President George W. Bush named federal appeals judge John Roberts to fill the first Supreme Court vacancy in a decade, delighting Republicans and unsettling Democrats by picking a young jurist of impeccably conservative credentials.
If confirmed by the Republican-controlled Senate, the 50-year-old Roberts would succeed retiring Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, long a swing vote on a court divided over abortion, affirmative action, states' rights and more.
Bush offered Roberts the job on Tuesday in a lunchtime telephone call, then invited him to the White House for a nationally televised evening announcement. Bush said Roberts will "strictly apply the constitution in laws, not legislate from the bench."
Roberts said he has argued 39 cases before the Supreme Court in a career as a private attorney and government lawyer. "I always got a lump in my throat whenever I walked up those marble steps to argue a case before the court, and I don't think it was just from the nerves," he said.
"I look forward to the next step in the process before the United States Senate," he said.
That was a reference to confirmation hearings before the Senate Judiciary Committee, expected to begin late next month or early September. That would allow plenty of time for the Senate to meet Bush's timetable of a vote before the high court begins its new term on Oct. 3.
In making his first nomination to the court, Bush had an opportunity to expand his conservative agenda and extend it past his presidency. Justices serve until they retire or die. The court is the third branch of the US government and decides on many contentious social issues that divide Americans.
Roberts would pay his first courtesy calls on leading senators yesterday after breakfast with Bush in the White House residence. Republican reaction to the appointment was strongly supportive, while Democrats responded in measured terms.
"I'm just a little surprised that he's already subject to criticism. But this is America," said Senator Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania, chairman of the Judiciary Committee.
Senator Edward Kennedy of Massachusetts, reflecting an emerging Democratic strategy, said he would use the hearings to probe whether Roberts can "separate his personal ideology from the rule of law."
Those on the right say Roberts, a native of Buffalo, New York, is a bright judge with strong conservative credentials who will apply the law, as written, and leave policy decisions to the elected branches of government.
Liberal groups, however, say Roberts has taken positions in cases involving free speech and religious liberty that, should they carry the weight of law, would endanger those rights.
Abortion -- arguably the most politically charged issue to confront Congress and the courts -- swiftly emerged as a point of contention.
The abortion rights group NARAL Pro-Choice America announced its opposition to Roberts, citing in a statement a brief Roberts had filed with the Supreme Court while serving as deputy solicitor general in the first Bush administration.
In the brief, Roberts said "Roe was wrongly decided and should be overruled," referring to Roe vs Wade, the landmark 1973 ruling that established a woman's right to abortion.
In his defense, Roberts told senators during 2003 confirmation hearings to his current post that he would be guided by legal precedent.
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