Senators Seize on Hearing as Sounding Board
WASHINGTON — With typical Midwestern bluntness, Sen. Charles E. Grassley seemed to say it all when he summed up the state of play on Day 3 of the Senate committee hearing on the nomination of Judge Samuel A. Alito Jr. to the Supreme Court.
"We've gone over the same ground many times," the Iowa Republican said. "The horse is dead. Quit beating it."
Since Alito first sat down in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee on Monday, it has become clear that the process is as much about the senators and their own agendas as it is about the nominee. Several lawmakers have spent more time delivering their own stemwinders than they have asking questions of Alito. Nary a mind appears to have been changed.
The result has been a hearing regarded by many Capitol Hill veterans of past confirmation battles as one of the most colorless in modern memory. ("It's like the first half of 'The Wizard of Oz,' " one Democratic staff member said.)
Democrats tried to step up the drama Wednesday with more confrontational questioning, but the room remained heavy with a sense of inevitability.
The hearing "really isn't a forum for senators making up their minds as it is for advertising their views and trying to expose Alito's," said Elliot E. Slotnick, an expert on judicial nominations at Ohio State University.
Although Democrats largely have failed to fluster the nominee, let alone derail his confirmation, they have tried to use the hearing to depict him as an ideologue who probably would tip the balance of the Supreme Court sharply to the right.
Republicans have used their time before the television cameras to counter the Democrats' criticism, lob softball questions and shower Alito with praise.
Lacking were the fireworks that marked the confirmation hearings of two previous Supreme Court nominees: Robert H. Bork, whose 1987 nomination was rejected after he constantly haggled with Democratic senators over his conservative views, and Clarence Thomas, who in 1991 overcame bombshell accusations of sexual harassment to win a high-court seat.
Even without fireworks, a high-profile hearing such as this one -- held before a sea of cameras -- is hog heaven for publicity-conscious senators. Rare is the legislator who passes up the chance to question the nominee on national television, even if the question has already been asked.
