Nomination Of Clarence Thomas

President Bush stated in the announcement of his nomination of Clarence Thomas that he was the most qualified person to be on the Supreme Court. This is an insult to the intelligence of the American public. The nomination is clearly a political one. Thomas was chosen because he is both black and conservative. Regarding Thomas' qualifications, the American Bar Assn. gave him only a "qualified" rating when he was appointed to the federal appeals court. He has only 1 1/2 years' experience as a federal judge.

The nomination of Thomas represents a further erosion of democracy, civil rights and ideological balance on the Supreme Court. President Bush either ignores or doesn't realize the necessity of an ideological balance on the court. The court should represent, as much as possible, the political, ethnic, sexual and regional diversity of our country, instead of a cynical way to advance one's own political agenda. STEVEN BOOTH San Diego

Senate leaders Tuesday agreed to vote on the nomination of Clarence Thomas to the Supreme Court next Tuesday, one day after the court begins its fall session. Earlier Tuesday, Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall announced that he wants to retire immediately. Marshall, in announcing his retirement from the nation's high court in June, had said he would depart when his successor was approved by the Senate. Bush then nominated Thomas, a black conservative judge, for the seat.

The Senate Judiciary Committee today approved the nomination of Clarence Thomas, the conservative chairman of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, to be a federal appeals court judge. The nomination was approved 12 to 1 with Sen. Howard M. Metzenbaum (D-Ohio) voting against it. It now goes to the full Senate. Some civil rights forces had opposed the nomination because of Thomas' opposition to affirmative action programs and his other conservative views. But the National Assn.