Democrats, W.House spar on access to Roberts info

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A dispute between Democrats and the
White House over U.S. Supreme Court nominee John Roberts’
internal government memos threatened to broaden on Wednesday to
a potential fight over his tax records.

The White House said it had reviewed such records, but left
unclear if the materials would be given to the U.S. Senate as
part of its examination of President Bush’s conservative
candidate for the high court.

“There hasn’t been a request for his tax returns,” press
secretary Scott McClellan told reporters when asked if they
would be released. “We’re kind of getting ahead of things.”

McClellan said the Bush administration in 2001 stopped
asking judicial candidates to provide their last three years of
tax returns for review, but they did for Roberts’ returns.

“With Judge Roberts, we did ask to look over his tax
returns from the previous few years, and we have done so, and
that’s something that we can discuss with the Senate as we move
forward,” he said.

The White House riled Senate Democrats on Tuesday when it
began releasing the first of up to 75,000 pages of documents
from his work in the Reagan administration, but said it would
refuse to release papers from his time as deputy solicitor
general in the first Bush administration.

“A blanket statement that entire groups of documents are
off limits is both premature and ill advised,” said a letter to
Bush from eight Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee
that will take up the nomination.

Committee Chairman Arlen Specter, a moderate Pennsylvania
Republican, called the letter “perfectly appropriate.”

Specter has also said he will consider requesting any
document that Sen. Patrick Leahy of Vermont, his panel’s top
Democrat, seeks, but that the White House would decide what to
produce.

Roberts is certain to face questions at his confirmation
hearing on a number of hot-button issues, including abortion.

Leahy told Vermont Public Radio on Tuesday night it would
be difficult for any Supreme Court nominee to be confirmed
unless the nominee viewed as “settled law” the court’s 1973
decision that legalized abortion.

Sen. John Cornyn, a Texas Republican, fired back on
Wednesday it would be inappropriate to demand where Roberts
stands since it would “force him to prejudge” an abortion case
set to be heard by the court in November.

HEARING DATE

On another disputed front, Specter said he may begin
Roberts’ confirmation hearing as early as Aug. 29.

Specter said he would prefer to start in September, but may
begin during the final week of the U.S. Congress’ August recess
in an attempt to ensure there can be a Senate confirmation vote
before the Supreme Court begins its new term on Oct. 3.

“Duty comes ahead of preference,” Specter told committee
members.

Democrats and Republicans have been trying to reach an
agreement on confirmation hearings since shortly after Bush
last week nominated Roberts to succeed retiring Justice Sandra
Day O’Connor, who was often the swing vote between the court’s
liberal and conservative wings.

Specter said it may be impossible to get a commitment from
Democrats on timing since under Senate rules any one lawmaker
“can throw a monkey wrench into the (confirmation) process.”

“If we cannot have those kind of assurances, then it may be
necessary to go to the August 29th day,” Specter said.

Leahy said he preferred to begin hearings in September,
warning that starting in August could give the impression of a
rush toward judgment.

No Senate Democrat has announced plans to oppose Roberts,
and many have spoken glowingly of the nominee, who has served
the past two years on the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the
District of Columbia.

Yet virtually all Democrats say he must be scrutinized on a
number of fronts before there is a confirmation vote.