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NEWS ABOUT: Senate confirmation hearings

Senators Duke It Out at Sotomayor Hearing

(Newser) - Sonia Sotomayor has wrapped up the first session of what promises to be a successful but contentious confirmation process. Patrick Leahy opened today's hearing by expressing hope Sotomayor would be spared racial attacks. “She has been a judge for all Americans,” the Senate Judiciary Committee chair said. “... More »

Six Things to Watch at Sotomayor Hearings

(Newser) - The White House is working hard to ensure an easy confirmation for Sonia Sotomayor, with John Roberts' perfect-10 testimony as a model. Will she sail through? Politico lists six things to watch.
  1. That 'wise Latina' remark. Republicans are obsessed with it, and she needs to explain it without sounding phony.
... More »

GOP to Target Sotomayor With Gun Questions

Ruling in favor of gun control laws could rankle red state Dems

(Newser) - Republicans, who've failed to get traction in opposing Sonia Sotomayor's nomination to the Supreme Court, finally think they have an issue that might stick: gun control. When the high court struck down Washington’s tough gun control laws as unconstitutional, many wondered if the ruling applied to state laws as... More »

Sotomayor Proves Poor Lightning Rod for GOP

Nominee fight doesn't boost fundraising

(Newser) - After nearly a month in the public eye, Sonia Sotomayor isn’t proving nearly as controversial as Republicans had hoped, Politico reports. “She doesn’t have the punch out there in terms of fundraising and recruiting, at least so far," said Republican congressman John Thune. Things could change... More »

Sotomayor Confirmation Hearings Start July 13

Senate judiciary chair: it's a 'reasonable schedule'

(AP) - Confirmation hearings for Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor will convene on July 13, says the Senate Judiciary Committee chairman. Patrick Leahy said the date represents a "reasonable schedule" that would give committee members several more weeks to prepare. President Obama has urged the Senate to vote before it leaves... More »

Sotomayor Will Likely Get Some GOP Votes

Limbaugh, Gingrich posturing belies thin Senate opposition

(Newser) - Despite loud opposition from the likes of Newt Gingrich and Rush Limbaugh, many Republican senators may vote for Sonia Sotomayor, the New York Times reports. Strategists on both sides suspect that at least a third of the upper house’s 40 Republicans will back the Supreme Court nominee, including the... More »

Sotomayor Vote Carries Risks for These Senators

Judiciary committee members share spotlight with nominee

(Newser) - Sonia Sotomayor's confirmation looks likely, but that doesn’t mean there won’t be some drama between here and there. Politico runs down which senators have the most to win—and the most to lose:  
  • Patrick Leahy: Facing his first nominee as judiciary chairman, Leahy’s eager to
... More »

Sotomayor Aced 2 Previous Senate Hearings

Tough questioning from GOP didn't faze court nominee

(Newser) - Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee are still debating how tough they'll be at Sonia Sotomayor's confirmation hearing, but as the Washington Post reports, the Supreme Court nominee doesn't buckle under pressure. In the long-delayed 1997 hearing that elevated her to the Second Circuit, Sotomayor survived a GOP grilling on... More »

GOP Can't Stop Her, But They Can Look 'Silly'

(Newser) - Sonia Sotomayor can take these numbers to heart as she awaits her Senate confirmation hearing. When she needed Senate approval for her current post in 1998, she got it by a vote of 67-29 (with not a single Democratic nay). Forty-six of those senators are still in office, and they... More »

For Sessions, Confirmation Hearings May Feel Familiar

Specter's far right replacement once rejected by same committee

(Newser) - Even if Al Franken is seated, President Obama's Supreme Court nominee isn't guaranteed an easy confirmation process. The reason is Jeff Sessions, the Alabama Republican who inherited Arlen Specter's seat on the Senate Judiciary Committee. The fiery Sessions knows the committee well: It blocked his bid to become a federal... More »

Senate Panel's Tax Scrutiny Hampers Confirmations

(Newser) - The sheer number of tax-related problems that have slowed confirmation of Obama nominees has some insisting the process has become tougher, Time reports. Not so, says Sen. Charles Grassley. “We are vetting nominees for the current administration the same way we vetted nominees for the previous administration,” said... More »

Senate OKs Ron Kirk as Trade Rep

Former Dallas mayor vows to enforce US export deals

(Newser) - The Senate today confirmed, in a 92-5 vote, former Dallas mayor Ron Kirk as US trade representative, the Dallas Morning News reports. With global trade declining for the first time in 27 years, Kirk has vowed to make countries fulfill their trade promises to the US. Kirk paid the IRS... More »

Clinton Turns Back on Burkle, $20M

Amount owed from former business deal may have diminished with economy

(Newser) - Bill Clinton has called it quits with Ron Burkle's Yucaipa Cos, walking away from a payment once estimated at up to $20 million, the Wall Street Journal reports. Clinton began distancing himself from Yucaipa in 2007 as Hillary Clinton’s run for the White House heated up, and continued to... More »

CIA Hopeful Panetta Retracts Torture Remarks

Backs off accusations that US deliberately sent suspects abroad

(Newser) - Leon Panetta today backed off on comments he made accusing the Bush administration of deliberately sending terror suspects abroad to be tortured, CQ Politics reports. "It's news to me," Sen Christopher Bond told the nominee to run the CIA. Panetta responded that he was referring to widely publicized... More »

Babs Backs Holder for AG

Streisand urges fellow lefties to fight for Obama nominee

(Newser) - Barbra Streisand is using her star power to push for the speedy confirmation of Eric Holder as attorney general, Politico reports. In a letter, Babs asks like-minded people to sign a petition supporting a man who is “committed to liberty, the rule of law, and our constitutional rights.”... More »

GOP Questions Put Brakes on Holder Vote

Committee will wait week on AG nominee, infuriating chair Leahy

(Newser) - The Senate Judiciary Committee delayed today’s scheduled vote on Eric Holder’s confirmation by another week, CNN reports. Republican members engineered the move, saying they have questions about the attorney-general nominee’s stance on interrogation techniques. Chairman Patrick Leahy, who said he was “extremely disappointed,” banged down... More »

Cornyn Yields; Clinton Vote Near

Confirmation of State nominee could come within hours

(Newser) - Republican Sen. John Cornyn removed his call for a roll-call vote in the confirmation of Hillary Clinton as secretary of State today, paving the way for a quick vote within two hours, the Hill reports. “I intend to vote for her confirmation,” Cornyn said, “but I also... More »

Geithner Sorry, Blames TurboTax

Treasury nominee, at confirmation hearings, apologizes for tax missteps

(Newser) - Timothy Geithner apologized for failing to pay $34,000 in taxes today in his Senate confirmation hearing. “I should have been more careful,” the would-be Treasury secretary said, calling them careless, avoidable mistakes. When asked how he prepared the taxes he replied, “I will answer that, but... More »

Geithner's Nomination Is Unlikely to Fail

Taxes, schmaxes: Senate wants to know if he can fix economy

(Newser) - The herculean task awaiting Timothy Geithner is so critical to the nation that a niggling detail like unpaid taxes is unlikely to derail his bid to head up the Treasury Department, writes Deborah Solomon in the Wall Street Journal. While senators will likely press Geithner about his missteps during his... More »

7 Nominees Confirmed; Clinton Vote Tomorrow

(Newser) - The Senate met after the inauguration today and promptly confirmed seven of President Obama’s nominees by unanimous vote, with the notable exception of Hillary Clinton, the Chicago Tribune reports. A vote on Clinton has been scheduled for tomorrow after Harry Reid and Sen. John Cronyn, who has concerns about... More »

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