Roberts Hearings Begin Today
Feature Story by civilrights.org staff - 9/12/2005
The Senate will begin considering the nomination of John Roberts to the position of Supreme Court Chief Justice Monday afternoon.Court watchers say because the Court is closely divided on a number of issues, the stakes are high.
President Bush nominated Roberts to replace the late William H. Rehnquist, who had served as chief justice since 1986. Bush had previously nominated Roberts to succeed retiring justice Sandra Day O'Connor earlier this summer.
Roberts, who had been a clerk for Chief Justice Rehnquist and is currently an appellate judge, has been opposed by a number of groups concerned about his record on civil rights and women's rights.
The hearings will start at noon in the Senate Caucus Room with opening statements from the 10 Republican and eight Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee. The nation will then hear from Roberts, who, after being introduced by Senators Warner, Lugar, and Bayh, will give a brief opening statement.
Questioning of Roberts will begin tomorrow.
Civil rights groups have asked the Committee to carefully question--and demand answers from--Roberts on his views on civil rights policies. They point out that in memoranda written while he was in the Reagan administration, Roberts argued that Congress was not only able to, but also justified in, enacting legislation that would strip the federal courts of jurisdiction to desegregate public schools; advocated for a narrowing of Voting Rights Act protections; and justified unequal treatment of women on cost-saving grounds.
Civil rights groups also say the elevation of Roberts adds additional pressure on the Bush administration to release all records relating to documents that had been requested by senators. The administration is currently withholding documents from Roberts' stint as the political deputy to Solicitor General Kenneth Starr.
