[JURIST] Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY) [official website] said Sunday that US Supreme Court nominee Harriet Miers [JURIST news archive], a longtime friend and legal counsel to President Bush, lacks the requisite votes to be approved by the Senate. Schumer's comments come just two weeks before confirmation hearings are scheduled to begin [JURIST report] on November 7. Schumer said that Miers, nominated to replace retiring Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, would not receive support from a majority either in the Judiciary Committee or on the floor and said "I think there is maybe one or two in the Judiciary Committee who have said they'd support her as of right now." Judiciary Committee chairman Arlen Specter (R-PA) said that Democrats cannot predict how the Senate will decide and said that most senators are waiting for the hearings before they make their mind up about Miers. The White House has said there are no plans to pull Miers' nomination despite opposition from both Republicans and Democrats. Last week Specter and Sen. Patrick Leahy, ranking Democrat on the committee, asked Miers for clarification [joint letter] of her responses to a Judiciary Committee questionnaire [JURIST report], saying Miers' answers were insufficient. AP has more.