Alito Hearings to Begin in January

Senate Judiciary Committee chairman Arlen Specter spurned the White House Thursday by announcing that his committee will not begin hearings on the confirmation of Judge Samuel Alito to the Supreme Court until January 9, 2006. President Bush had earlier called for a vote on Alito before the end of the year.

Specter's plan calls for five days of committee hearings, followed by a vote on January 17. The full Senate would then debate the nomination and vote on January 20.

This schedule makes sense. Not only does the Senate have more than enough to do between now and the end of the calendar year, but there are also hundreds of cases and much other Alito material to be examined before hearings can begin. Specter's plan seems to provide plenty of time for that necessary research.

Also today, the Gang of 14 met to discuss the Alito nomination: after the meeting, Senator Ken Salazar said that he left the gathering with a "sense that we're still together and keeping this a civil and orderly process at this point."