Hatch joins Romney panel

Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, has been tapped by GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney to serve as a congressional co-chairman of the campaign's committee on the Constitution and the courts.

Hatch, along with Rep. Lamar Smith, R-Texas, will advise Romney on legal issues confronting Congress. Hatch is the former chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, and Smith is the ranking Republican on the House Judiciary Committee.

"There are few more uniquely qualified to provide counsel on judicial matters than Senator Hatch and Representative Smith," Romney said, citing their "invaluable perspective into the judicial confirmation process and constitutional matters."

Hatch participated in the confirmation hearings of eight of the nine justices on the U.S. Supreme Court.