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 chairman Arlen Specter (R-PA) said if he does not receive agreement on a vote [...]

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Leading Tuesday's corporations and securities law news, President Bush's nominee to head the SEC, Rep. Christopher Cox , told the Senate Banking Committee Tuesday that he would vigorously enforce securities laws. Cox also pledged to enforce the controversial Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) rule requiring companies to count stock options given to employees as a [...]

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Leading Tuesday's states brief, the ACLU filed a lawsuit today against North Carolina asking the court to rule that a "holy scripture" suitable for oath administration includes the religious texts of Islam, Judaism, Hinduism and other non-Christian faiths as well as the Christian Bible. Last month, two state judges in Guilford County ruled that an [...]

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Two Republican senators proposed legislation Monday dealing with the detention of terrorism suspects at Guantanamo . Lindsey Graham (R-SC) introduced an amendment to a pending defense bill that would officially authorize the government to hold prisoners at Guantanamo. Graham expressed concern about federal courts interfering with the process, although the most recent Guantanamo ruling upheld [...]

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