Bush nominates new chief

By Steve Holland in Washington DC
September 05, 2005

US President George W. Bush has nominated appeals court judge John Roberts to replace the late William Rehnquist as US Supreme Court chief justice.

"Judge Roberts has earned the nation's confidence, and I'm pleased to announce that I will nominate him to serve as the 17th chief justice of the Supreme Court," Mr Bush said in the Oval Office, with Roberts at his side.
Mr Bush urged the Senate to move quickly to confirm the 50-year-old conservative in time for the October 3 start of the new term of the Supreme Court.

Mr Rehnquist died on Saturday of cancer.

"It's in the interests of the court and the country to have a chief justice on the bench on the first full day of the fall (autumn) term," Mr Bush said.

"The Senate is well along in the process of considering Judge Roberts' qualifications. They know his record, and his fidelity to the law. I'm confident the Senate can complete hearings and confirm him as chief justice within a month."


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Mr Roberts is already awaiting Senate confirmation hearings this week to serve on the Supreme Court.
While some Senate Democrats call Mr Roberts "out of the mainstream", his confirmation seemed assured.

Mr Bush nominated him in July to replace Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, who is retiring.

Mr Bush said he would move to fill the second opening on the high court in a timely manner.

Mr Rehnquist's death gave Mr Bush a historic opportunity to reshape the court, which interprets the US Constitution and decides on major legal questions such as abortion.

A senior administration official said Mr Bush met Mr Roberts in the White House residence yesterday, and offered him the position this morning.

The official said such a move had been at the back of Mr Bush's mind, and that he was considered a natural-born leader for the court.

Mr Bush, grappling with the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, wasted little time in coming up with a replacement for Mr Rehnquist.

He had taken weeks to settle on Mr Roberts once Ms O'Connor announced her retirement in June

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