Barring a surprise during the hearings, Roberts' confirmation by the full Senate seems likely. But it is unclear how many Democrats on the Judiciary Committee -- most of whom belong to the party's liberal wing -- will support him.
Few of the committee members tipped their hands Monday. Sens. Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Richard J. Durbin (D-Ill.) said they were waiting to see whether Roberts would answer their questions.
Sen. Joseph R. Biden Jr. (D-Del.) came closest to saying he would oppose Roberts' nomination.
"Judge, if I looked only at what you've said and written in the past, I'd feel compelled to vote no," he said.
The senators this morning are to begin questioning Roberts. They plan to question him at least through Wednesday.
The White House and Senate Republicans hope that the Senate will hold a confirmation vote on Roberts during the last week of September so that Roberts could lead the court when it opens its term on the first Monday in October.
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(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX)
`Judges Are Like Umpires'
HEARING EXCERPTS
\o7 Excerpts from Judge John G. Roberts Jr.'s remarks, from a transcript provided by Federal News Service:
\f7 "My personal appreciation that I owe a great debt to others reinforces my view that a certain humility should characterize the judicial role. Judges and justices are servants of the law, not the other way around. Judges are like umpires. Umpires don't make the rules; they apply them. The role of an umpire and a judge is critical. They make sure everybody plays by the rules, but it is a limited role. Nobody ever went to a ballgame to see the umpire.
"Judges have to have the humility to recognize that they operate within a system of precedent shaped by other judges equally striving to live up to the judicial oath. And judges have to have the modesty to be open in the decisional process to the considered views of their colleagues on the bench...."
"Judges are not politicians who can promise to do certain things in exchange for votes. I have no agenda, but I do have a commitment: If I am confirmed, I will confront every case with an open mind. I will fully and fairly analyze the legal arguments that are presented. I will be open to the considered views of my colleagues on the bench. And I will decide every case based on the record according to the rule of law without fear or favor to the best of my ability. And I will remember that it's my job to call balls and strikes and not to pitch or bat.
"I think all of us retain from the days of our youth certain enduring images. For me those images are of the endless fields of Indiana stretching to the horizon, punctuated only by an isolated silo or a barn. And as I grew older, those endless fields came to represent for me the limitless possibilities of our great land...."
