Reid urges president to pick mainstream candidate for court

Wednesday, Sept. 28, 2005 | 10:56 a.m.

SUN WASHINGTON BUREAU

WASHINGTON -- Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., today urged President Bush to nominate for the Supreme Court a "mainstream candidate," not "an activist who would bring an ideological agenda to the court."

Bush has signaled that his nomination could be made soon, as the Senate prepares to vote Thursday on John Roberts to be the next Chief Justice.

"This is not an occasion for a radical shift in the ideological balance of the court," Reid wrote in a letter sent to Bush today by Reid and Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., the top Democrat on the Judiciary Committee.

The two wrote that retiring Justice Sandra Day O'Connor had been a "voice of moderation and reason" during two decades of service.

Reid has said that Democrats have provided the White House with names of potential nominees that Democrats find both acceptable and unacceptable. In their letter, they re-asserted their position that Bush should not nominate a candidate who has been filibustered by Democrats during Bush's term.

"The nomination of any of these individuals to the Supreme Court would represent an unnecessary provocation and would be met by substantial opposition in the Senate," the two senators wrote.

Reid was asked by reporters on Tuesday if he thought Bush had given Democrats adequate consultation in choosing the next nominee.

Reid chuckled. "We'll see who they give us, that'll answer that question," Reid said.