Reid says Gonzales is ‘qualified’ candidate

Kirsten Searer

Thursday, July 7, 2005 | 9:53 a.m.

Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid said Wednesday that Attorney General Alberto Gonzales is a "qualified" candidate for the soon-to-be-vacated seat on the U.S. Supreme Court.

But the Nevada Democrat stopped short of saying he would support Gonzales for the seat now held by retiring Justice Sandra Day O'Connor.

"Having said he's qualified doesn't mean he will have an easy way through," Reid said. "I don't know whether he will or not, but he's somebody we will look at very seriously."

Reid also expressed optimism that the nomination of the new justice won't be ugly.

He and Bush have spoken twice about potential nominees, he said, though he declined to list names of people discussed.

"I think the actions of the president the past couple of week speaks volumes," said Reid, speaking to reporters in Las Vegas. "I don't think any of us want a knock-down, drag-out fight."

The Senate was drawn into such a fight earlier this year as Republicans and Democrats battled over Bush nominees to the federal judiciary and the use of the filibuster.

Gonzales, a former White House counsel and Texas Supreme Court justice, is regarded as a potential front-runner for the seat, though conservative groups have recently criticized him as too loose on the issue of abortion.

While sitting on the Texas Supreme Court, Gonzales ruled with the majority that a teenage girl could seek an abortion without telling her parents.

Democrats including Reid also have questioned memos that Gonzales wrote for the Bush Administration regarding the use of torture on prisoners in the war on terrorism.

Reid said he was disappointed with conservative groups that lashed out at Gonzales, saying it was too bad President Bush had to defend his attorney general while on a recent trip to Denmark.

Reid said he has not been working with liberal action groups on the issue. Both liberal and conservative groups have been pouring money into campaigns on the issue, trying to drum up support for their views.

Reid also continued to push the idea of nominating a member of the Senate.

He has previously floated the names of Republican Sens. Mel Martinez of Florida, Mike DeWine of Ohio, Mike Crapo of Idaho and Lindsey Graham of South Carolina.

Reid said he recently had lunch with O'Connor, as well as Justices Antonin Scalia and Stephen Breyer, who agreed that nominating a member of the Senate or someone who is not on the bench could be a good idea.

"What we need in the court are good men and women," Reid said, "people who have good backgrounds, who have shown not only in what they've done in law school but since they've got out of law school they're just good lawyers."