WASHINGTON (ABP) — Despite strong objections from some civil rights groups, the Senate overwhelmingly confirmed John Roberts to a seat on the Supreme Court Sept. 29.
A few hours after the 78-22 confirmation vote, Justice John Paul Stevens swore Roberts in as the 17th chief justice of the United States. Roberts' wife, Jane, held a family Bible during the White House ceremony, as President Bush looked on.
“The Senate has confirmed a man with an astute mind and kind heart,” Bush said, opening the ritual. “As a member of the federal judiciary, John Roberts has carried out his duties with discernment and humanity and without fear or favor.”
After being sworn in, Roberts said, “I view the vote this morning as confirmation of what is for me a bedrock principle: that judging is different from politics. And I appreciate the vote, very much.”
Roberts replaces the late Chief Justice William Rehnquist, a reliable conservative vote on the court. But Bush must now name a replacement for retiring Justice Sandra Day O'Connor — a task that will prove difficult, given her strategic position as a moderate on a court closely divided along ideological lines.
Roberts' confirmation came after months of pleading from some civil-liberties advocates, who said the nominee's previous writings on issues such as women's rights, civil rights, abortion rights and church-state separation indicated he would shift the court to the right.
“We fear that Roberts will move the high court in a direction that will prove detrimental to religious liberty in this country,” said Barry Lynn, executive director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, in a statement released moments after senators finished voting. “His record during the Reagan and first Bush administrations showed him to be a consistent advocate for a radical lowering of the church-state wall.”
However, Lynn did point to a response Roberts gave to a senator's question about religious freedom during his confirmation hearings Sept. 13: “I think the animating principle of the framers, that's reflected in both of the religion clauses [of the First Amendment], is that no one should be denied the rights of full citizenship because of their religious belief or their lack of religious belief,” Roberts said.
Lynn said he hoped the new chief justice would rule in accordance with that statement. “I hope John Roberts sincerely meant those words and that his decisions on the high court will reflect that sentiment,” he said.
Meanwhile, conservative religious groups cheered Roberts' confirmation, expressing confidence that he would begin turning the court's jurisprudence in a direction more consistent with what they believe the Constitution's writers intended.
“Today's Senate confirmation…is an auspicious event for America,” said D. James Kennedy, pastor of Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and outspoken Religious Right activist. “It foreshadows, I pray, a return to the rule of constitutional law on the high court.”
He continued: “Our land has been too long led astray by a Supreme Court that claims an exclusive right to breathe new meaning into the Constitution…. In doing so, it has overleaped its bounds and made itself the epicenter of the moral and social earthquake that has convulsed American culture in the last 40 years.”
In the Senate, 22 Democrats joined all 55 Republicans and one independent in voting to confirm Roberts. Although many of those Democrats — such as Arkansas Sen. Blanche Lincoln and Louisiana Sen. Mary Landrieu — came from states that supported Bush in the 2000 and 2004 elections, there were also some surprises. Normally liberal stalwarts from “Blue States” — such as Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden and Vermont Sen. Patrick Leahy — also voted in Roberts' favor.
He will take his seat on the court when the justices return to begin their 2005-2006 term on Oct. 3.
Activists on both sides of the cultural divide over the court's role looked ahead, to the fight over O'Connor's replacement.
“With a chief justice who's been given a stamp of approval by the extreme right wing, it's critical that the next justice preserve a fair and balanced court,” read a statement from Joe Solmonese, head of the gay-rights group Human Rights Campaign.
He noted O'Connor's votes with the majorities in a handful of court decisions that have advanced gay rights. “Justice O'Connor's replacement should continue the model of fairness she and others have set. We join Republicans and Democrats alike in continuing to call on President Bush to nominate a justice who will keep the court balanced.”
But some of Bush's strongest supporters were already calling on him to pick someone positioned to O'Connor's ideological right.
“Given the recent decisions of federal judges ranging from the protection of human life to the outlawing of the Pledge of Allegiance, there are critical issues of concern to millions of American families that will be decided by these nine judges,” said Tony Perkins, president of the conservative Family Research Council. “The nation needs this next vacancy to be filled with a judge who understands the role of the courts and the authority granted to the legislative and executive branches of government to create public policy.”
Bush is expected to name a candidate to replace O'Connor within the next several days.