New York Times: Schumer Back in the Spotlight on Judicial Nominee

From the New York Times:

Senator Charles E. Schumer is emerging as the Democratic point man in the battle over how much Judge John G. Roberts should have to disclose at his Senate confirmation hearings.

The last time... Schumer tried prying answers out of John G. Roberts about his legal views was in 2003, when the Judiciary Committee held hearings.... Schumer did not get far....

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"All I need is enough answers to get a real feel for what kind of judge he would be."

But Senate Republicans, along with conservative activists, say that the questions Mr. Schumer has compiled and handed to the judge are out of line. They argue that Judge Roberts should not be required to answer any questions that are intended to gauge how he might ultimately rule on certain cases.

"In every confirmation hearing, nominees have declined to answer questions virtually identical to those like Senator Schumer's," said Senator John Cornyn.... "The reason they have done so, I think, is because many of the issues and cases he wants to ask about are likely to come before the court."

While Mr. Schumer's role may have little political downside in heavily Democratic New York, his role in the confirmation battle has made him a prime target of conservatives, who have waged the kind of blistering attacks on him that they had long reserved for liberal icons like Senators Edward M. Kennedy and Hillary Rodham Clinton.

Newspaper columns, talk radio and Internet sites are filled with denunciations of Mr. Schumer - who is also orchestrating Democratic efforts to take back control of the Senate in 2006 and, as a result, would benefit if the party's base became fired up over the looming judicial fight....

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