SUPREME BATTLE Reed and Chafee try to decode John Roberts BY IAN DONNIS

Meeting recently with John G. Roberts, President Bush’s nominee to replace Sandra Day O’Connor on the US Supreme Court, US Senator Lincoln Chafee made the case that it’s not a good time, given the sharp political polarization in the country, to pursue big changes on such divisive decisions as Roe v. Wade. Although Roberts responded with a Latin phrase meaning "the case has been decided," it’s very difficult, of course, to know how the nominee would ultimately act on the high court.

With Supreme Court nominations having become a contest in obscuring the core beliefs of the nominees, Chafee, who finds Roberts’s professional credentials impressive, expects this nominee to remain similarly opaque. "The past three nominees — Ginsburg, Breyer, and Souter — have been so vague that I assume that’ll be the case," the Republican senator says. "I assume he’ll take the precedent of the last three and not say much" revealing stuff in confirmation hearings slated to begin in September. Chafee says it’s too early to think about the criteria he’ll use in deciding his vote, although he says Roberts’s stance on reproductive rights will be a factor.

Although a GOP maverick, Chafee has previously cited a philosophical belief that presidents deserve support for their nominees, and he was prepared to back John Bolton as UN ambassador when the controversial choice was before the Senate. Asked if he is leaning either way on Roberts’s nomination, the senator says, "No. I think it’s too early."

Not surprisingly, Democratic Senator Jack Reed seems more skeptical. Although he hasn’t adopted a position, Reed describes predictions that Roberts will be confirmed with relative ease as premature. "There hasn’t been any real opportunity to publicly question the nominee or to review his record, both as a private attorney and as a lawyer for two [presidential] administrations," he says, noting how the White House has been reluctant to release records that might offer more insight on Roberts’s beliefs. As a result, Reed says, he approaches the nomination hearings with the view that nothing is a foregone conclusion.

While Bush has made no secret of his interest in moving the Supreme Court to the right, citing Clarence Thomas and Antonin Scalia as role models for new justices, Reed says, "I think you have to look at the individual . . . . You have to look at what this judge will bring to the court."

That said, Reed says he plans to listen closely during judiciary hearings to get Roberts’s views on a wide range of issues, including environmental protection, executive power, civil rights, reproductive rights, and others. Noting how O’Connor has been a swing vote on decisions involving campaign finance, the First Amendment, and separation of church and state, Reed says it’s important to see where the nominee stands on those matters as well.