Bush nominates Alito to Supreme Court
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Moving quickly to pick a Supreme Court nominee after his last selection withdrew her name, President Bush on Monday nominated Circuit Court Judge Samuel Alito -- a favorite of conservatives -- to replace Justice Sandra Day O'Connor.
"Judge Alito's reputation has only grown over the span of his service," Bush said from the White House, with Alito by his side. "He has participated in thousands of appeals and authored hundreds of opinions. This record reveals a thoughtful judge who considers the legal merits carefully and applies the law in a principled fashion."
Alito, a former U.S. attorney who has been a judge for 15 years, said while on the bench he has kept in mind what he called a "solemn responsibility."
"Federal judges have the duty to interpret the Constitution and the laws faithfully and fairly, to protect the constitutional rights of all Americans, and to do these things with care and with restraint, always keeping in mind the limited role that the courts play in our constitutional system," he said.
"And I pledge that, if confirmed, I will do everything within my power to fulfill that responsibility."
Sen. Charles Schumer, a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee that will hold a hearing on the nomination, panned Bush's choice.
"It is sad that the president felt he had to pick a nominee likely to divide America instead of choosing a nominee in the mold of Sandra Day O'Connor, who would unify us," the New York Democrat said.
Bush called for Alito to be confirmed as associate justice by the end of the year. His first pick to replace O'Connor was Judge John Roberts. After Chief Justice William Rehnquist died in September, however, Roberts was re-nominated and confirmed to fill that position.
His second nominee, White House counsel Harriet Miers, withdrew from the process Thursday after weeks of opposition from liberals and conservatives, who questioned her qualifications and record.
Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid said an Alito appointment would narrow the high court's view, making it less diverse.
"This appointment ignores the value of diverse backgrounds and perspectives on the Supreme Court," the Nevada Democrat said. "The president has chosen a man to replace Sandra Day O'Connor, one of only two women on the court. For the third time, he has declined to make history by nominating the first Hispanic to the court."
'Scalito'
Legal experts consider the 55-year-old Alito so ideologically similar to Justice Antonin Scalia that he has earned the nickname "Scalito."
In 1991, in one of his more well-known decisions, he was the only dissenting voice in a 3rd Circuit ruling striking down a Pennsylvania law that required women to notify their husbands if they planned to get an abortion.
Alito, a Yale law graduate, also wrote the opinion in 1999 in a case that said a Christmas display on city property did not violate separation of church and state doctrines because it included a large plastic Santa Claus as well as religious symbols.
Alito was put on the circuit court bench by President George H.W. Bush in 1990 after his service as U.S. attorney for the District of New Jersey.
He also served as assistant to Solicitor General Rex E. Lee from 1981 to 1985, where he argued 12 cases before the Supreme Court.
Confirmation could be tough battle
Reid said the Senate would give Alito "an especially long hard look by the Senate because of what happened last week to Harriet Miers."
"Conservative activists forced Miers to withdraw from consideration for this same Supreme Court seat because she was not radical enough for them," he said. "Now the Senate needs to find out if the man replacing Miers is too radical for the American people."
Sen. Arlen Specter, a Pennsylvania Republican who chairs the Judiciary Committee, said Sunday he is "very worried" that Democrats could filibuster a candidate they perceive as an extreme right-wing jurist.
The topic that "dominates the discussion," Specter said, is abortion.
Both sides of the debate want to know in advance how a nominee will vote on the issue, but that is an answer that "no one is entitled to," he said. (CNN's Jeffrey Toobin talks about Alito's record on abortion -- 1:42)
As opposed as they were to Miers' nomination, conservative activists were equally ecstatic with the president's latest choice.
"Harriet Miers was a feminist who had no judicial experience and her strongest qualification was that she's a friend of the president's. Alito has a terribly impressive record as a judge and as a prosecutor," said Phyllis Schlafly, president of the ultra-conservative Eagle Forum.
Jan LaRue, legal counsel for Concerned Women for America, a conservative public policy group, complimented Alito's qualifications and said he "has always been one of our top choices for the Supreme Court."
Abortion-rights activists said they strongly opposed the nomination.
"Judge Alito would undermine basic reproductive rights, and Planned Parenthood will oppose his confirmation," Karen Pearl, interim president of the organization. "It is outrageous that President Bush would replace a moderate conservative like Justice O'Connor with a conservative hardliner."
Bush nominated Miers on October 3 to replace O'Connor, often a moderate swing vote, on the high court.
O'Connor, who has announced her retirement, will stay on the court until the Senate confirms her replacement.
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Moving quickly to pick a Supreme Court nominee after his last selection withdrew her name, President Bush on Monday nominated Circuit Court Judge Samuel Alito -- a favorite of conservatives -- to replace Justice Sandra Day O'Connor.
"Judge Alito's reputation has only grown over the span of his service," Bush said from the White House, with Alito by his side. "He has participated in thousands of appeals and authored hundreds of opinions. This record reveals a thoughtful judge who considers the legal merits carefully and applies the law in a principled fashion."
Alito, a former U.S. attorney who has been a judge for 15 years, said while on the bench he has kept in mind what he called a "solemn responsibility."
"Federal judges have the duty to interpret the Constitution and the laws faithfully and fairly, to protect the constitutional rights of all Americans, and to do these things with care and with restraint, always keeping in mind the limited role that the courts play in our constitutional system," he said.
"And I pledge that, if confirmed, I will do everything within my power to fulfill that responsibility."
Sen. Charles Schumer, a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee that will hold a hearing on the nomination, panned Bush's choice.
"It is sad that the president felt he had to pick a nominee likely to divide America instead of choosing a nominee in the mold of Sandra Day O'Connor, who would unify us," the New York Democrat said.
Bush called for Alito to be confirmed as associate justice by the end of the year. His first pick to replace O'Connor was Judge John Roberts. After Chief Justice William Rehnquist died in September, however, Roberts was re-nominated and confirmed to fill that position.
His second nominee, White House counsel Harriet Miers, withdrew from the process Thursday after weeks of opposition from liberals and conservatives, who questioned her qualifications and record.
Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid said an Alito appointment would narrow the high court's view, making it less diverse.
"This appointment ignores the value of diverse backgrounds and perspectives on the Supreme Court," the Nevada Democrat said. "The president has chosen a man to replace Sandra Day O'Connor, one of only two women on the court. For the third time, he has declined to make history by nominating the first Hispanic to the court."
'Scalito'
Legal experts consider the 55-year-old Alito so ideologically similar to Justice Antonin Scalia that he has earned the nickname "Scalito."
In 1991, in one of his more well-known decisions, he was the only dissenting voice in a 3rd Circuit ruling striking down a Pennsylvania law that required women to notify their husbands if they planned to get an abortion.
Alito, a Yale law graduate, also wrote the opinion in 1999 in a case that said a Christmas display on city property did not violate separation of church and state doctrines because it included a large plastic Santa Claus as well as religious symbols.
Alito was put on the circuit court bench by President George H.W. Bush in 1990 after his service as U.S. attorney for the District of New Jersey.
He also served as assistant to Solicitor General Rex E. Lee from 1981 to 1985, where he argued 12 cases before the Supreme Court.
Confirmation could be tough battle
Reid said the Senate would give Alito "an especially long hard look by the Senate because of what happened last week to Harriet Miers."
"Conservative activists forced Miers to withdraw from consideration for this same Supreme Court seat because she was not radical enough for them," he said. "Now the Senate needs to find out if the man replacing Miers is too radical for the American people."
Sen. Arlen Specter, a Pennsylvania Republican who chairs the Judiciary Committee, said Sunday he is "very worried" that Democrats could filibuster a candidate they perceive as an extreme right-wing jurist.
The topic that "dominates the discussion," Specter said, is abortion.
Both sides of the debate want to know in advance how a nominee will vote on the issue, but that is an answer that "no one is entitled to," he said. (CNN's Jeffrey Toobin talks about Alito's record on abortion -- 1:42)
As opposed as they were to Miers' nomination, conservative activists were equally ecstatic with the president's latest choice.
"Harriet Miers was a feminist who had no judicial experience and her strongest qualification was that she's a friend of the president's. Alito has a terribly impressive record as a judge and as a prosecutor," said Phyllis Schlafly, president of the ultra-conservative Eagle Forum.
Jan LaRue, legal counsel for Concerned Women for America, a conservative public policy group, complimented Alito's qualifications and said he "has always been one of our top choices for the Supreme Court."
Abortion-rights activists said they strongly opposed the nomination.
"Judge Alito would undermine basic reproductive rights, and Planned Parenthood will oppose his confirmation," Karen Pearl, interim president of the organization. "It is outrageous that President Bush would replace a moderate conservative like Justice O'Connor with a conservative hardliner."
Bush nominated Miers on October 3 to replace O'Connor, often a moderate swing vote, on the high court.
O'Connor, who has announced her retirement, will stay on the court until the Senate confirms her replacement.
Well, at least you can say this about Bush...He's predictable. Let the ranting commence!
