Snowe Reacts to Nomination of John Roberts to Supreme Court

SNOWE REACTS TO NOMINATION OF JOHN ROBERTS TO SUPREME COURT

Wednesday, July 20, 2005

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Olympia J. Snowe (R-Maine) issued the following statement in response to the announcement by the President that he has nominated Justice John G. Roberts, Jr. to replace retiring Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor:

"The President has submitted his nominee and now begins the process under the 'consent' portion of the 'advice and consent' clause of the Constitution for the Senate to evaluate John Roberts for the Supreme Court.

"I applaud the President for having reached out to Senators from both sides of the political aisle leading up to this nomination this evening. I implore groups from every ideological perspective to respect the process, refrain from political attacks and allow the Senate to proceed with a detailed examination of Judge Roberts. Now is the time for the Senate Judiciary Committee to thoroughly, thoughtfully, and independently vet his qualifications, and under Chairman Specter's leadership I am confident that will occur.

"As a United States Senator, I take my role in the process of approving a Supreme Court nominee very seriously and will extensively review Judge Robert's record, and the Judiciary Committee's hearings and proceedings. In my view, I believe whomever sits on the Supreme Court should bring balance to how they approach cases, have a strong intellect and suitable judicial temperament, and follow a disciplined judicial methodology in approaching decisions.

"I will be in close contact with my colleagues, especially with our group of fourteen senators who developed the compromise to forestall a filibuster on recent judicial nominees as the Senate begins consideration of this nomination."

http://snowe.senate.gov/pressap/record.cfm?id=241036