Daschle meets GOP demand on court nominees

Daschle said Democrats would agree to a Republican demand to make public the so-called "blue slip process."

By Dana Bash
CNN Washington Bureau

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Hoping to break an impasse over organizing the Senate under Democratic control, Majority Leader Tom Daschle agreed Tuesday to make public the objections individual senators may have to judicial nominees.

Daschle, D-South Dakota, said Tuesday that Democrats will go along with a GOP demand to open the so-called "blue-slip process," which gives home-state senators veto power over judicial nominees.

"We certainly oppose private blue slips, and I'm prepared to incorporate the public blue slip policy in the organizing resolution itself," he said.

Democrats called for a public blue slip process when President Clinton's nominees were being secretly vetoed by Republicans in the Senate, Daschle said, and he hoped Republicans continue this policy when the roles are again reversed.

Senate leaders are trying to draft an organizing resolution that will determine the size and makeup of Senate committees. For all practical purposes, until the organizing resolution is complete, legislation and Bush nominees cannot get through the Senate.

Despite Tuesday's offer, Daschle said Democrats still oppose a GOP proposal to change the rules to ensure Supreme Court nominees get a full Senate vote even if the Judiciary Committee does not approve them.

"In essence, what their proposal would do is to create a 100-member Judiciary Committee, bypassing, if they wish, the Judiciary Committee itself. We're not prepared to do that," he said.

Five GOP senators have represented their caucus in talks aimed at hammering out an organizing resolution. Republicans said talks had stalled over assurances that Bush's judicial nominees would be treated with "fairness."

They argued that partisan comments by Democrats indicate they need a written guarantee that all nominees for the high court will get a full Senate vote. Confident he has the votes to beat it, Daschle will leave the question of a rules change to the full Senate.

Democrats say their treatment of judicial nominees should be judged by their record, and point out the last time they had control of Congress, they allowed two Supreme Court nominees-- Robert Bork and Clarence Thomas -- to have full Senate votes even though they were defeated in committee.

Last week, Republican negotiators announced they had reached an agreement with Daschle that would bring Democrats an additional seat on committees and let each committee determine its own budget and staffing.

Daschle said he hopes the resolution will come up for a vote later this week, as soon as he and Senate Minority Leader Trent Lott, R-Mississippi, agree on the language.