CNS News - Senate Judiciary Committee Approves Nomination of Supreme Court Nominee Judge Alito

January 24, 2006
by Melanie Hunter
Senior Editor

(CNSNews.com) - In a vote of 10 to 8, the Senate Judiciary Committee as expected Tuesday recommended the nomination of Supreme Court nominee Samuel Alito to the full Senate for a vote.

The American Center for Law and Justice said while it is "pleased that Alito "cleared a critical hurdle" in the committee, the group finds it "unfortunate" that "the vote broke along party lines." The ACLJ is calling on the full Senate to give Alito an up-or-down vote by the end of the week.

"This is an important moment in the confirmation process but it is unfortunate that the Democrats on the Judiciary Committee put partisan politics first in their vote today," said Jay Sekulow, chief counsel of the ACLJ, in a statement.

"Judge Alito is uniquely qualified for a seat on the high court and the American people want this process to be concluded without further delay," Sekulow said. His group is airing radio ads urging the Senate to give Alito a vote "without further delay."

Jan LaRue, Concerned Women for America's chief counsel, echoed those sentiments.

"The president has made a superb choice in Judge Alito. The Senate should confirm his nomination by unanimous consent. Sadly, that won't happen because the process has been marred by partisan politics," said La Rue.

"Judge Alito's knowledge of constitutional law, along with his years of judicial experience, respect for the rule of law, and impeccable character and judicial temperament, were evident throughout his hearings," La Rue added.

Family Research Council President Tony Perkins also expressed "outrage" at the Democrats on the committee for their party line vote against Alito.

"Their goal is to impose radical policy ideas on America through control of the Court. It demonstrates the allegiance Democrats have sworn to the extreme factions of their party," said Perkins, who was not surprised by the vote.

"While the vote of the committee's Democrats is unfortunate, it is certainly not unexpected. Mere moments following President Bush's announcement of Judge Alito as Justice O'Connor's successor, frantic calls from the fringe of the liberal base called for Judge Alito's defeat through 'whatever it takes' tactics," added Perkins.

"With elections approaching the political horizon and a majority of Americans rejecting the extreme measures put forth by the liberal base, Democrats have determined unreasoned opposition to Judge Alito will best fill their election coffers. It is a disgrace to the process and our country," concluded Perkins, who also urged a quick vote on Alito.

Alito 'not America's choice'

Alliance for Justice President Nan Aron, who opposes Alito's nomination, said the committee's party-line vote "shows that Judge Alito is not America's choice for a lifetime appointment to the Supreme Court."

"Judge Alito's record is deeply troubling. He has consistently ruled in favor of powerful interests and to narrow individual rights. As this nomination moves to the full Senate, Alliance for Justice calls on every Senator to protect our fundamental rights and freedoms by opposing the Alito nomination," said Aron in a statement.

Kate Michelman, author of "With Liberty and Justice for All" and former president of NARAL Pro-Choice America, chastised Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Arlen Specter (R-Pa.), a "pro-choice" advocate, for giving Alito "a pass, dismissing the right to choose as a 'single issue' not important enough to warrant his opposition."

Specter "has long touted his pro-choice stance, including in his run for the presidency, in an effort to differentiate himself from the right wing conservatives who control the Republican party," said Michelman.

"Indeed, after the election of 2004 as he was poised to take the chairmanship, he pronounced a woman's right to choose 'inviolate' and equated overturning Roe with overturning Brown v. Board of Education," she said.

"Yet, even when Judge Alito - in marked contrast with fellow conservative Justice [John] Roberts - refused to pronounce Roe as 'settled law,' Senator Specter gave him a pass, dismissing the right to choose as a 'single issue' not important enough to warrant his opposition," added Michelman.

Michelman called Specter's vote for Alito "a blatant failure to live up to the principle of equal justice for women, a principle he claimed to embrace."

"I call on Democrats and moderate Republicans to defend and protect women's legal rights by rejecting this nomination. The pro-choice community and those who support it can no longer afford any more free passes. Rhetoric is not enough. The time for leadership and action is now," said Michelman.

"This is a watershed moment for the country, the Court and the future of our rights and liberties. If Judge Alito's troubling views on privacy, reproductive rights, and myriad other issues do not merit serious consideration of a filibuster, it's hard to imagine what might warrant such action," Michelman concluded.

La Rue, on the other hand, praised Specter for "running a fair and orderly hearing."

"Anybody who watched the Alito hearing with an open mind, not to be confused with holes in the head, knows the liberals' distortion of Alito's record is desperation and deception at the deepest level," LaRue concluded.