strategies to maximize returns like using leverage (or borrowed money), using derivatives to profit from global economic trends, trading currencies, and investing in stock and bonds in markets all around the globe.Distinguish between hedge funds and mutual funds. Mutual funds and hedge funds are similar in that they are both pools of money managed by a fund manager. Other than this, however, there are several key differences. These differences are important to consider when starting one.[3]Firstly, hedge funds and mutual funds have different levels of availability. Almost anybody can purchase a mutual fund, but in order to purchase a hedge fund, you are required by the U.S. government to be an "accredited investor". This generally means having a net worth of over $1 million (not including the value of your home) or having an annual income of over $200,000 (now and going forward).Secondly, hedge funds are not as regulated as mutual funds, and so they can invest in a more diverse and risky range of securities, as well as use strategies that mutual funds cannot use. Hedge funds can use large amounts of leverage (or borrowed money), short sell, and perform riskier trades on behalf of their investors, whereas mutual funds cannot.Note that the strategies employed by the hedge fund are identified in the prospectus or private placement memorandum given to investors before enrolling.Thirdly, hedge fund investors are typically "locked-in" for a period. Whereas a mutual fund investor can sell their shares whenever they want, a hedge fund shareholder cannot for a certain period of time.Finally, hedge fund managers are compensated differently from mutual fund managers. Mutual fund managers receive a set percentage of total assets managed each year, whereas hedge fund managers typically receive a set percentage of total assets (usually about 2%), plus a percentage of profits that are earned. This percentage is usually about 20%.Manager compensation is defined in the hedge fund's prospectus and is agreed to by the investor.Select a hedge fund strategy. Hedge funds managers usually get their start by achieving a successful investing track record throughout years of industry experience. This is how they attract their first clients and build out their funds. But even with the requisite experience, you'll also need an overall vision for your fund, including an idea of how it will generate returns for investors. Hedge funds can follow a number of different strategies, including:[4]Market Neutral Strategy: This is a popular strategy that involves purchasing a group of investments that are expected to go up, and then offsetting these investments dollar-for-dollar by short-selling the overall market (like the S & P 500, for example). If the portion that is expected to go up does better than the short-sold portion, the fund would make money. This can be a useful strategy to market to investors who are concerned about market crashes.Hedged equity strategy: This strategy is similar to the market neutral strategy, except instead of shorting the entire portion of the portfolio that you expect to rise on a dollar-for-dollar basis, only a portion would be shorted. For example, if you had a $1 million portfolio, $300,000 may be shorted. This means if the market were to collapse there would be some protection, but generally speaking your fund would be structured to make money from markets rising.Global Macro strategy: This type of strategy seeks to make money from large economic trends. If you have extensive knowledge of economics, global economic trends, global economies, and how these pieces fit together, this may be a good strategy to pursue. Global Macro strategies make money by forming an idea of what will happen to a particular country's (or multiple countries), stock index, interest rate, currency, or inflation/deflation levels.Part2Creating a Hedge Fund EntityHire a law firm. When starting a hedge fund, it is absolutely certain that you will need a lawyer throughout the process at some point. It is always advisable to establish contact with a group of lawyers experienced in financial law who will be be able to help you not only with the initial incorporation, but also with other aspects of establishing the fund. This is not the time for a silly paperwork slip-up that could cost you. Consult the experts.Look around for lawyers that are experienced in financial law, and even better, lawyers that have experience specifically working with and starting hedge funds.Decide what kind of entity you want to create. The fund entity type that you are able or required to create will depend on your state's regulatory laws. Limited partnerships, limited liability companies, and trusts are the typical entities used to create a hedge fund, but you'll need to research local laws regarding the formation of business entities to learn more. Contact the commerce department in your state.A limited partnership has two parts. It will have a general partner, who will serve as the manager and is personally liable for all the business's debts and obligations. It will then have limited partners, who are not liable for the debts of the company.For the most part, hedge funds are typically formed as limited partnerships, in which an incorporated group of investors acts as the limited partners, and an investment advisor acts as the general partner [5]Assemble an investment team of trusted advisors. If you're spinning off from a bank, it's typical to try bringing some coworkers with you to your new venture. A good team is essential to success.[6]It's hard to sell yourself to investors without first establishing a successful track record. Choosing workers with great employment histories and successful track records buying and selling securities will help in the long run, seeding your company with human capital and enabling you to hit the ground running.When establishing a team, your goal should be to first finding people who you have a strong personal chemistry with, and who share your vision. Your next criteria should be experience. For example, if you are starting a market neutral fund, choose analysts who have experience doing the kind of high-level analytical work that is associated with creating a fund like that.Name your fund. Your fund needs to have a name attached to it before you can fill out the proper paperwork. It should be something that sounds memorable, stable and reputable. Use the name to promote your image.Try to connect the name of your fund to its overall strategy in some way. For example, if you are operating a market neutral fund that attempts to eliminate exposure to the overall market and generate steady, reasonable returns, your name should reflect this vision.Apply for a tax ID number. In the U.S. your fund entity will need to get a Federal Employer Identification Number (FEIN) from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). This can be done by calling the IRS or going to its website and filling out the necessary http://forms.It's free to get your ID number. The process takes only a few minutes and can be completed online.Register as an investment advisor. You will need to register with the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) as an investment advisor if you have 15 or more investors associated with your fund. If you have less than 15, you generally do not have register with the SEC, but it is advisable to do so anyways since it adds to your overall http://credibility.To register you'll also need to take the Series 65 regulatory exam. This three-hour test covers your basic knowledge of securities laws and practices as well as your understanding of ethics. When you pass the exam you will be a licensed investment advisor in your state.Fill out a form U-10 with your state to register for the examination, then pay the small exam fee and schedule your test. It typically costs around $30.Part3Incorporating Your Hedge FundCreate a corporate partner. An investment advisor has two basic choices in structuring a fund: you can either run your hedge fund as a sole proprietor, or you can create a corporation to partner with you and limit your own liability. It's a common practice to seek protection from liability by creating a corporation to act as the general partner of your fund entity. This partner will be your investment advisory company. [7]Remember that with a limited partnership, the general partner is completely responsible for all the firms debts and obligations. So, if you incorporate your general partner, your personal assets are protected in the case of a lawsuit or in the case of debts. This is because a corporation is a separate legal entity.Fill out the articles of incorporation in your state.Always consult your lawyer before incorporating, they can guide you effectively through the process.Write your corporate bylaws. Your firm will need to compile an in-house rulebook to move forward with incorporation and register with the SEC and the regulatory bodies in your state. The bylaws are yours to choose but might commonly include:A compliance manualAn ethical code of conductA manual for supervisory proceduresAn advisor's portfolio-management agreementRegister your company as the Registered Investment Advisor (RIA). Do this on the website of the Investment Advisor Registration Depository to make the partnership legal. The process is free but will take several hours to complete. You may want to speak to your legal team before moving forward with the process of registry.This process is necessary to make your company able to manage assets and provide financial advice.Register yourself as the Investment Advisor Representative (IAR). After your fund is legally a Registered Investment Advisor, you must register yourself as the investment advisor for your fund.You can register yourself as the investment advisor for the fund by going to the same website you went to when you registered your company as the Registered Investment Advisor. To complete the process, you'll need to submit a Form U-4 and pay the fee to the IARD.The fee is about $30This establishes you a representative of your company.Register the fund offering with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).Hedge funds don’t technically register with the SEC but do register the "offering" of the limited partnership to investors. Just as corporations offer stock and LLC's offer memberships, limited partnerships offer "interests", and the offering of this interest must be registered with the Device Fingerprint register, fill out Form D with the SEC. You'll also need to fill out Form D in each state in which you intend to offer your fund.[8]Part4Raising Your Fund and GrowingWrite offering documents. In order to attract investors to your hedge fund, you will need to create a set of documents that explain your fund's goals and terms of investment. This generally takes the form of a prospectus or private placement memorandum (also called an offering memorandum). This document both protects the hedge fund, by assigning liability for losses to the investors, and the investors, by providing specific strategies that will be employed by the hedge fund.[9]These documents are not optional. They are required by securities regulators and must disclose specific information. Consult with professional legal counsel to ensure that you meet all of the necessary disclosure requirements.[10]Create an online presence. Despite regulations that prevent hedge funds from publicly advertising their funds, they are allowed to set up informational websites. These websites can display the experience and backgrounds of the fund's partners and provide information on the partners' investment strategies.[11] Having a clean, professional, and informative website can help foster trust in potential investors.Seek anchor capital to seed your fund. Getting the cash to get your fund off the ground can be the most difficult part of starting a hedge fund. You need assets under management, which you'll have to get from investors unless you're independently wealthy and want to seed the fund yourself. The best way to make your case to investors is to have an air-tight operation as well as an established track record of success during previous employment.You will need to approach banks, venture capital firms, and wealthy investors with whom you or your team have prior relations with. It may be useful to establish strategic partnerships with these institutions where Web Development,PHP development,Joomla development,Web Design,SEO services addition, many hedge fund managers gather seed money from friends and business acquaintances.[12]Promote your hedge fund. Ultimately, seeking capital requires salesmanship, and you will need to convince investors that you can create value. To do this, when speaking to potential sources of capital, focus relentlessly on your strategy, how your strategy works, why your strategy works, and how it has an edge over the competition. Secondly, focus on your team, and your experience, strengths, and successes.Investors are more likely to fund somebody with a proven track record of success, so be sure to play up your prior successes, as well as those of your partners or employees if you have them.Consider offering reductions in your management fee or partial fund ownership to early investors.[13]Attract investors through success. Initially, many hedge fund managers start with a small fund that is made up of a large amount of their own funds. Even with a prior record of success outside of hedge funds, investors are still skeptical of new funds until they have proven themselves. After an initial period of success, in which you earn large returns on your investments, you will find it much easier to attract investors.[14]Find a "prime-broker". A prime broker is a bank that essentially provides you with all the financial services you need to run your fund. This includes lending you money, executing trades on your behalf, and providing you with what you need to do things like short sell stocks. They can also help you find investors for your fund.[15]Approach institutions like Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Bank of America, or any other investment bank for these types of services.Hire brokers. If your hedge fund is performing well and you feel comfortable enough to expand operations, it's a good idea to start attracting talented brokers to expand your operation and start performing more transactions. You should to look for dedicated employees who want to make money in a fast-paced and competitive environment. Get the word out that you're looking for the best.Growing doesn't necessarily mean taking on more employees. Some hedge funds are successfully in business as one-man operations.[16]Purchase more office space. As soon as you can afford it, move into a space appropriate for your business. Start small, but build a corporate office that will display the professionalism and spirit of your operation.Hope this helps and feel free to ask if you have any problems. Most importantly once you are done keep me posted about your fund. All the best :)References : 1) How to Start a Hedge Fund 2) How To Legally Form A Hedge Fund | Investopedia3)So You Think You Can Start a Hedge Fund? How to Become the Next Ken Griffin: Getting Up and Running

Reasons for Filibuster:Neil Gorsuch is not considered “mainstream” regarding his beliefs:Discrimination: In the National Review, Judge Gorsuch wrote:“American liberals have become addicted to the courtroom, relying on judges and lawyers rather than elected leaders and the ballot box, as the primary means of effecting their social agenda on everything from gay marriage to assisted suicide to the use of vouchers for private-school education. This overweening addiction to the courtroom as the place to debate social policy is bad for the country and bad for the judiciary.”Neil Gorsuch“Judge Gorsuch’s hostility to the use of courts by discrimination victims to enforce their rights under the Constitution and federal law demonstrates his ideological agenda and has been reflected in his judicial decisions, particularly dissents and concurrences, during his decade on the bench.”Judge Gorsuch“Strickland v. UPS. In this case, the majority held that Carole Strickland, a UPS account executive, could proceed with a sex discrimination claim under Title VII based on evidence that she was treated worse than male colleagues despite her outperforming them in sales. Judge Gorsuch dismissed the evidentiary record and dissented; he voted to throw the victim’s discrimination claim out of court.”Judge Gorsuch“Weeks v. Kansas, writing for a conservative panel, Judge Gorsuch threw out another Title VII case where the plaintiff, Rebecca Weeks, was fired in retaliation for her advocating on behalf of two colleagues who had been discriminated against. In his opinion, Judge Gorsuch declined to consider a superseding Supreme Court decision that might have benefitted the plaintiff simply because she did not raise it in her briefs, a troubling approach because judges have a duty to consider relevant case law regardless of whether the parties have cited it.”Judge GorsuchImmigration:“In the closely-divided en banc decision in Zamora v. Elite Logistics, Inc., Judge Gorsuch voted to affirm the district court’s granting of summary judgment which blocked a Title VII national origin discrimination case from going to trial despite evidence of animus, unlawful reverification, and document abuse by the employer. The lead concurrence in this case, which Judge Gorsuch joined, reflects an approach that insulates employers from liability for discrimination against immigrant workers so long as they claim that they were unaware of the law or took their actions due to a fear of sanction by federal immigration authorities – even where those actions themselves violated immigration law. Judge Gorsuch’s record suggests that if he were confirmed as a Supreme Court justice, he would give great leeway to immigration enforcement strategies that use the fear of sanction against employers as a principal mechanism, and would condone employers hiding behind federal immigration laws to justify unlawful workplace practices.”Judge GorsuchWomen’s Health: “Judge Gorsuch has written or joined opinions that would restrict women’s health care, including allowing religious beliefs to override women’s access to birth control and defunding Planned Parenthood.”“Judge Gorsuch has supported religious institutions which objected to requirements for employers to provide access to contraception. In one of his most high-profile cases, he defended the religious owners of retailer Hobby Lobby who refused to fund birth control via staff health insurance.”Trump picks Neil Gorsuch as nominee for Supreme Court - BBC News“Planned Parenthood Association of Utah v. Herbert, Judge Gorsuch dissented from the majority’s decision to keep in place a preliminary injunction that stopped the state of Utah from blocking access to health care and education for thousands of Planned Parenthood's patients. If the policy had gone into effect, it would have cut off access to an after-school sex education program for teens and STD testing and treatment for at-risk communities.”Judge GorsuchGorsuch_Case_Analyses.pdf“Little Sisters of the Poor Home for the Aged v. Burwell, Judge Gorsuch dissented from the majority’s decision approving the accommodation in the birth control benefit that allows non-profit employers to opt out of the benefit but makes sure the employees get birth control coverage. Judge Gorsuch joined a dissent that argued the simple act of filling out an opt-out form constitutes a substantial burden on religious exercise.”Judge GorsuchGorsuch_Case_Analyses.pdf“Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc. v. Sebelius, he signed on to an opinion allowing certain for-profit employers to refuse to comply with the birth control benefit in the Affordable Care Act. Citing to Citizens United v. FEC, the decision held that corporations can be “persons” with religious beliefs and that employers can use those religious beliefs to block employees’ insurance coverage of birth control.”Judge GorsuchGorsuch_Case_Analyses.pdfLGBT Rights: “2005 National Review article Judge Gorsuch expressed disdain for those seeking to use the courts to enforce their rights under the law, and he specifically criticized LGBT Americans who have relied on federal courts in their quest for equality.”Gorsuch’s rationale he employed in the Hobby Lobby case – a license to discriminate for private corporations – has also been used by several states to justify discrimination against LGBT Americans.Judge GorsuchGorsuch_Case_Analyses.pdfDruley v. Patton, Gorsuch “voted to reject a claim by a transgender woman incarcerated in Oklahoma who alleged that her constitutional rights were violated when she was denied medically necessary hormone treatment and the right to wear feminine clothing. Other federal courts have reached the opposite conclusion in such cases.”Judge GorsuchPolice Misconduct:In the case Wilson v. City of Lafayette, a 22-year-old man possessing marijuana was fleeing arrest, and a police officer shot him in the head with a stun gun from a distance of 10-15 feet away, which was contrary to the police department’s training manual. The young man, Ryan Wilson, died. Judge Gorsuch held that the officer was entitled to qualified immunity from an excessive force claim, reasoning that the use of force was reasonable because the young man was fleeing arrest. The dissent in this case criticized Judge Gorsuch’s analysis and stated:‘In the present case, it would be unreasonable for an officer to fire a taser probe at Ryan Wilson’s head when he could have just as easily fired the probe into his back. The taser training materials note that officers should not aim at the head or throat unless the situation dictates a higher level of injury risk. Nothing about the situation here required an elevated level of force.’”Judge GorsuchStudents with Disabilities: “Judge Gorsuch has consistently ruled against students with disabilities seeking educational services to which they were entitled under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).”Judge Gorsuch“In A.F. v. Española Public Schools, he dismissed a claim brought under the Americans with Disabilities Act because the school district had previously settled a lawsuit with the student for IDEA violations. A dissenting judge in this case criticized Judge Gorsuch’s reasoning and observed: “This was clearly not the intent of Congress and, ironically enough, harms the interests of the children that IDEA was intended to protect.””Judge Gorsuch“In Garcia v. Board of Education of Albuquerque Public Schools, Judge Gorsuch held that a student who left the school out of frustration with the school’s failure to follow the IDEA was entitled to no remedy. “Judge GorsuchIn Thompson R2-J School District v. Luke P.,he held that a student with autism did not have a right under the IDEA to attend a private residential program, even though the district court and a Colorado Department of Education hearing officer determined that such a placement was necessary for Luke and that public schools had been unsuccessful in addressing his educational needs.”Judge GorsuchGorsuch’s Decisions Against Worker’s Rights:“opinions favor corporations over workers and he's shown ‘a stunning lack of humanity’ in some of those decisions” - Trump Supreme Court pick Gorsuch“Chevron U.S.A., Inc. v. Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc. The Chevron doctrine requires deference to federal agencies’ interpretation of ambiguous laws as long as the interpretation is reasonable, which has resulted in the safeguarding of workers’ rights, environmental protection, consumer protections, food safety, and many other protections for people’s health and well-being. Judge Gorsuch believes that judges should make these decisions instead of agencies with the relevant expertise, which would lead to a dramatic expansion of the power and role of the judiciary. He would relegate this vital precedent to the dustbin of history because it disfavors the corporate interests he championed as a lawyer and as a judge. As several commentators have noted, Judge Gorsuch’s cramped view of the Chevron doctrine is even more extreme than the views of Justice Antonin Scalia.”Judge GorsuchCorporate Bias:“Judge Gorsuch’s judicial activism was on display last year in the case Gutierrez-Brizuela v. Lynch, where he issued a lengthy concurrence to an opinion he himself had written – a signal that his colleagues refused to sign on to his ideological agenda.”Judge Gorsuch“In his concurrence, he questioned the constitutional legitimacy of a decades-old binding precedent, Chevron U.S.A., Inc. v. Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc. The Chevron doctrine requires deference to federal agencies’ interpretation of ambiguous laws as long as the interpretation is reasonable, which has resulted in the safeguarding of workers’ rights, environmental protection, consumer protections, food safety, and many other protections for people’s health and well-being. Judge Gorsuch believes that judges should make these decisions instead of agencies with the relevant expertise, which would lead to a dramatic expansion of the power and role of the judiciary. He would relegate this vital precedent to the dustbin of history because it disfavors the corporate interests he championed as a lawyer and as a judge. As several commentators have noted, Judge Gorsuch’s cramped view of the Chevron doctrine is even more extreme than the views of Justice Antonin Scalia.”Judge GorsuchMoney in Politics: “Judge Gorsuch expressed openness to providing a higher level of constitutional protection to a donor’s right to make political contributions than the Court at times has provided the right to vote.”Judge Gorsuch“In Riddle v. Hickenlooper, he wrote a separate concurrence that suggested courts should afford strict scrutiny, the highest constitutional protection, to political contribution limits. That view puts Gorsuch among the ranks of judges who are extremely hostile to campaign finance reform measures and would essentially gut the ability of Congress and the states to set any reasonable limits on money in our elections.””Judge GorsuchEnvironmental Protection: “Judge Gorsuch’s rejection of the binding Chevron decision, which prevents judges from substituting their judgment for that of federal agencies with expertise, betrays a general hostility to regulatory agencies and regulatory safeguards that protect our air, water, lands, and wildlife.”Judge Gorsuch“In United States v. Nichols, he wrote a lengthy dissent that tried to revive an obscure legal doctrine that could strike down many significant environmental laws.”Judge Gorsuch“In Wilderness Society v. Kane County, he concurred with a decision to dismiss a claim brought by several environmental organizations asserting that a county ordinance that opened a large stretch of federal land to off-highway vehicles was preempted by federal law. The dissent in this case observed that the majority holding “will have long-term deleterious effects on the use and management of federal public lands.””GorsuchRight to a Fair Trial:In the case United States v. Benally, Judge Gorsuch voted to deny a petition for rehearing en banc by a Native American defendant who was convicted by a racially biased jury. The foreman of the jury “told the other jurors that he used to live on or near an Indian Reservation, that ‘[w]hen Indians get alcohol, they all get drunk,’ and that when they get drunk, they get violent.” A second juror said she agreed with the foreman. In light of these troubling statements, the district court threw out the jury verdict, concluding that the defendant’s Sixth Amendment right to a fair trial had been violated. The Tenth Circuit disagreed and upheld the conviction. Although Judge Gorsuch was not a member of the original panel, his vote to deny rehearing en banc was a vote of support.”Judge Gorsuch“Judge Gorsuch’s approach to this issue was recently rejected by the Supreme Court in Pena-Rodriguez v. Colorado, where the Court ruled that anti-Hispanic statements during jury deliberations constituted a Sixth Amendment violation.”Judge GorsuchVoting Rights:“In 2006, when he was nominated to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit, Judge Gorsuch stated in his Senate questionnaire that between June 2005 and July 2006, he served as the Principal Deputy to the Associate Attorney General, a job in which he managed several litigating components at the Justice Department, including the Civil Rights Division. On Gorsuch’s watch, political appointees ran roughshod over career attorneys who sought to lodge Section 5 objections under the Voting Rights Act to Georgia’s photo ID law.”“This disgraceful practice was exposed in a November 2005 Washington Post article: “A team of Justice Department lawyers and analysts who reviewed a Georgia voter-identification law recommended rejecting it because it was likely to discriminate against black voters, but they were overruled the next day by higher-ranking officials at Justice, according to department documents…. The plan was blocked on constitutional grounds in October by a U.S. District Court judge, who compared the measure to a Jim Crow-era poll tax.””Judge GorsuchGorsuch should be questioned about his role in supervising the Georgia photo ID litigation and the extent to which he was involved in supporting the use of photo ID laws by Georgia and other states, and about his role in overturning the recommendations of career attorneys to object to such laws.Judge GorsuchGorsuch’s support of Spakovsky: “Few people in the Republican Party have done more to limit voting rights than Hans von Spakovsky. He’s been instrumental in spreading the myth of widespread voter fraud and backing new restrictions to make it harder to vote. But it appears that von Spakovsky had an admirer in Neil Gorsuch, Donald Trump’s nominee for the Supreme Court, according to e-mails released to the Senate Judiciary Committee covering Gorsuch’s time working in the George W. Bush Administration.”In E-mails, Neil Gorsuch Praised a Leading Republican Activist Behind Voter Suppression Efforts“In another e-mail, when von Spakovksy said he was participating in a “Ballot Access and Voter Integrity Conference” at the Justice Department, Gorsuch wrote, “Sounds interesting. Glad to see you’re doing this. I may try to attend some of it.” Though the Justice Department was supposed to investigate both voting discrimination and voter fraud, the latter cause took priority and eventually led to Republican US Attorneys’ being wrongly fired from their jobs for refusing to prosecute fraud cases.”In E-mails, Neil Gorsuch Praised a Leading Republican Activist Behind Voter Suppression EffortsPoliticized Hiring in Civil Rights Division:“The year in which Gorsuch helped manage the Civil Rights Division, political appointees there engaged in unlawful hiring discrimination against lawyers with liberal affiliations, and this became the subject of a 2008 Inspector General report entitled “An Investigation of Allegations of Politicized Hiring and Other Improper Personnel Actions in the Civil Rights Division.””“Gorsuch should be questioned by Senators about his knowledge of and role in these activities, which constituted an unlawful attempt to exclude lawyers from the Department of Justice who had a civil rights background and who would have aggressively enforced federal civil rights laws. He should also be questioned about his role in the 2005 appointment of Bradley Schlozman – whom the Inspector General concluded committed the most infractions – to be the Acting Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights.”Possibility of a Successful filibuster:“There are now at least 36 Senate Democrats who oppose Gorsuch and have pledged to block him with a filibuster, just five shy of the number that would be required to mount a successful filibuster.” - Dem opposition to Trump Supreme Court pick Gorsuch grows; Schumer warns GOPThe Federalist Society and The Heritage foundation wanted Gorsuch to be selectedThe Federalist Society & The Heritage Foundation are “immensely influential but largely unseen network of conservative organizations, donors and lawyers who all share a common goal: Fill the federal courts with scores of judges who are committed to the narrow interpretation of the Constitution that they believe the founders intended.” - In Gorsuch, Conservative Activist Sees Test Case for Reshaping the Judiciary“Federalist Society’s supporters include well-known industry-oriented and libertarian-minded business leaders like Charles G. and David H. Koch; the family foundation of Richard Mellon Scaife; and the Mercer family, which gave significantly to Mr. Trump’s presidential campaign and helped start Breitbart News.” - In Gorsuch, Conservative Activist Sees Test Case for Reshaping the JudiciaryThese groups are also motivated by extreme religious beliefs.Gerrymandering:“Since 1812, gerrymandering has been increasingly used as a tool to divide and distort the electorate. More often than not, state legislatures are tasked with drawing district maps, allowing the electoral foxes to draw and defend their henhouse districts. While no party is innocent when it comes to gerrymandering, a Washington Post analysis in 2014 found that eight of the 10 most gerrymandered districts in the United States were drawn by Republicans…Gerrymandering also disempowers and distorts citizen votes — which leads to decreased turnout and a sense of powerlessness. In 2010, droves of Tea Party activists eager to have their voices heard quickly realized that their own representative was either a solidly liberal Democrat in an overwhelmingly blue district or a solidly conservative Republican in an overwhelmingly red district. Those representatives would not listen because the electoral map meant that they didn’t need to. Those who now oppose President Donald Trump are quickly learning the same lesson about the electoral calculations made by their representatives as they make calls or write letters to congressional representatives who seem about as likely to be swayed as granite. This helps to explain why 2014 turnout sagged to just 36.4 percent, the lowest turnout rate since World War II. Why bother showing up when the result already seems preordained?”Gerrymandering is the biggest obstacle to American democracy“The Supreme Court will rule on partisan gerrymandering in 2017, and it’s a case that could transform — and reinvigorate — American democracy at a time when a positive shock is sorely needed.”Gerrymandering is the biggest obstacle to American democracy“Next term, the Supreme Court is poised to hear the most promising challenge to partisan gerrymandering in more than a decade. Gorsuch is overwhelmingly likely to vote to allow such gerrymandering to continue.”Memo to Democratic senators: If you like your job, filibuster GorsuchThis isn’t just about being bitter over Merrick Garland.The Nuclear Option:“If Democrats amass enough support to block a confirmation vote…Republican Senate leaders to try to change the chamber's long-standing rules and allow confirmation by a simple majority, a move backed by Trump that is sometimes called the "nuclear option." - More Democratic senators oppose Trump's U.S. Supreme Court pick“unilaterally changing Senate rules to lower the threshold for Supreme Court justices from 60 votes to a simple majority in the 100-member Senate…it would amount to a dramatic departure from Senate norms of bipartisanship and collegiality.”Dem opposition to Trump Supreme Court pick Gorsuch grows; Schumer warns GOPThe Nuclear option is dangerous:“White House expects between 70 to 90 appeals court positions to open up over the next four years. That would give Mr. Trump the opportunity to fill anywhere from one-third to half of all appellate seats — a profound impact considering that those courts are often the final word on thousands of cases that never reach the Supreme Court.In Gorsuch, Conservative Activist Sees Test Case for Reshaping the JudiciaryFilibustering was the strategy of the GOP to fight Obama on everything and, like McConnell said, to try and make Obama a one term President.Democratic politicians have historically been much more willing to compromise because that is what their constitutes expected of them. Republican politicians, on the other hand, were much less willing to compromise because that is what their constitutes expected of them:Republicans in Congress have very little incentive to come to the middle on the big issues before the country.And a new poll from the Pew Research Center says it all: Quite simply, it's because the GOP base demands principles over compromise.According to the new national Pew survey, 50 percent of Americans would rather that their elected officials "make compromises with people they disagree with" rather than "stick to their positions" (44 percent).But when you break it down by party, you see the reason we have gridlock.While 59 percent of Democrats prefer compromise to principled stands, just 36 percent of Republicans say the same (compared to 55 percent who want principled stands).For Republicans, that's actually up slightly from the 32 percent who wanted compromise two years ago, after the 2010 election in which the GOP reaped huge gains by standing resolutely against Obama's agenda. But over the same span, the percentage of Democrats calling for compromise has risen significantly -- from 46 percent to 59 percent. And independents have also moved by double digits toward favoring compromise.Whether or not you agree with the idea that Republicans are more unwilling to compromise than Obama and the Democrats, that's certainly the perception that exists today.For Republicans, it seems, they are caught between a rock and a hard place. Their base demands that they resist compromise, but doing so causes the party as a whole to fall out of favor with the American public.The Post-ABC poll shows 71 percent of Americans disapprove of the GOP, while 59 percent disapprove of the Democratic Party and 41 percent disapprove of Obama.Under this set-up, there are really no easy answers for the GOP. If the party's lawmakers compromise more, they may gain favor with the political middle, but their base will resist -- and has resisted -- and they will risk their political careers. If they continue to make principled stands, they will likely win reelection, but their party's brand may remain, as GOP former congressman Tom Davis (Va.) famously said, the political equivalent of "dog food."How and whether Republicans solve this riddle will say a lot about how they progress as a force in American politics.Why Republicans have no incentive to compromiseMore Democrats Than Republicans Prefer Candidate Who CompromisesAmericans Again Call for Compromise in WashingtonThe reality is, there is a lot at stake in the Supreme Court and many of the Democratic politician’s constitutes don’t want Gorsuch to be confirmed:Democrats could be putting up more of a fight than they have so far, and have faced criticism from left-leaning advocacy groups as a result…An overwhelming majority of Democrats and Republicans, at 92 percent and 90 percent respectively, believe that “decisions made by the U.S. Supreme Court have an impact on my everyday life as a citizen,” according a C-SPAN poll released on Friday.There are plenty of Democrats who don’t want Gorsuch confirmed. It’s just that in the end, liberals may care slightly less about this particular Supreme Court appointment than conservatives. Pew data indicates that although a full 50 percent of Democrats believe Gorsuch shouldn’t be confirmed, an even higher percentage of Republicans, at 55 percent, didn’t want Garland to be confirmed.There are also indications that the Supreme Court appointment was a more decisive issue for Trump voters than Clinton voters. Seventy-five percent of Trump voters told pollsters that Supreme Court appointments were either the most important factor or an important factor in how they decided to vote, compared to 68 percent of Clinton voters, according to NBC News…Liberal advocacy groups have expressed disappointment in the collective Democratic response to the nomination…wrote in a letter to Democratic Senators earlier this month, arguing that congressional Democrats had “failed to demonstrate a strong, unified resistance to this nominee” and urging “Democratic senators to immediately make clear your opposition.”…Another challenge for liberal activists who want Senate Democrats to oppose the nomination is that the Supreme Court fight has so far flown relatively under the radar in the midst of congressional battles over the Affordable Care Act, and protest from activists to the Trump administration’s early moves in office…Why Are Democrats Holding Back on Gorsuch?