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Pryor to vote for Roberts Friday, Sep 23, 2005 By Alison Vekshin Stephens Washington Bureau WASHINGTON -- With some reservation, Sen. Mark Pryor on Thursday announced he would vote to confirm appeals court judge John Roberts to be the next chief justice of the Supreme Court. Pryor's decision came after the Senate Judiciary Committee voted, 13-5, to send Roberts' nomination to the full Senate for a vote expected next week. "I have chosen to put my faith in Justice Roberts," Pryor said from the Senate floor. "I have chosen to believe him when he says that he is not an ideologue." Pryor said he had "some anxiety" about the nominee. "I'm going to have anxiety about every Supreme Court nominee," he said. "We just don't know the future. We don't know how these people will change." In reaching his decision, Pryor said he considered a set of criteria, including Roberts' credentials, temperament and fairness. "Judge Roberts brings with him excellent credentials," Pryor said. "He is a brilliant lawyer and I was very impressed with his breadth of knowledge." In confirmation hearings held last week, the 18-member judiciary panel quizzed Roberts on his views on abortion, civil rights and other matters. In all cases, Roberts declined to say how he would rule on relevant cases, frustrating many Democrats. Five Democrats voted against the nominee during the Thursday hearing and others, including Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada, have said they would vote against him. Nonetheless, Roberts is expected to win confirmation with the support of 55 Republicans and many other Democrats. In a meeting with Roberts, Pryor said he got a good sense for the nominee. "He's someone you can sit down and talk with for hours about the law," he said. "He's genial and easy to get along with. He's a family man." Still, Pryor expressed concern about Roberts' opposition to civil rights legislation as a young lawyer in President Ronald Reagan's administration. "I don't agree with many of the opinions Mr. Roberts expressed in his memos while serving in the office of the U.S. Attorney General, but I can say that as a lawyer I have taken positions that were not my own, but my clients'," Pryor said. "It is my hope that after 20 years of gaining life experience, John Roberts has a better understanding and appreciation of how important civil rights protections are to the survival of this country and that he has moved away from some of his earlier writings," Pryor said. Pryor said he was aware his vote could stir some opposition in his home state, but believed most Arkansans are comfortable with Roberts. Meanwhile, Sen. Blanche Lincoln, D-Ark., remained undecided about her vote. "I want to take a very deliberate look at all of the information that's available about his nomination before I'll make that decision," she said in a conference call with reporters. "This is a young man who for a lifetime, possibly three decades into the future, will be leading the highest court in the land," she said. "I don't question his intellect or his knowledge of the law or the Supreme Court precedent," Lincoln said. "My biggest interest is knowing he is a nominee who could set aside his personal views or his political views to fulfill his responsibility under the Constitution to very fairly apply the law to everybody," said Lincoln, who met with Roberts on Tuesday. Gabe Holmstrom, executive director of the Democratic Party of Arkansas, supported Pryor's decision. "Senator Pryor made an individual decision based on careful research, thoughtful deliberation and what he felt was right, not what he was told to do," Holmstrom said in a statement. Jay Barth, associate political science professor at Hendrix College in Conway, said he was not surprised by Pryor's decision. "For even the most partisan of Democrats, the Roberts nomination was a very tough call because he has clear merit which was expressed in the hearings and by everyone who had worked with him," Barth said. "He came across as a moderate, humble judge," Barth said. Art English, political science professor at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, also expected Pryor's decision. "Pryor does represent a conservative state that was carried by (President) Bush by about 300,000 votes," he said. "It's not like there are a super great number of liberals here." While Roberts is expected to be confirmed, Hill observers predict Bush's next nominee to replace retiring Justice Sandra Day O'Connor will face a contentious battle in Congress. "It all depends on who it is," Pryor said. -- 30 -- |
