US Senate begins hearing on court nominee Alito

The US Senate Judiciary Committee opened its hearing yesterday on Supreme Court nominee Samuel Alito with lawmakers praising his legal credentials yet many voicing concern about his opposition to abortion, certain to be a key issue.

With the direction of the high court possibly at stake, a number of senators also promised to ask Judge Alito about the Bush administration's domestic spying programme, and what critics see as Judge Alito's support of excessively broad presidential powers.

"This hearing will give Judge Alito the full opportunity to address the issues of concern," Chairman Arlen Specter, a Pennsylvania Republican, said at the start of the nationally broadcast proceeding expected to last at least several days.

"The challenge for Judge Alito... is to demonstrate that he will protect the rights and liberties of all Americans and serve as an effective check on government overreaching," said Senator Patrick Leahy of Vermont, the panel's top Democrat.

Judge Alito, a 55-year-old conservative, has been a member of the Philadelphia-based 3rd US Circuit Court of Appeals since 1990. He earlier served as a US prosecutor and Reagan administration lawyer.

President George W. Bush has nominated Judge Alito to replace retiring Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, a moderate conservative who often has been the swing vote on the nine-member court on such hot-button issues as civil rights and abortion rights. Confirmation of the more conservative Judge Alito could push the high court to the right for decades to come.

In their opening statements, the committee's 10 Republicans and eight Democrats offered sharply contrasting views of the Alito, largely along party lines.

Republicans hailed him as a top-notch and fair-minded judge who received the American Bar Association's highest rating for the Supreme Court.

They also noted that while Alito has expressed personal opposition to abortion, he has said he respects legal precedent, which includes the 1973 Supreme Court ruling that legalised abortion.

Democrats, however, warned that Judge Alito's record showed he has ruled overwhelmingly against individual rights and in favour of government and large corporations.

"Your speeches, your writings, and your judicial opinions make it clear that you have the burden to prove to the American people that you would not come to the Supreme Court with any political agenda," Sen. Dick Durbin, an Illinois Democrat, told Judge Alito.