Bush picks Roberts for chief justice

WASHINGTON -- President Bush yesterday nominated Judge John G. Roberts Jr. to become the 17th chief justice of the United States, moving quickly to have the man he first tapped to serve as an associate justice instead succeed Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist, who died Saturday.

Bush said that because senators have already extensively researched Roberts's judicial record, the federal appeals court judge should be confirmed and sitting in the Supreme Court's center chair when the court's new term begins Oct. 3. Bush called the 50-year-old Roberts a ''fitting" choice to replace Rehnquist, whom Roberts served as a young law clerk.

''I'm certain that Chief Justice Rehnquist was hoping to welcome John Roberts as a colleague, and we're all sorry that day didn't come," the president said in the Oval Office, with Roberts at his side. ''Yet it's fitting that a great chief justice be followed in office by a person who shared his deep reverence for the Constitution, his profound respect for the Supreme Court, and his complete devotion to the cause of justice."

Roberts said he was ''honored and humbled" by the president's trust.

''I'm very much aware that if I am confirmed, I would succeed a man I deeply respect and admire, a man who has been very kind to me for 25 years," he said.

Bush's decision means that the justice Roberts was initially tapped to replace, Sandra Day O'Connor, will continue to serve on the court, since her resignation was contingent on the confirmation of a successor. The president said he will name a replacement for O'Connor ''in a timely manner," but because the next court term begins in less than a month, O'Connor will almost certainly remain on the court for at least the start of the new term.

Bush's choice of Roberts for chief justice represents a safe route for a president who is reeling politically amid spiraling gas prices and criticism of a slow federal response to Hurricane Katrina. O'Connor's continued service on the court takes pressure off Bush to act immediately to name a new associate justice, and Roberts likely won't endure the battle for confirmation as chief justice that two current justices Bush has called his favorites -- Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas -- would face.

The Roberts pick for chief justice prompted Democrats to ask that Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearings that were scheduled to begin today for Roberts be pushed back until the start of next week. Republicans agreed to postpone hearings until after Rehnquist's funeral tomorrow, but were still negotiating with Democrats yesterday over whether proceedings should begin Thursday or Monday.

Leading Democrats said the higher stakes involved with confirming a chief justice -- the leader of the judicial branch and a key voice in shaping the direction of the Supreme Court -- increases the importance of a full examination of Roberts' record.

''John Roberts bears a heavier burden when he comes before the Senate," said Senator Edward M. Kennedy, Democrat of Massachusetts. ''The chief justice must be committed to moving America forward toward equality, opportunity, and fairness for all Americans. Our review of even the limited available parts of his record has raised serious concerns about his role in the early 1980s in seeking to weaken voting rights, roll back women's rights, and impede our progress toward a more equal nation."

Kennedy called on Bush to name his replacement for O'Connor quickly, so senators have a sense of the direction he intends to take the judiciary. He also reiterated the Democrats' call for the release of more documents related to Roberts's record of government service.

The White House has refused Democratic requests to release papers from Roberts's service as principal deputy solicitor general under President George H. W. Bush, though it has provided more than 50,000 pages from his service in the Reagan administration's Justice Department.

Democrats are pushing Bush to reverse his decision, in the interest of providing more information on the man he now wants to fill a higher-profile post.

''The Senate's ''advise and consent' responsibility takes on an added dimension," said Senator Patrick J. Leahy of Vermont, the ranking Democrat on the Judiciary Committee. ''These are lifetime appointments that we can expect to extend into the lives of our grandchildren and great-grandchildren."

Though Rehnquist served 14 years as an associate justice before becoming chief justice, a chief justice coming from outside the court -- as Roberts would be -- has been the norm through much of American history, and Rehnquist's three immediate predecessors were court outsiders. Coming from the outside presents a challenge to a chief justice as he seeks to determine the rhythm of deliberations and the personalities of the justices, but Roberts's experience as a litigator before the court and a clerk to Rehnquist may give him experience that would make that transition easier.

In Roberts, Bush is turning to a young federal appeals court judge with an amiable manner and rock-solid conservative credentials to head up the federal judiciary. Documents from his service under Reagan show he was a consistent advocate for conservative policies on issues including affirmative action, civil rights, and abortion, and he has received praise for his service since 2003 on the Circuit Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia.

''Judge Roberts is an exceptional judge, brilliant legal mind, and a man of outstanding character who understands his profound duty to follow the law," said Senator John Cornyn, a Texas Republican who also serves on the Judiciary Committee.

White House spokesman Scott McClellan said the president had considered Roberts as a potential chief justice pick since the spring, when he and his top aides interviewed a range of judges and lawyers in anticipation of a possible retirement by Rehnquist, who was being treated for thyroid cancer at the time.

''This had been something in the back of the president's mind in case such a scenario came into being, if the chief justice had retired," McClellan said. ''The president viewed him as someone who had the leadership qualities needed to be able to lead the court."

Tapping Roberts for the chief justice's job could make Democratic opposition politically risky, since the country is already somewhat comfortable with Roberts, said Kermit L. Hall, president of the State University of New York at Albany and a Supreme Court historian.

''It makes the president look decisive, and it gives him a nominee that's already vetted," Hall said. ''The Democrats have to be extremely careful, even with the president wounded by Katrina, that they don't look like obstructionists that aren't really serious about the welfare of the country."

With Roberts tapped to replace Rehnquist instead of O'Connor, one aspect of the confirmation fight is likely to change. O'Connor has been a moderate voice on the court and a frequent swing vote, while Rehnquist was a consistent conservative. Therefore, confirming Roberts to replace Rehnquist is unlikely to alter the political balance on the high court in the same manner that having him step in for O'Connor would.

A bigger battle could come when Bush chooses a new justice to replace O'Connor. His potential choices include Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales and appeals court judges J. Michael Luttig, Michael McConnell, Emilio Garza, Edith Brown Clement, and J. Harvie Wilkinson III.

Democrats and liberal groups yesterday called on Bush to replace O'Connor with another political moderate, and appealed to Bush to consult extensively with senators before making his choice.

''Justice O'Connor has been a voice of moderation and reason on the court, and should be replaced by someone who, like her, embodies the fundamental American values of fairness, liberty, and equality," said Harry Reid, the Senate minority leader and Democrat of Nevada.

Rick Klein can be reached at rklein@globe.com.