[JURIST] Democrats preparing for the upcoming confirmation hearings [JURIST report] for US Supreme Court nominee John Roberts [JURIST news archive; Wikipedia profile] say his nomination as Chief Justice [JURIST report] means Roberts should face tougher scrutiny, while Republicans say the elevation should not change the confirmation process. In a statement [text] Monday, Democratic Senator Edward Kennedy said, "Before the Senate acts on John Roberts' new nomination, we should know even more about his record, and we should know whom the president intends to propose to nominate as a replacement for Sandra Day O'Connor." The president is not expected to announce a replacement this week for O'Connor, who announced her retirement [JURIST report] in July, but many, including O'Connor herself [JURIST report], hope the nominee is a woman or a minority. AP has more.