Political Upheaval Over Supreme Court Justice Nominees
Supreme Court Politics
Robertson/Sekulow Telemarketer Says, Falsely, John Roberts
Against Partial-Birth Abortion, Homosexual Marriage
The nice lady on the phone is telling me, with great certitude, that Bush Supreme Court nominee John Roberts “is against the partial-birth abortion, and he is against gay marriage,” and this is why a Christian should support him. The nice lady works for “InfoCision,” a Christian call center that is gathering petitions supporting Roberts for Pat Robertson’s “
American Center For Law & Justice” (ACLJ) whose Chief Counsel is Jay Sekulow.
Roberts Says He'll Respect Settled Law
WASHINGTON -- Supreme Court nominee John Roberts is pledging to respect settled law if confirmed. Roberts said precedent is important in "promoting the stability of the legal system." The comments were part of a questionnaire Roberts filled out for the Senate Judiciary Committee. The committee released about 100 pages of his responses on Tuesday. His views are considered critical to gauging his position on overturning the landmark decision legalizing abortion.
Documents reveal Roberts' wealth, philosophy
WASHINGTON -- Supreme Court nominee John Roberts is worth more than $6 million, according to Senate Judiciary Committee documents. A 67-page questionnaire and 16-page financial disclosure was submitted to the panel that will begin confirmation hearings on his nomination Sept. 6. Roberts offered new insights into his personal finances, his judicial philosophy and the way President Bush went about selecting him for the high court. The documents were released Tuesday.
Catholic Justice?
Quit tiptoeing around John Roberts' faith
Everybody seems to have agreed to tiptoe around the report that Judge John G. Roberts said he would recuse himself in a case where the law required a ruling that the Catholic Church might consider immoral. According to Jonathan Turley, a professor of law at George Washington University, the judge gave this answer in a private meeting with Sen. Richard J. Durbin, D-Ill., who is the Senate minority whip. Durbin told Turley that when asked the question, Roberts looked taken aback and paused for a long time before giving his reply.
Confirmation Hearings Set To Begin Sept. 6
A bipartisan group of Senate leaders on Friday announced that confirmation hearings on Judge John Roberts' nomination to the Supreme Court will begin Sept 6, when the Senate returns from its August recess, the... Los Angeles Times reports. According to an agreement reached by Senate leaders, Senate Judiciary Committee members will have until Sept. 12 to submit all questions to Roberts, committee Chair Arlen Specter (R-Pa.) said in a speech on the Senate floor.
August 01, 2005
"American View" Program Continues Analysis of Bush Nominee John Roberts
Click on 16: Hear it now
On this program, we discuss why the most important question a judicial nominee can be asked is:
""Do you believe in the God of the Bible and will you obey His Law?" Related to this, we also discuss reports that Roberts has said his religion (Roman Catholic) will not effect his court rulings."
Because this John Roberts/Supreme Court issue is so important, and because there has been a massive media campaign of disinformation about him being, supposedly, a conservative, we are, again, offering this show.
Confusion persists about Roberts and abortion
Washington -- Protesters from both sides of the abortion debate faced off outside a Northwest D.C. Planned Parenthood clinic with competing messages for Capitol Hill. Some 60 demonstrators carried signs and chanted slogans meant for Congress as it prepares for Judge John Roberts' Supreme Court confirmation hearings in the fall. Roberts has not publicly stated his views on abortion,[?] but has previously called for overturning Roe-versus-Wade, the Supreme Court decision legalizing abortion. Brian Kim from the anti-abortion group Bound-Four-Life told WJLA that the nomination of Roberts shows the tide is turning against legal abortions in the U.S.
Religious Right's Blind Praise for
John Roberts Should Sicken Christians
Why is the "Religious Right" so quick to praise the nomination of John Roberts in spite of how little we know of him, how evil Bush's previous nominations have been, AND Roberts' own admission that he'll support Roe v. Wade as "settled law"? Consider these quotes from Christian leaders:
Jay Sekulow (ACLJ), "I think this is a tremendous pick."
Richard Land (SBC), "I don't know much about John Roberts, but I know a lot about President Bush. President Bush is nominating him, he gets a huge benefit of the doubt from me."
Tony Perkins (FRC), "The President is a man of his word. He promised to nominate someone along the lines of a Scalia or Thomas, and that is exactly what he has done."
Pray tell Mr. Perkins, have Scalia and/or Thomas ever referred to Roe v. Wade as "settled law"? I highly doubt it.
Catholic Judges and a Higher Authority
It's interesting to note that Catholic judges who abide by Roe vs. Wade — or say they will — have been bystanders in the recent debate over potential conflicts between a public official's religious beliefs about abortion and his official duties. But that is changing with the Supreme Court nomination of John G. Roberts Jr., who, if confirmed, would be the fourth Catholic on the Rehnquist court. According to a column on this page by Jonathan Turley, Sen. Richard Durbin of Illinois asked Roberts how he would react if the law required a ruling that the church considers immoral. Roberts reportedly replied that he probably would have to recuse himself. That exchange has been denied by Durbin, but whether it happened or not, the report has unleashed a furor over what trumps what for a sitting judge, faith or law?
Senators debate limits of what Roberts must reveal
WASHINGTON -- Herb Kohl had a "great conversation" when he met privately with Supreme Court nominee John G. Roberts Jr. But when it was over, the Senate Democrat and member of the Judiciary Committee realized how little Roberts had revealed of himself. Democrats don't all agree among themselves about what questions demand answers. But some say they just want to know what President Bush presumably knows - what Roberts' judicial philosophy is and how he is likely to approach the major questions before the court.
July 29, 2005
Judgment Day
The Judges War IS The Culture War
Looking back at the great court battles since 1968, all have involved the character assassination of nominees seen as conservative: Haynsworth, Carswell, Bork, and Thomas. But for Clinton nominees Stephen Breyer and Ruth Bader Ginsburg, liberal judicial activists both, the Senate Republicans rolled over. The Left gets it, but many Bush Republicans still don’t. They don’t like moral issues, and they don’t enlist in culture wars. But as the Left has turned the Supreme Court into a judicial tyranny more powerful than the president or Congress in deciding social and moral questions, Republicans have two choices: they can fight the Judges War, or they can lose the war. Neutrality—a Bush choice of a non-controversial justice—will be, and will be seen by the president’s friends and enemies alike as a stacking of arms, a surrender, a cowardly retreat in the Culture War. The Judges War is about Bush’s legacy and America’s future. No issue is more crucial. Whether America is kept safe for Christianity is more important than whether Iraq is made safe for democracy.
Roberts Impresses Schumer In Meetings
WASHINGTON - Supreme Court nominee John G. Roberts Jr. assured one of his main potential adversaries Sen. Charles E. Schumer - that he's no ideologue, Schumer said Wednesday. "Judge Roberts has already begun the process of trying to convince me and the rest of the American people that he is not an ideologue," said Schumer, a New Yorker who serves as the top Democrat on the Judiciary subcommittee that oversees judicial appointments. "And he's not off to a bad start. In fact, at our meeting last night, he told me that he is not an ideologue and said that he shares my aversion to ideologues."
Roberts tells Democrats he won't be 'activist judge'
WASHINGTON -- U.S. Supreme Court nominee John Roberts said on Thursday he would not be the type of justice both political parties denounce, one who tries to make laws rather than rule on them, a Democratic senator said. "He said he would not be an 'activist judge,"' Sen. Ben Nelson of Nebraska told reporters after a private meeting with the 50-year-old conservative nominee. But Nelson, like other Democrats, said he would withhold judgment on Roberts until the nominee's Senate confirmation hearing, likely in late August or early September.
I Like Mine Spicy
There can be no question that Judge Roberts is exceptionally well qualified to serve as the next Supreme Court Justice … A man of character, Judge Roberts understands the Constitution and has a record of applying the law — not legislating from the bench. ~Jay Sekulow, attorney who argues for prayer in government schools before the Supreme Court, but refuses to support Christian Judge Roy Moore, on the president’s Supreme Court nominee.
July 27, 2005
"American View" Radio Show Exposes Pro-Abortion View of Bush Nominee John Roberts
Click on 15: Hear it now
On this program, you will hear Roberts say, in a 2003 confirmation hearing:
"Roe v. Wade is the settled law of the land. It is not--it's a little more than settled. It was reaffirmed in the face of a challenge that it should be overruled in the Casey decision. Accordingly, it's the settled law of the land. There's nothing in my personal views that would prevent me from fully and faithfully applying that precedent, as well as Casey."
This is a very significant admission because Roberts is saying he has no personal view that in any way sees abortion --- the murder of innocent, unborn children --- as being wrong. And this is why he will uphold all the Supreme Court decisions making abortion "legal."
White House trots out Gonzales: Supreme
Court not bound by Roe v. Wade -Duh
WASHINGTON -- The legal right to abortion is settled for lower courts, but the Supreme Court "is not obliged to follow" the Roe v. Wade precedent, Attorney General Alberto Gonzales said Tuesday as the Senate prepared to consider John Roberts' appointment that would put a new vote on the high court. In an interview with The Associated Press, Gonzales said a justice does not have to follow a previous ruling "if you believe it's wrong," a comment suggesting Roberts would not be bound by his past statement that the 1973 decision settled the issue.
White House releases Roberts documents
Documents show Roberts aiding O'Connor
WASHINGTON -- As a young Justice Department lawyer, John Roberts helped guide Supreme Court nominee Sandra Day O'Connor through the Senate confirmation process he now confronts as the choice to replace her. Roberts was just six weeks into his job when he drafted a memo to Kenneth Starr describing his work with O'Connor. The young Roberts said he helped ready O'Connor for her confirmation hearing, preparing draft answers to questions she was likely to be asked.
White House To Withhold Nominee's Tax Returns
The Bush administration will not give Senate investigators access to the federal tax returns of Supreme Court nominee John G. Roberts Jr., White House and congressional officials said yesterday, a break with precedent that could exacerbate a growing conflict over document disclosure in the confirmation process. Although nominees to the high court in recent decades were required to provide their three most recent annual tax forms, the administration will neither collect such documents from Roberts nor share them with the Senate Judiciary Committee, the officials said. Instead, the Internal Revenue Service will produce a one-page summary.
Frist wants Aug. hearings
Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.) and GOP members of the Judiciary Committee are pressing Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Arlen Specter (R-Pa.) to start hearings on Supreme Court nominee John Roberts during the August recess. Specter is reluctant, having said last week, “It’s possible to start the hearings in August, but I think September is a preferable time. We have a substantial period of time.”
July 26, 2005
Supreme Court nom Roberts gives assurances -Senator
WASHINGTON -- A Republican senator said on Monday that Supreme Court nominee John Roberts had assured him he would rule on the law without the influence of his Catholic religion, which opposes abortion. "He recognized that anybody who cannot do that ... is unsuitable for the bench," Sen. John Cornyn of Texas said after a private meeting with President Bush's conservative candidate for the high court.
The Baloney of Strict Constructionism
In the Empire Strikes Back, “Episode V,” in the six-part Star Wars saga, viewers are introduced to the Cloud City of Bespin and its ruler Lando Calrissian. Cloud City was a man-made satellite community that hovered in the midst of valuable gas reserves. The image of a city floating in the midst of clouds reminds me of the United States Constitution. Without acknowledging an outside authority—a higher law—as the source of right and wrong, the Constitution hangs among the clouds of shifting ethical winds.
Feinstein calls Roberts 'impressive'
WASHINGTON -- Sen. Dianne Feinstein met one-on-one with Supreme Court nominee John Roberts on Monday, emerging to compliment him as modest, thoughtful and impressive. "He clearly is, I think, a very unusual person, because you do get the direct feeling of humility and modesty, and yet he apparently is very precise in his writing, his judging, his ability to put cases together when he was an attorney," said Feinstein, D-Calif., the only woman on the 18-member Senate Judiciary Committee that will hold hearings on the nomination. "I don't think there's anybody on the court quite like he will be in that sense, because my sense is that he really grapples with the law and the interpretation of the law rather than any extraneous points of bias," she said after the hourlong meeting in her office.
Lieberman says he's encouraged
following meeting with Roberts
HARTFORD, Conn. -- Sen. Joe Lieberman said a meeting with Supreme Court nominee John Roberts on Monday left him satisfied that Roberts is not an ideologue. Following a meeting with Roberts, who is President Bush's choice to succeed Associate Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, Lieberman said he got to know Roberts and his views "a little better."
White House to Release Some Roberts Documents
WASHINGTON -- The Bush administration plans to release documents from Judge John G. Roberts's tenure in the White House counsel's office in the mid-1980's and his earlier job working for the attorney general, but will not make public papers covering the four years he spent as principal deputy solicitor general starting in 1989, two senior administration officials said Monday. The decision fulfilled a request for disclosure of the documents made on Monday by Senator Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania, the chairman of the Judiciary Committee, which will hold the confirmation hearings for Judge Roberts, President Bush's choice to fill the Supreme Court seat being vacated by Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, said the senator's spokesman, Bill Reynolds.
Susan Ager: Roberts Seems Nice, Ordinary
I wish I could summon some liberal outrage about the nomination of John G. Roberts to the U.S. Supreme Court, but the more I learn about him, the more I relax and think: He can't be so bad. In particular I am impressed to know that he and his wife, Jane, did not marry until they were 41 years old. That implies that building a perfect American family wasn't the only thing on their list of ambitions. It also implies that, unless they are freaks, they might have had sex outside marriage, with each other or someone else. They might have had to practice birth control. They might have had a pregnancy fear or two. They may have had to confront the prospect of enduring an unwanted pregnancy, or ending it. I hope they were glad to have had options.
July 25, 2005
Hillary Clinton To Support Bush Court Nominee
Senator Hillary Clinton has confided to associates that she intends to vote FOR Bush Supreme Court nominee John Roberts, the DRUDGE REPORT has learned. Unless some unforeseen development occurs around Roberts, Clinton will throw her support behind confirmation, says a top source.
Roberts Vote Fraught With 2008 Politics
Washington -- Among the senators deciding whether to put John Roberts on the Supreme Court, no one may have more at stake than those with designs on the White House in 2008. For those harboring the slightest interest in a presidential bid, the debate over the first high-court nominee in more than a decade leaves a tricky calculation: what to say - and not to say - about a jurist expected to steer the court to the right but whose enigmatic record makes him difficult to predict.
The Politics Of Abortion
Republican Presidents have had twelve of their appointees have a bite at the abortion apple, whether in the original Roe case or subsequent cases that were attempts to overturn Roe. Below is the list of those Republican appointees and how they fared when they had a crack at upholding life.
Pro-Lifers Are Selling Out
John G. Roberts, in his 2003 D.C. Circuit confirmation hearing, said: “Roe v. Wade is the settled law of the land. ... There’s nothing in my personal views that would prevent me from fully and faithfully applying that precedent.” Pro-life leaders support Roberts because Christians have compromised on “Thou shall not murder” so often and for so long we no longer can discern right from wrong.
White House Won't Show All Roberts Papers
WASHINGTON -- The Bush administration does not intend to release all memos and others documents written by Supreme Court nominee John Roberts during his tenure with two Republican administrations, a White House representative said Sunday. Fred D. Thompson, the former Tennessee senator who is guiding Roberts through the nomination process on behalf of the White House, said material that would come under attorney-client privilege would be withheld. He said previous administrations, both Republican and Democrat, have followed that principle.
Federalist Affiliation Misstated
Roberts Does Not Belong to Group
Everyone knows that, like all good Republican lawyers, John G. Roberts Jr. is a member of the Federalist Society, the conservative law and public policy organization where right-of-center types meet to denounce liberalism and angle for jobs in the Bush administration. And practically everyone -- CNN, the Los Angeles Times, Legal Times and, just yesterday, The Washington Post -- has reported Roberts's membership as a fact. One liberal group opposed to Roberts's nomination, the Alliance for Justice, has noted it on its Web site. But they are wrong. John Roberts is not, in fact, a member of the Federalist Society, and he says he never has been.
Opposition To Roberts Slow To Muster
WASHINGTON -- Appellate judge John G. Roberts Jr.'s nomination to the Supreme Court has caused an early splintering among liberal groups who were geared up for an epic battle against President Bush's nominee, providing momentum to Republican-led efforts to have Roberts quickly confirmed in the Senate.
July 23, 2005
Key Democrats upbeat over Roberts
WASHINGTON -- U.S. Supreme Court nominee John Roberts said on Friday he "hates bullies" who prey on the powerless, which pleased a key Democratic senator as the conservative candidate stepped up a Capitol charm offensive. "I liked that answer," Assistant Senate Democratic leader Richard Durbin of Illinois said after a private meeting with President Bush's nominee. Roberts has received generally upbeat receptions in initial visits this week with Democratic and Republican senators who will decide whether to confirm him to replace retiring Justice Sandra Day O'Connor -- who was a key swing vote between the court's liberal and conservative wings.
Kerry says White House should release
all of Roberts' documents and papers
WASHINGTON -- Democratic Sen. John Kerry urged the White House on Friday to release "in their entirety" all documents and memos from Supreme Court nominee John Roberts' tenure in two Republican administrations. "We cannot do our duty if either Judge Roberts or the Bush administration hides elements of his professional record," said the Massachusetts senator who was his party's presidential candidate last year.
President uses radio speech to tout Roberts' credentials
WASHINGTON -- From a distinguished legal pedigree to a belief in strict interpretation of the Constitution to summers working in a steel mill, President Bush on Saturday reviewed the reasons he chose federal appellate judge John Roberts for the Supreme Court.
Republican Brown Nosers to 'monitor' nomination
DES MOINES -- Party lackeys of several [so called] "conservative groups" in Iowa warned potential presidential candidates on Friday that "our members will be watching" confirmation hearings for Supreme Court nominee John Roberts. "The manner in which you conduct yourselves during this process will help steer the tenor of the Senate and potentially of the next presidential campaign," the Party boot lickers said in a "Dear Senator" letter aimed at lawmakers pondering a run for president. "We intend to follow this process closely," the letter said. The groups endorsing the letter range from the Iowa Christian Coalition, the Iowa Family Policy Center, Iowans for Tax Relief and 11 Republican members of the Legislature. It was reported that the RNC 'Brown Nosers' have enormous influence over Republican politics in the state and their ire could doom a presidential candidate among the GOP.
July 22, 2005
Surprise Confirmation Hearings' Topic
Interstate Commerce Front and Center
Democratic senators signaled yesterday that they may quiz President Bush's Supreme Court nominee more closely about his views on interstate commerce than on abortion. But some Republicans, sensing that John G. Roberts Jr.'s nomination is off to a powerful start, counseled him to say as little as possible on all fronts.
A Six-Pronged Strategy For Defeating Roberts
Although defeating Judge John Roberts, President Bush's nominee to the Supreme Court, is an uphill climb for Senate Democrats and the liberal groups allied with them, the outlines have emerged of a strategy to challenge, if not defeat Roberts. Democrats and liberal groups will press Roberts on several fronts, using varied arguments, some short-lived and simple, others more substantive and subtle. Here are the themes Democrats and liberal advocates were using as Roberts made his second day of courtesy calls to senators.
Roberts Makes Gains Toward Senate Approval
WASHINGTON -- Supreme Court nominee John Roberts gained ground Thursday in his drive for Senate confirmation. He was rated a ``non-activist judge, which everyone is looking for,'' by the Republican chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee and was praised by several centrist Democrats. ``I'm enjoying my visits here in the Senate very much,'' said the 50-year-old appeals court judge, named to succeed Justice Sandra Day O'Connor. Roberts' second day of courtesy calls included Sens. Edward M. Kennedy of Massachusetts and Charles Schumer of New York, two of the three Democrats who opposed his nomination to the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals two years ago.
Howard Phillips' Daily Commentary
The Conservative Caucus
Let’s be judicious in evaluating President Bush’s choice of John G. Roberts, Jr. to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court. Areas of possible concern include his tenure with the liberal establishment law firm Hogan & Hartson and his work with the left-wing Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. A big red flag for me was the fact that he twice referred to the United States government as a “Constitutional democracy”, whereas the Constitution makes clear that we are a “republic” and that a republican form of government is guaranteed to each state. On the plus side regarding Mr. Roberts is his strong backing from William Rehnquist who has been one of the better members of the Supreme Court. We have a lot to learn, and The Conservative Caucus is currently involved in a major research project so that we can come to a considered, responsible conclusion regarding the prospective tenure of Judge Roberts.
O'Connor Bemoans Hill Rancor at Judges
SPOKANE, Wash. -- With retirement looming and her proposed successor waiting in the wings, Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor warned here Thursday that the independence of federal judges is under a greater threat from Congress than ever before in her lifetime. "I am pretty old, you know," said O'Connor, who is 75 and had served on the court for 24 years when she announced early this month that she would be stepping down. "In all of the years of my life, I don't think I have ever seen relations as strained as they are now between the judiciary and some members of Congress. It makes me very sad to see it."
July 21, 2005
Souter In Roberts Clothing
Ann Coulter
"We don’t know much about John Roberts. Stealth nominees have never turned out to be a pleasant surprise for conservatives. Never. Not ever... Oh, yeah...we know he's argued cases before the supreme court. big deal; so has Larry Flynt's attorney. And it makes no difference that conservatives in the White House are assuring us Roberts can be trusted. We got the exact same assurances from officials working for the last president Bush about David Hackett Souter. I believe their exact words were, "Read our lips; Souter's a reliable conservative."
Roberts’ wife is a feminist… a pro-life feminist
Pro-aborts are a tad riled up after reading a post referring to another post at redstate.org which claims that Roberts’ wife used to be the Executive Vice President of Feminists For Life… a Pro-Life organization. As it turns out- the claim is completely true. Jane Sullivan Roberts was part of the org in 1998 and 1999. I’m not finding any info about when or why she left, but we at least know she was pro-life. (Spouse strives to end abortion).
The President's Choice
The Washington Post - editorial
Judge Roberts is a conservative, but he has never been an ideological crusader; he has admirers among liberals. ... The reality, however, is that nobody really knows what Judge Roberts believes, because he has been unusually careful about not discussing his views. His judicial work has been, generally speaking, careful and has given little away about the attitudes of the man who wrote it. So sphinx-like has he been that some conservatives have suggested he might have a "Souter problem" -- that is, not be a real conservative at all.
Roberts Begins To Prepare For Confirmation Hearings
WASHINGTON -- Two years after the Senate made him an appeals judge, Supreme Court nominee John Roberts began preparing Wednesday for tough confirmation hearings ahead. Roberts told senators in 2003 he would abide by Roe v. Wade while on the appeals court; now Democrats say they will press him on whether he would seek to overturn that abortion rights ruling should he join the high court. "The Supreme Court is totally different than courts of appeals," said Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee that will hold hearings on Roberts, probably in September. "The nominee for the Supreme Court has the broadest jurisdiction and ability to change people's lives."
Filibuster of Roberts Extremely Unlikely
WASHINGTON -- The possibility of a Democratic filibuster against Supreme Court nominee John Roberts in the Republican-controlled Senate seemed to all but disappear Wednesday. One influential Democrat said Roberts was "in the ballpark" of being a nonconfrontational selection. A Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee, which will hold hearings on Roberts' nomination, said she did not think the appeals court judge was "filibuster-able."
July 20, 2005
Abortion Stance Key to Confirmation
Judge John G. Roberts Jr., a practicing Catholic, who has argued 39 cases before the Supreme Court, may get the chance to hear even more cases from the other side of the bench. In an announcement Tuesday night, President Bush picked Roberts to replace retiring Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor. He is seen as a solid conservative who has done little to give Democrats much cause for complaint. But the jurist is unlikely to get off without considerable scrutiny, foremost of which will focus on Roberts' stand on Roe v. Wade — a position that he has left largely up in the air publicly. Republican presidents in the past couple decades have been hurt by unknowns appointed to the bench. Justices David Souter and Anthony Kennedy have proved to be more liberal-leaning than expected, much to the disappointment of anti-abortion conservatives.
Women Closest to Bush Are Pro-Choice
During the 2000 presidential campaign, Barbara Bush said the Republican Party should drop an anti-abortion plank from its national platform. "Listen to your mama," declared a radio ad aired at the time by an abortion-rights group. "That's a family value we can all agree on."Now, as President Bush readies to announce his choice for a Supreme Court justice, that ad remains one of the only direct references to a rarely-mentioned fact: The women closest to the president support abortion rights. His mother, his wife and one of his most trusted advisors, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, all have stated that they believe Roe v. Wade should not be overturned.
Democrats vow tough scrutiny of Bush's Supreme Court pick
WASHINGTON -- Democrats who suspect President George W. Bush is seeking to swing the US Supreme Court to the right have vowed intense scrutiny of the record of the new nominee for the powerful court. Rights groups immediately raised questions about the stance of appeals court judge John Roberts on issues such as abortion and experts said there could be a "nasty fight" in the Senate over the nomination.
Nominee's Hearings Set for Aug. or Sept.
WASHINGTON -- Within minutes of the announcement that President Bush had selected a Supreme Court nominee, the Republican-controlled Senate began preparing for a late summer confirmation struggle. Confirmation hearings before the Senate Judiciary Committee are expected to begin in late August or early September, Republicans said, with an eye toward getting Bush's nominee confirmed before the Supreme Court opens its fall term Oct. 3.
July 19, 2005
Bush nominates Roberts for Supreme Court
WASHINGTON -- President Bush has picked U.S. Circuit Judge John Roberts Jr., a moderate conservative, to fill the upcoming vacancy on the Supreme Court.
Profile: John G. Roberts
John G. Roberts, 50, sits on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. He was nominated in 2003 by President George W. Bush. He was also nominated by the first President Bush, but he never received a Senate vote. On Abortion: Roberts has generally avoided weighing in on disputed social issues. Abortion rights groups, however, have pointed out that Roberts tried during his days as a lawyer in the first Bush administration to overturn Roe v. Wade. Roberts did help write a brief that stated "we continue to believe that Roe was wrongly decided and should be overruled." Yet when pressed during his 2003 confirmation hearing for his own views on the matter, Roberts said: "Roe v. Wade is the settled law of the land. ... There's nothing in my personal views that would prevent me from fully and faithfully applying that precedent."
Bush Looking At Women For Court, Sources Say
WASHINGTON -- President Bush said Monday he would move swiftly to fill a Supreme Court opening, while Republican strategists said he is concentrating on female candidates and is close to a decision. Bush said he is still evaluating prospects and needs to talk with some face-to-face. But he also said he wants the Senate to be able to complete confirmation hearings so a new justice will be on the court when it begins its new session in the fall. ''My desire is to get this process moving so that someone will be confirmed -- whoever he or she is -- will be confirmed by October,'' Bush said.
Conservatives are told it will not be Gonzales
White House officials have assured select conservative leaders that they will not nominate Attorney General Alberto Gonzales to the Supreme Court to replace retiring Associate Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, according to a conservative familiar with the behind-the-scenes discussions.
Supreme Court market lets you
put your money where your hunch is
WASHINGTON -- A North Carolina professor has created his own stock market to predict the next Supreme Court nominee, and you can participate. Kevin McGuire's Supreme Court Futures Market lets you buy and sell play-money shares in any of 15 potential nominees to fill retiring Justice Sandra Day O'Connor's spot. The higher the price for a potential nominee's share, the more likely it is that President Bush will choose him or her, McGuire's theory goes.
Abortion Litmus Test Ahead For Nominee
For the better part of the last 30 years, the news media have reported that Americans are divided into two camps when it comes to abortion. You're either for it or against it. The issue is relevant these days as President Bush ponders an appointment to the Supreme Court. Those who support abortion rights and those opposed are making their voices heard because they want a justice who supports their cause and they fear one who doesn't.
Related
Bush DOES have a litmus test
Despite the impression he leaves sometimes because he doesn’t speak all that precisely, President Bush DOES have a litmus test for his judicial nominees. He just doesn’t care enough about the murder of innocent, unborn babies to include the abortion issue in his litmus test.
Rehnquist's health is of supreme importance
When President Grover Cleveland contracted oral cancer in 1893, he agreed to have surgery only if it would be kept secret from the public. So he went on an ostensible vacation on a yacht down the East River in New York, where his surgeon removed the tumor while the boat was under sail. The truth didn't emerge for another quarter of a century.
July 18, 2005
GOP Allies Say Bush Is Close to Court Pick
Choice May Be Announced This Week
President Bush, accelerating his search for a new Supreme Court justice, appears to have narrowed his list of candidates to no more than a few finalists and could announce his decision in the next few days, Republican strategists informed about White House plans said yesterday. Advisers to Bush had anticipated an announcement closer to the end of the month, but the White House signaled allies over the weekend to be prepared for a nomination this week, according to the strategists, who asked not to be named because the process remains officially confidential. "We've been told to be ready," one strategist said.
Bush wants new justice on bench by October
President 'familiar' enough with
some candidates to skip interviews
WASHINGTON -- President Bush said Monday he is reviewing potential candidates for the Supreme Court vacancy with the goal of ensuring a replacement for Justice Sandra Day O'Connor by the new court session in October.
O'Connor Urged to Reconsider Retirement
WASHINGTON -- Four female senators called for retiring Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor to stay on the court and try for chief justice if the ailing William Rehnquist steps down. In a letter to O'Connor, Republicans Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins of Maine and Democrats Mary Landrieu of Louisiana and Barbara Boxer of California asked the nation's first female justice to consider staying on the high court if Chief Justice Rehnquist relinquishes the top spot.
Specter: Bush Should Pick Justice to Keep Court's Balance
President George W. Bush should nominate a successor to Sandra Day O'Connor who maintains the U.S. Supreme Court's current balance, Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Arlen Specter said. ``The Supreme Court decides all of the cutting-edge questions,'' Specter said on the TV program ``Fox News Sunday.'' ``When you have these very delicate questions, it's helpful to the country to have somebody who is a swing vote, which maintains the balance.''
Bush urged to look at politicians for Supreme Court
WASHINGTON -- The chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee suggested on Sunday that President George W. Bush consider nominating a politician, rather than an appeals court veteran, for a Supreme Court opening. Bush has stepped up his review of candidates to replace retiring Justice Sandra Day O'Connor and is expected to announce his decision as early as this week. Several appeals court judges are believed to be on Bush's short list.
An Epic Struggle On Two Fronts
[C]onsider the stated intentions of liberals to maintain their hegemony among Supreme Court justices, especially in light of the Court’s outrageous decisions of recent weeks. Americans who remained indifferent to the horrendous usurpations of power exercised in its past abortion and sodomy decisions are just now realizing how the Kelo v. New London “eminent domain” ruling threatens their very ability to own property.
How Much Should Precedent Bind Judges?
Whomever President Bush nominates to fill Sandra Day O'Connor's seat on the US Supreme Court will inherit enormous power immediately upon confirmation. It is the power to assume Justice O'Connor's role of breaking deadlocks in major cases. But perhaps more important, it includes the raw judicial power to overturn many of O'Connor's decisions, should four other like-minded justices agree to take up the task. With high-court opinions on affirmative action, school vouchers, states' rights, and so-called "partial birth" abortion hanging in the balance, questions about the importance of upholding Supreme Court precedent will play a central role in upcoming confirmation hearings, legal analysts say.
July 15, 2005
Moore touted for Supreme Court
WASHINGTON -- At a time when a number of court watchers are urging President Bush to nominate a Supreme Court candidate who can quickly win Senate confirmation, one group is pushing a man who could be the biggest judicial lightning rod in the country. The Conservative Caucus on Wednesday raised former Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore’s name as a potential jurist to replace retiring Justice Sandra Day O’Connor. Caucus members called Moore the perfect candidate for the Supreme Court.
Conservative Caucus's Choice for Top Court Is Cast in Stone
Upstairs in the otherwise staid University Club yesterday was a gathering designed to annoy President Bush: Members of a group called the Conservative Caucus sat around an oval table wearing Ten Commandments pins on their lapels and declining to speak in the polite tones favored by Bush in this "dignified debate" over judicial nominations.
Groups want Moore on court
WASHINGTON -- A group called the Conservative Caucus this week said the only man qualified to replace outgoing Justice Sandra Day O'Connor is Roy Moore, former chief justice of Alabama, best known for refusing to follow a federal order to remove a monument of the Ten Commandments from the state courthouse. "A national hero to millions," Howard Phillips, chairman of the Conservative Caucus, says of Moore. "The great patriot, that exemplary jurist, God's man for these times."
Rehnquist Ends Speculation, Will
Head Supreme Court as Long as Possible
Squelching rumors of his retirement, Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist said Thursday he will continue heading the Supreme Court while battling thyroid cancer. "I'm not about to announce my retirement," he said. "I want to put to rest the speculation and unfounded rumors of my imminent retirement," Rehnquist, 80, said in a statement first disclosed by The Associated Press and later confirmed by the court. "I will continue to perform my duties as chief justice as long as my health permits."
July 13, 2005
Abortion clash awaits Supreme Court nominee
WASHINGTON -- The newest member of the Supreme Court will be thrust immediately into the role of potential tiebreaker in a case that could lead to more restrictions on abortions. Abortion, more than any other issue, hangs over the debate about the court's future now that Sandra Day O'Connor, the first female justice, has announced her retirement.
Keep court centered, GOP moderates urge
In the weeks before the Supreme Court concluded its term for the summer, a group of women senators, Republicans and Democrats, came together with a bold suggestion for President Bush. They, like the White House, were expecting ailing Chief Justice William Rehnquist to announce his retirement at the end of June. To fill the vacancy, they would urge Bush to nominate Justice Sandra Day O'Connor as the first female chief justice of the United States.
Bush Says He Might Consider Newcomers for High Court
WASHINGTON -- President Bush said today that his nominee for the Supreme Court may be someone who has never sat on the bench before. "Would I be willing to consider people who had never been a judge?" Mr. Bush said. "And the answer is, 'You bet.'" Mr. Bush said he had had "a very good meeting" on Tuesday with Senate leaders of both parties, who had encouraged him to look beyond the federal judiciary for candidates to replace the retiring Justice Sandra Day O'Connor.
Rehnquist Hospitalized for Fever in Va.
WASHINGTON -- Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist, ailing with cancer, has been hospitalized with a fever, spurring more retirement speculation about the 33-year veteran of the Supreme Court. The 80-year-old Rehnquist was taken by ambulance to Virginia Hospital Center in Arlington, Va., on Tuesday night and was admitted for observation and tests, Supreme Court spokeswoman Kathy Arberg said. There was no immediate word on his condition Wednesday afternoon.
Rehnquist's illness fuels replacement debate
Washington was plunged into a new round of speculation about the future of the US Supreme Court with the announcement late yesterday that Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist (80), who has thyroid cancer, has been admitted to hospital with a fever.
July 13, 2005
Laura Bush: Name woman to high court
WASHINGTON -- While the nation awaits President Bush's first Supreme Court pick, he was bombarded yesterday with suggestions from lawmakers - and even his wife. The President heard from his wife - via an interview on NBC's "Today Show" - about what she is looking for on the nation's highest court. "Sure, I would really like for him to name another woman," First Lady Laura Bush said while on her goodwill tour of Africa. In the Oval Office, the President appeared surprised to hear the First Lady wished for another female justice to replace Sandra Day O'Connor, who is retiring. "She did? Well, good," he told reporters. "I can't wait to hear her advice in person when she gets back."
Politics Of Court Nominations - Preserving The Status Quo
If any issue could have reinvigorated the movement that swept Republicans to political power throughout the nation in 1994, it was the unconstitutional usurpation of power by courts on all levels. Social conservatives have been confounded by court rulings that protect, among other things, abortion, nude dancing, and sodomy but declare public prayer, the Ten Commandments, and Nativity scenes threats to liberty. If any judicial opinion lent itself to a conservative majority working to define the proper limits on judicial power, Newdow offered that opportunity.
Abortion Turning Blue States Red
I just came across this piece from the L.A. Times on attitudes toward abortion among the next generation. The fact that UCLA's incoming freshman survey is finding that students are increasingly anti-abortion used to puzzle me until I saw this interesting piece last year in the Wall Street Journal. Another Journal reporter weighed in last week with this piece. I'm no demographer, but if there's a grain of truth to this stuff it can't be good for the Democratic party. As if losing the votes of millions of culturally moderate to conservative Democrats and independents wasn't enough, according to this data millions of future Democratic voters aren't making it past the second trimester in higher numbers than their Republican counterparts.
Litmus Test is Abortion for the Right and the Left
The way some conservatives see it, there's no such thing as "moderation" when it comes to the topic of abortion. And the way liberals see it, a "consensus" Supreme Court candidate is one who would defend Americans' rights, including the legal right to abortion.
Hispanic judges on Dems' list for Bush
WASHINGTON -- Top Senate Democrats floated the names of potential candidates for the Supreme Court on Tuesday in a meeting with President Bush, describing them as the type of nominee who could avoid a fierce confirmation battle. Several officials familiar with the discussion said Judge Sonia Sotomayor of the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals, Judge Ed Prado of the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, and U.S. District Court Judge Ricardo Hinojosa, all of whom are Hispanic, were among the names mentioned as Bush met with key lawmakers from both parties to discuss the first high court vacancy in 11 years.
July 12, 2005
Conservatives Fear Souter Repeat in Supreme Court Choice
Labeled a "home run" for conservatives when he was nominated for a vacancy on the U.S. Supreme Court in 1990, Justice David Souter has turned out to be anything but. Only one prominent conservative organization, the Conservative Caucus, opposed Souter's nomination 15 years ago. Other conservative groups believed Souter would help overturn Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court's 1973 ruling legalizing abortion. "I discovered that as a trustee of two New Hampshire hospitals -- Dartmouth Hitchcock and Concord Memorial -- [Souter] had changed the policies of those two hospitals from zero abortion to convenience abortion," Howard Phillips, chairman of the Conservative Caucus, told Cybercast News Service in recalling his investigation of Souter's background. "So clearly, this was a guy who was going to be on the left wing of the Supreme Court," he said.
Related
Why Are Conservatives Nervous About
The President's Supreme Court Pick?
What's all the fuss? Should not conservatives simply relax? After all, they have been telling us since G.W. Bush's first presidential campaign back in 2000 that he was a true believer, a genuine conservative. Therefore, since Bush is a real pro-life conservative, what is there to worry about?
White House Focuses on Replacing O'Connor
WASHINGTON -- The White House said Monday it was prepared for the possibility of the first double vacancy on the Supreme Court in more than three decades but said it had received no signal that the widely rumored retirement of Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist was about to happen. Lacking any definitive word, the White House focused its efforts on replacing retiring Justice Sandra Day O'Connor. President Bush's advisers have reached out to more than 60 senators about the impending nomination - although some Democrats said the administration was not sharing the names of nominees on Bush's short list. Bush planned to discuss the court situation on Tuesday at the White House with Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa., chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee; Sen. Patrick Leahy of Vermont, the ranking Democrat on the committee; Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn.; and Democratic Leader Harry Reid of Nevada.
Bush Said Ready For More Court Vacancies
WASHINGTON -- President Bush is prepared for additional Supreme Court vacancies should they occur, the White House said yesterday amid speculation that Chief Justice William Rehnquist will retire and give Bush a second appointment to make to the high court. For days, some court specialists have been anticipating a retirement announcement from Rehnquist, who is 80 and has thyroid cancer. If Rehnquist retires, his vacancy would give Bush a second Supreme Court opening to fill, along with that of Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, who said July 1 that she will retire when a replacement is confirmed by the Senate. ''This is something that we have prepared for for quite some time at the White House. But I'm not aware of any announcement that's been made on an additional vacancy at this point," said White House spokesman Scott McClellan.
Made for TV Drama: Committee to quiz high court nominee
WASHINGTON -- The upcoming first-in-a-decade hearings on a Supreme Court nominee will play out before a Senate committee known for partisan clashes and featuring some of Congress's most legendary liberals and ardent conservatives. Over four days of televised hearings this summer, the Senate Judiciary Committee will dig for information and frame the debate that will largely determine whether the full Senate embraces President Bush's nominee or splits down the middle, possibly embarking on a filibuster.
Specter holds pivotal role in Supreme Court process
WASHINGTON -- Sen. Arlen Specter brings more than just experience in leading the Senate's scrutiny of a Supreme Court nominee. As a moderate Republican, Specter keenly understands the meaning of Justice Sandra Day O'Connor's departure from the closely divided court. As a cancer patient, he knows too well the agony Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist, battling thyroid cancer, must be feeling about whether to stay on the bench. The fact that Specter is chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee makes his role even more pivotal.
July 11, 2005
Buying Justice
Business to Spend Millions for Supreme Court Justice
Setting up a potential clash with religious conservatives, the national business lobby for the first time is marshaling its forces to per$uade the White House to pick an industry-friendly Supreme Court nominee. With vital interests at stake, business advocates are raising millions of dollars, plotting major lobbying campaigns, and quietly working to influence the president as he ponders a replacement for Justice Sandra Day O'Connor. For 2 1/2 years, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the nation's largest business association, has privately funneled to the White House staff in-depth analyses of decisions rendered by federal appeals court judges - the most likely pool of high court candidates. The reports, which the chamber declined to make public, grade jurists on their pro-business leanings, and none received a rating of more than 70 out of 100.
Signs Rehnquist retirement may be delayed
Senators Split on Rehnquist Retirement
WASHINGTON -- Amid widespread rumors and speculation, senators are split on whether Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist will join Sandra Day O'Connor in retirement and give President Bush multiple appointments to the Supreme Court. O'Connor announced plans to leave the high court two weeks ago and speculation is swirling about the future of the 80-year-old Rehnquist, who has thyroid cancer. Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa., chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, told CBS' ``Face the Nation'' on Sunday that he thinks Rehnquist will stay on. But Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, Specter's predecessor as Judiciary Committee chairman, offered a different opinion. ``I expect by the end of the year that he will retire because I think he's really wanted to,'' he said on NBC's ``Meet the Press.''
Supreme Court Speculation
The vacancy on the U.S. Supreme Court is on the agenda this week as President Bush meets at the White House Tuesday with Republican and Democratic senators from the committee that will consider any nomination he makes.
Bush, lawmakers to meet on Supreme Court pick
WASHINGTON -- Senior US lawmakers were to meet with US President George W. Bush at the White House on Tuesday in a bid to quell anticipated partisan rancor over his upcoming pick to fill a US Supreme Court vacancy. Bush, who has said he expects to fill the vacancy left by departing Justice Sandra Day O'Connor by October, when the a new session of the US high court commences. "I hope it's real consultation and not just check off the box, have some of the leaders down for breakfast," Democratic US Senator Patrick Leahy told CBS television's "Face the Nation" program on Sunday.
White House Seeks Democrates for Advice
on Replacement for Supreme Court Justice
WASHINGTON -- It certainly isn't something that happens every day. Sen. Kent Conrad, D-N.D., said Friday that the White House called him for advice. Conrad said he was contacted by White House Counsel Harriet Miers, who asked for his opinion on a replacement for Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor. She announced July 1 that she will retire when her successor is confirmed. Conrad said he told Miers he would support Attorney General Alberto Gonzales for the post if Gonzales is nominated.
WARNING: Congress Plans to Rush Legislation as Court Debate Rages
Homeland Security funding, embryonic stem cell research funding
and Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) Sell Out
WASHINGTON — The three-week window between Congress' Independence Day and August recesses is typically one its most productive. That could be even more so this year as lawmakers try to clear the decks for a Supreme Court battle. Just this week, the Senate plans to debate a spending bill for the Homeland Security Department and may start considering a measure to increase federal support of embryonic stem cell research. The House is expected to take up a Central America trade bill. That assumes Republican leaders and the Bush administration can pick up — from GOP lawmakers who are leaning against the pact or are undecided — more than a dozen votes needed for its passage.
July 09, 2005
Reagan's Biggest Mistake Finally Retires
By Ann Coulter
The fundamental goal of the next Supreme Court justice should be to create a record that would not inspire Sen. Chuck Schumer to say, as he did of Justice O'Connor last week: "We hope the president chooses someone thoughtful, mainstream, pragmatic -- someone just like Sandra Day O'Connor." That's our litmus test: We will accept only judicial nominees violently opposed by Chuck Schumer.
Posted by Editor at August 3, 2005 05:31 AM
