The week of April 3 as captured by Roll Call’s photographers
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell gives a thumbs-up on Thursday after the Senate invoked the "nuclear option" which will allow for a simple majority vote to confirm a Supreme Court justice nominee. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call)
The consideration of Neil Gorsuch to be an associate justice of the Supreme Court was front and center all week on Capitol Hill. The final vote for confirmation took place Friday morning, with Vice President Mike Pence presiding over the Senate, but the lead-up had more fireworks — with Majority Leader Mitch McConnell invoking the “nuclear option” on Thursday to lower the threshold of cloture votes needed, effectively clearing the way for Gorsuch’s approval.
Here is the entire week in photos:
Vice President Mike Pence leaves the Senate floor following the confirmation vote on Supreme Court nominee Neil Gorsuch in the Capitol on Friday. (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call)
Rick Nielsen of the rock band Cheap Trick makes his way through the Capitol’s Ohio Clock Corridor on Thursday while in town for the Grammys on the Hill events. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call)
South Dakota Sen. John Thune makes his way to a vote in the Senate on Thursday. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call)
A protester from Democracy Spring is arrested in the Hart building on Thursday after sitting down in the atrium to oppose the Senate using the nuclear option to confirm Gorsuch. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call)
Arizona Sen. Jeff Flake hands out alpaca-themed cupcakes and copies of his seventh oversight report, titled “Tax Rackets: Outlandish Loopholes to Lower Tax Liabilities,” to reporters and staff in the Capitol press gallery on Wednesday. One loophole cited involves individuals owning alpacas to use as tax write-offs. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call)
Sens. Marco Rubio, right, and Benjamin L. Cardin conclude a news conference in the Capitol on Wednesday to decry the recent use chemical weapons in Syria that they blamed on the country’s President Bashar Assad. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call)
Oregon Sen. Jeff Merkley wrapped up his marathon floor speech Wednesday morning after more than 15 hours. He then distributed bagels and muffins to Senate staff following the all-nighter. (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call)
Ladley, of the Amtrak K-9 explosive detection team, prepares for an explosive detection demonstration Wednesday at a Senate Commerce Committee markup of legislation known as the Surface Transportation and Maritime Security Act. (Tom WIlliams/CQ Roll Call)
Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer, left, speaks, as Rhode Island Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse looks on, during the Senate Democrats news conference following their policy lunch on Tuesday. (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call)
Whitehouse heads to the Senate floor for a vote on Tuesday. (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call)
House Speaker Paul D. Ryan and House Majority Whip Steve Scalise conduct a news conference after a meeting of the House Republican Conference in the Capitol on Tuesday. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call)
Sens. John Kennedy of Louisiana, left, and Thom Tillis of North Carolina listen to Minnesota Sen. Al Franken make a statement during a Senate Judiciary Committee meeting on Monday to discuss the Gorsuch nomination. Also seen are former New Hampshire Sen. Kelly Ayotte and Delaware Sen. Chris Coons (on screen). (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call)
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