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American Morning

Senator Leahy Says He Will Not Stall Judicial Nominations

Aired June 05, 2001 - 11:43   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: We to check now on one of our top stories, the switch of the balance of power in the U.S. Senate. For more on that, let's go to Capitol Hill and our Kate Snow.

Kate, hello.

KATE SNOW, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Daryn. Well, one of the biggest changes that's going to happen here tomorrow on the Senate Judiciary Committee. Taking the helm will be Senator Patrick Leahy of Vermont, known as a liberal Democrat. He takes the place of Senator Orrin Hatch, known as quite a conservative Republican from the state of Utah.

Analyst call it a sea change. One of the biggest things is that they will handle -- this Judiciary Committee handles nominations that come from President Bush for judgeships and other judicial positions. Senator Leahy saying he will not slow up the process of considering President Bush's nominees. In fact, he says, he'll hold the first hearing two weeks after he takes charge of the committee.

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SEN. PATRICK LEAHY (D), VERMONT: I don't care whether we have Republicans or Democrats on the bench. I care that we have a judiciary that is fair, that is honest, that is nonpartisan in its dealings where people have the trust of that judiciary.

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SNOW: Senator Leahy and I spoke about a wide range of issues just a short time ago. On of the other hot button topics, the death penalty. The senator is opposed in principle to the death penalty, but he says he views it as constitutional. He says he wants to change, though, the way the policy is applied.

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LEAHY: My legislation doesn't do away with the death penalty, but it says if you're going to apply it, make sure you're applying it accurately because this is the one area you have to have zero tolerance for mistakes. You can't execute the wrong person.

(END VIDEO CLIP) SNOW: Senator Leahy also tells me he is planning hearings to look at the FBI. Among the things he'll look at, some what he calls missteps, including the fact they've lost some thousands of documents relating to the Timothy McVeigh Oklahoma City bombing case.

Daryn, back to you.

KAGAN: Kate Snow on Capitol Hill. Kate, thank you.

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