Watch Dick Durbin and Neil Gorsuch's tense standoff over LGBTQ rights

After a brief lunch break Tuesday, Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) reopened the Senate confirmation hearing for Supreme Court nominee Judge Neil Gorsuch with a series of tough questions. "What about LGBTQ individuals?" Durbin asked, attempting to gain insight into Gorsuch's stance on gay rights issues. "What about them?" Gorsuch said. "They're people."

Gorsuch, who ruled in favor of Hobby Lobby in the case over whether the federal government could require companies with religious objections to provide insurance coverage for contraception, insisted he has always "tried to treat each case and each person as a person." "Equal justice under law is a radical promise in the history of mankind," Gorsuch said.

"Does that refer to sexual orientation as well?" Durbin asked. "The Supreme Court of the United States has held that single-sex marriage is protected by the Constitution," Gorsuch said.

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Watch the exchange below. Becca Stanek