Watertown Public Opinion (reg. required):
Support sought for Alito
By Bob Mercer, Capitol Bureau
Friday, November 18, 2005 11:41 AM CST
Four Republican lawyers, including the South Dakota Legislature's top House and Senate members, made a public pitch Thursday on behalf of U.S. Supreme Court nominee Samuel Alito.
They asked that U.S. Sen. Tim Johnson, a Democrat, vote for President Bush's choice to succeed retiring Justice Sandra Day O'Connor.
Their efforts might have been two months premature. Johnson isn't budging from his position of wanting to wait for the Senate confirmation hearing on Alito. The hearing is scheduled to start January 9.
“He truly doesn't announce any position until the hearings are concluded. He did that with (Chief Justice John) Roberts and he will follow suit with Alito,” said Julianne Fisher, the senator's communications director.
The panel of Republicans lawyers Thursday included state Sen. Lee Schoenbeck of Watertown, who is Senate president pro tem, and state Rep. Matt Michels of Yankton, who is speaker in the House of Representatives.
Michels and Schoenbeck participated in a teleconference for reporters. The event was organized by Progress for America, a conservative group working on behalf of the Bush White House for Alito's confirmation.
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