Specter wants Roberts vote by end of September News
Specter wants Roberts vote by end of September

[JURIST] Republican senators Tuesday urged Democrats to commit to a timeframe for US Supreme Court nominee John Roberts' confirmation vote, voicing their preference to have him sworn in as a justice prior to the court reconvening on October 3. Senate Judiciary Committee [official website] chairman Arlen Specter (R-PA) [official website] said if he does not receive agreement on a vote before September 29, he may begin hearings for Roberts during the final week of August, cutting short the Senate's customary one-month vacation. Senator Harry Reid (D-NV) [official website] says he sees no need to rush, urging the Judiciary Committee to follow "ordinary process." The White House has released some documents [JURIST report] related to Roberts' work as a Justice Department special assistant from 1981-82, which included his involvement in Sandra Day O'Connor's confirmation as a US Supreme Court justice. White House press secretary Scott McClellan said 75,000 pages of Roberts' work in the Reagan administration will be released but documents from his tenure during George H. W. Bush's administration will be kept private under the attorney-client privilege [JURIST report]. AP has more.