Edward M. Kennedy Institute for the United States Senate

Hearings of Justice David Souter

Born in Melrose, Massachusetts, Judge David H. Souter was nominated by President George H. W. Bush to the position of Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States on July 25, 1990 to fill the vacancy upon the retirement of Justice William J. Brennan, Jr. At the time of Souter's nomination, he was a judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit (since May 25, 1990 named by President George H. W. Bush). Souter served as a prosecutor in the New Hampshire Attorney General's Office, as the state's Attorney General, as a trial judge, and as an associate justice of the New Hampshire Supreme Court. Souter was the only Justice at the time to have extensive court experience outside of a federal appeals court.

Despite strong opposition by the National Organization for Women, the United States Senate confirmed his nomination by a vote of 90-9 on October 2, 1990. Justice Souter retired from the Supreme Court on June 29, 2009.

Hearings of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg

President William Jefferson Clinton nominated Judge Ruth Bader Ginsburg to the position of Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States on June 14, 1993 to replace Justice Byron R. White who had retired. At the time of Ginsburg's nomination, she was a judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit (appointed by President Jimmy Carter in 1980).

Her nomination marked the first by a Democrat since 1967, when President Lyndon B. Johnson named Justice Thurgood Marshall to the bench. She is the first Jewish woman named to the court, and the second female to serve on the Court after Sandra Day O'Connor. Following graduation from law school, and although recommended by Harvard Law School's Dean Albert Sachs, Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States Felix Frankfurter declined to hire Ginsburg as a law clerk. He was not "ready to hire a woman." She served as a law clerk to the Honorable Edmund L. Palmieri, Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, from 1959-1961.

Prior to her nomination, Ginsburg taught at Rutgers University Law School and would later become the first female tenured professor at Columbia Law School. In addition, she became the first woman to serve on the law review boards of both Harvard and Columbia, and many suggest that she came to prominence as the Director of the Women's Rights Project of the American Civil Liberties Union. In that capacity, between 1973 and 1976, she argued six women's rights cases before the Court and prevailed in five.

The United States Senate confirmed Ginsburg's nomination by a vote of 96-3 on August 3, 1993.

Hearings of Justice Stephen Breyer

President William Jefferson Clinton nominated Judge Stephen G. Breyer to the position of Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States on May 13, 1994 to replace Justice Harry A. Blackmun who had retired. At the time of his appointment, Breyer was Chief Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, Boston (appointed by President Jimmy Carter).

Prior to his nomination, Breyer served as a law clerk to Justice Arthur Goldberg of the Supreme Court of the United States during the 1964 Term. From 1965-1967, Breyer served as a Special Assistant to the Assistant U.S. Attorney General for Antitrust. He was an Assistant Professor, Professor of Law, and Lecturer at Harvard Law School, 1967-1994, a Professor at the Harvard University Kennedy School of Government, 1977-1980, and a Visiting Professor at the College of Law, Sydney, Australia and at the University of Rome. From 1980-1990, he served as a Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit and as its Chief Judge, 1990-1994. Breyer also served as an Assistant Special Prosecutor of the Watergate Special Prosecution Force, 1973, and as Special Counsel (1974-1975) and as Chief Counsel (1979-1980) of the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee (which was chaired by Senator Kennedy). The United States Senate approved Breyer's nomination by a vote of 87-9 on July 29, 1994.

Hearings of Chief Justice John Roberts

President George W. Bush nominated Judge John G. Roberts, Jr. to the position of Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States following the death of Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist in 2005. Originally, Roberts had been nominated to replace Justice Sandra Day O'Connor as Associate Justice upon her retirement, but when Justice Rehnquist suddenly passed away, President Bush nominated Roberts for the position of Chief Justice.

At the time of his nomination, Roberts was a judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit (appointed by President George W. Bush). Before that, from 1980-1981, Roberts had been a law clerk for then-Associate Justice William H. Rehnquist, following a year as a law clerk for Judge Henry Friendly of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. He was Special Assistant to the Attorney General, U.S. Department of Justice from 1981-1982, Associate Counsel to President Ronald W. Reagan, White House Counsel's Office from 1982-1986, and Principal Deputy Solicitor General, U.S. Department of Justice from 1989-1993. From 1986-1989 and 1993-2003, he practiced law in Washington, D.C.

His hearing, although relatively uncontroversial, drew attention when Roberts continually refused to answer questions pertaining to his personal beliefs and his opinions on key issues such as gay rights and the role of the Executive Branch.

Justice Roberts was ultimately confirmed by the United States Senate by a vote of 78 -22 on September 29, 2005.

Hearings of Justice Samuel Alito

Judge Samuel Anthony Alito was nominated for the position of Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States by President George W. Bush in 2005 to replace Justice Sandra Day O'Connor who had retired. At the time, Alito was a judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit (appointed by President George H. W. Bush). Alito served as a law clerk for Leonard I. Garth of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit from 1976-1977. Alito was Assistant U.S. Attorney, District of New Jersey, 1977-1981, Assistant to the Solicitor General, U.S. Department of Justice, 1981-1985, Deputy Assistant Attorney General, U.S. Department of Justice, 1985-1987, and U.S. Attorney, District of New Jersey, 1987-1990.

Alito's hearings centered on Roe v. Wade and other divisive issues. Alito refused to answer any questions on these topics. The United States Senate would ultimately confirm Alito by a vote of 52-48 on January 31, 2006, the narrowest margin in modern history after Justice Clarence Thomas.