[JURIST] Senate Judiciary Chairman Arlen Specter (R-PA) said Wednesday he preferred waiting until September to begin hearings for US Supreme Court nominee John G. Roberts, creating a tight timetable for Roberts to be approved by the full Senate in time for the court's new term starting October 3. No Senate Democrats have publicly voiced opposition to the nominee, but his positions on some contentious issues are unclear, which could lead to lengthy questioning at his hearing [AP report]. Judiciary Committee Democrat Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) has already said Roberts "has to be more forthcoming" in order to show that he "is in the mainstream of American thinking". Specter and Senator Pat Leahy (D-VT), the committee's ranking Democrat, expect the confirmation process to take a week at most [AP report] once it gets going. AP has more.