Top Democrats move to block Bush high court
nominee
Yahoo News/AFP
January 27, 2006
WASHINGTON (AFP) - Leading Democrat Senators John Kerry and Ted Kennedy said
they would try to block Supreme Court nominee Samuel Alito by preventing a vote
on him with a filibuster.
Former presidential candidate Kerry announced from Switzerland that he
wanted to block> President George W. Bush's conservative nominee with the
stalling tactic to prevent "an ideological coup" on the high court.
"Judge Alito will take America backward, especially when it comes to civil
rights and discrimination laws," Kerry said is a statement.
Kennedy, Kerry's fellow Massachusetts senator, also called for a filibuster
on Alito when the Senate is called to vote, probably early next week.
"We owe it to future generations of Americans to oppose this nomination. If
Judge Alito is confirmed ... the progress of half a century on the basic rights
of all Americans is likely to be rolled back."
In a statement, Democratic leaders said that Kerry was lobbying fellow
senators in hopes of being able to round up the 41 votes needed to successfully
prevent the Senate from holding a final up-or-down confirmation vote on
Alito.
Alito earlier this week won a critical vote in a Senate committee vetting
his nomination, but now must win the approval of the full Senate, which
currently is debating his nomination.
Alito was approved by the Republican-dominated Senate Judiciary Committee
10-to-eight on party lines.
All but a few Democrats in the 100-seat Senate are united in opposition
against the 55-year-old conservative, saying they fear Alito, if he joins
forces with other conservatives on the US high court, will undo years of
liberal court rulings.
Alito, a 15-year veteran federal appeals court judge, has left a long paper
trail over the years which suggest decidedly anti-abortion views including
memos written while working as an attorney in the> Ronald Reagan
administration, in which he proposed strategies for overturning the Supreme
Court landmark 1973 Roe v Wade abortion rights decision.
A successful filibuster would deal Bush a second defeat in trying to fill
the vacant court slot. His previous nominee, White House aide Harriet Miers,
was forced to withdraw after a backlash from conservatives.
But Republicans hold a decided 55 to 44 seat majority in the chamber, with
one independent senator voting mostly with Democrats.
In addition, three Democrats have said they will support Alito, leading some
Democrat senators to say a move to block Alito would probably fail.
But while most Republicans support Alito, several have expressed
reservations over his conservative views on abortion, protection of civil
rights, and limits on the powers of the presidency.
The Republican National Committee quickly denounced the filibuster effort
Thursday, branding it "thoughtless bomb throwing."
"To even suggest a filibuster against a nominee as qualified as Judge Alito
reflects a philosophy so out of touch that it's bordering on reckless," the
group said in a statement.
On Monday, Bush praised Alito as "a very, very smart, capable man" and urged
lawmakers to quickly hold a full vote on his candidate.
"He's extraordinarily capable to serve on the Supreme Court," Bush said.
The Judiciary Committee chairman, moderate Republican Senator Arlen Specter,
also offered unstinting praise of Alito.
"His personal background is exemplary. His professional qualifications are
outstanding. His educational achievements are of the highest order," Specter
said.
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