Roberts Is Confronted on Abortion
WASHINGTON — Chief Justice nominee John G. Roberts Jr., addressing one of the nation's most contentious issues, indicated Tuesday that it would be hard for the Supreme Court to overturn the Roe vs. Wade decision legalizing abortion, but he refused to say whether he would support efforts to do so.
Roe and the legal arguments behind it -- especially privacy rights and the rule of precedent -- came to the fore repeatedly during more than 10 hours of questioning by the Senate Judiciary Committee on its first day of grilling Roberts, whom President Bush nominated to lead the nation's highest court.
The hearing provided Democrats their first chance to publicly confront Roberts, a lawyer who is an appellate court judge, after weeks of poring through tens of thousands of pages of memos, opinions and other documents he had written. And they used the opportunity to probe the nominee's views on issues central to their party's legacy over the last half-century -- abortion rights, civil rights and environmental regulation, among others.
It was also Roberts' first time in the full glare of public scrutiny, under TV lights and fielding a barrage of questions -- on abortion and other controversies -- that ranged from gentle to edgy to outright combative, often in quick succession.
To them all, the 50-year-old former appellate lawyer kept his voice measured, his face placid and his manner deferential. A more deeply furrowed brow was his only sign of discomfort.
Roberts repeatedly reaffirmed his commitment to follow legal precedents, and said more than once that he considered Roe vs. Wade, the controversial 1973 decision legalizing abortion nationwide, to be "settled" under the law.
But he also discussed factors that can lead the court to overturn precedents, and was careful not to say whether any of those arguments might one day be applied to Roe.
"I do think that it is a jolt to the legal system when you overrule a precedent," Roberts said under questioning by the committee chairman, Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.), a moderate Republican who favors abortion rights.
But Roberts added: "There are situations when that's a price that has to be paid."
Roberts was equally guarded on other issues, especially those of great importance to Democrats, while making an effort to appear responsive.
