By Basil Talbott, CongressDailyPM
© National Journal Group Inc.
Thursday, Sept. 22, 2005

Three Senate Judiciary Committee Democrats joined the panel's 10 Republicans today to recommend that John Roberts be confirmed as the next chief justice of the Supreme Court on a 13-5 vote.

Wisconsin Democratic Sens. Herb Kohl and Russell Feingold joined Judiciary ranking member Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., in voting for Roberts.

The other five Democratic members followed the lead of Senate Minority Leader [Harry] Reid, who announced earlier this week he will vote against confirmation when the Senate considers Roberts' nomination next week.

Senate Judiciary Chairman [Arlen] Specter praised Roberts for "modesty and stability," while Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., decried what he saw as the intrusion of partisanship in the confirmation process. Graham noted that several recent high court judges won nearly unanimous votes in the Senate despite their ideological records. He said President Bush is entitled to fulfill his campaign promise and called on the president to nominate another "strict constructionist" to fill the next vacancy.

Before he cast his vote, Leahy said he weighed pros and cons for Roberts before concluding, "In my conscience, I feel it's better to vote yes than no." Leahy said he believed "Roberts is a man of integrity. I take him at his word that he has no ideological agenda." The biggest surprise was Feingold, a tough questioner in the confirmation hearings. In the end, Feingold said he found Roberts "had a great respect for precedent" and possesses "the legal skills, intellect and the character to be chief justice." He predicted that Roberts would eventually vote to uphold the Roe v. Wade ruling that establishes a woman's right to an abortion, a question raised by other Democrats.

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Kohl had indicated earlier he was leaning for Roberts. "I was impressed by the man himself," Kohl said. But he added he might have voted differently if Roberts had been replacing outgoing Justice Sandra Day O'Connor.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., said Roberts did not disassociate himself from the tone of his earlier writings or the positions in them. Referring to memos Roberts wrote as primary deputy to former Solicitor General Kenneth Starr, Feinstein said, "I didn't find the argument that he was just an employee doing what his boss wanted credible." She cited a memo in which Roberts used the term "illegal Amigos." Noting she is the only woman on the committee, Feinstein said Roberts had made "derogatory" comments about women in the memos. "I expected him to admit the derogatory comments were wrong," she said. Feinstein also cited Roberts' unwillingness to answer many questions. "I knew as little about what Judge Roberts really thought about issues after the hearings as I did before the hearing. This makes it very hard for me," she said. "I cannot in good conscience cast a 'yea' vote.''

Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., cited his worries that Roberts would "set back the clock" on women's rights, civil rights, voting rights and the rights for the disabled. Roberts "was on the wrong side of the equation" as a young lawyer in President Reagan's administration, he said.

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