Legal News

?Bring us Back,? Says the ABA

By Ashby Jones

Oh, how we wish this post were about the other ABA — the American Basketball Association — which during its short run featured awesome hair (see, e.g., Dr. J (pictured)), a tri-colored ball and not much defense. No, we’re talking about the American Bar Association, which, according to this post over at the BLT Blog, wants back inside the process for vetting nominees to the federal judiciary.

Eight years ago, the incoming Bush administration reversed a longstanding policy that gave the association a central role in the nomination process. Republicans had criticized the ABA as simply another interest group because of the liberal positions taken by its house of delegates and for the mixed ratings it gave to Supreme Court nominees Robert Bork and Clarence Thomas, among others.

“Our goal is to assist the Administration and the Senate Judiciary Committee in whatever way they deem most appropriate,” said Kim Askew, the chair the ABA’s standing committee on the federal judiciary and a partner in the Dallas office of K&L Gates, to Legal Times. “The Committee does not consider a nominee’s ideological or political philosophy.”

An ABA staff member said the association has had conversations about its role with White House Counsel Gregory Craig but has not received a definitive answer. A White House spokesman gave no comment to the Legal Times on Thursday.

Full post as published by Law Blog - WSJ.com on February 20, 2009 (boomark / email).