Senate panel delays vote on Estrada

WASHINGTON — The Senate Judiciary Committee merely verbally jousted Friday in the first round of a fight over a conservative who Democrats worry may be the next U.S. Supreme Court nominee. A much more bruising session is expected next week.

At the request of Democrats, committee Chairman Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, Friday delayed for a week a vote on Miguel Estrada, nominated to become the first Hispanic to serve on the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia.

That court is often considered the second-highest in America, and Estrada is also seen as a likely nominee by President Bush for any Supreme Court openings that occur. Democrats blocked a committee vote on him last year when they held the majority in the Senate.

But now that Republicans hold a majority in the Senate and the committee, Hatch put Estrada's nomination as its first order of business at its first meeting on Friday. However, under committee rules, any member may delay any nomination vote for one week — so Hatch delayed it at Democratic request.

"It was important that we meet and allow it to be held over now, or when we meet next week they would just delay it then for another week," Hatch said about a rare Friday meeting for his committee.

It started with acrimony as Republicans and Democrats traded jabs over Estrada and other conservative nominees, and Democrats attacked Hatch for what they say is a rule change that will make it easier for him to move Bush's nominees (although Hatch says he is operating as he always had in previous years).

Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., complained that Estrada has never answered questions about his judicial philosophy, such as whether he supports decisions allowing abortion.

"We don't want to ratify a 'don't ask, don't tell' policy when it comes to nominees for the second most important court in the country," Schumer said.

Hatch said last year during Estrada's confirmation hearing that liberals go after conservatives such as Estrada "like kids (go) after a piata. They beat it and beat it until they hope something comes out that they can then chew and distort."

Hatch also noted Friday that Estrada has received a unanimous "well-qualified" rating from the American Bar Association — which, he said, "the Democrats declared (as their) gold standard for review of judicial candidates."