, and Gillibrand is seated in her office at the Russell Senate Building, back in standard issue black dress and blazer ( a look she's said in the past is by design ). Neil Gorsuch’s Supreme Court nomination hearing is entering its second day. The GOP plan to “repeal and replace” Obamacare is on the verge of imploding. Then there is Russia: The day before, FBI Director James Comey confirmed that there was indeed an FBI investigation into Trump’s allies. “It’s a very intense time,” Gillibrand says, perhaps sharing the understatement of the new century. “There are so many issues that demand immediate action. President Trump has really undermined basic institutions of our Democracy, and each one is as important as the next.” She ticks through the targets of Trump’s myriad attacks: the independent judiciary, the free press, reproductive rights, refugees. "Each of these issues is important," she says.