Next week the
John Roberts SCOTUS Hearings begin:
For John Roberts, getting ready for next week's Senate hearings on his nomination to the Supreme Court is a lot like appearing as a lawyer before the high court: copious amounts of reading and rehearsing answers to any conceivable question that might be fired at him. This time, though, the case being argued by Roberts is his own, not a client's. . . Roberts . . . is taking nothing for granted. He's spent much of August reviewing briefing books on the Senate Judiciary Committee's pet legal issues, and the questions senators have asked nominees to lower federal courts and Supreme Court nominees before him. Bush administration lawyers and outside constitutional law experts have been grilling the nominee in "robust" question and answer sessions at the Justice Department, said an official familiar with the process, speaking on condition of anonymity because he's not authorized to speak on the record. . . . Roberts and the White House aren't talking about his preparation for the hearings, which open Sept. 6. He is to read an opening statement on day one, then endure several days of questioning. . . . A few of the 18 Judiciary Committee senators -- 10 male Republicans, seven Democratic men and one Democratic woman -- have already revealed what they plan to ask Roberts.
Chairman Arlen Specter, R-Pa., has said he will ask the nominee about the court's attitude toward Congress, which Specter has described as "disrespectful." Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., says she'll asked about abortion rights, since Roberts would replace O'Connor, a swing vote on the issue.
Roberts' views and the significant issues have been covered extensively here. We will be reviewing the issues for the rest of the week in anticipation of next week's critical hearings. We expect Democratics Senators to aggressively seek honest and forthright answers and full disclosure of documents and information from Roberts and the White House to allow the Senate to properly carry out its duty to advise and consent. Hopefully, their preparation will be as serious as Roberts' obviously is.