Oct. 25 (Bloomberg) -- President George W. Bush is making it harder for U.S. Supreme Court nominee Harriet Miers to win Senate confirmation by refusing to disclose what advice she has given as his aide and White House counsel, senators from both parties said.
Bush, calling it ``a red line I am not willing to cross,'' told reporters he won't give the Senate Judiciary Committee policy papers and legal memos by Miers.
The president's nomination of Miers, a 60-year-old former Dallas lawyer who has never been a judge, sparked a rebellion among conservative activists and reluctance among some Republican senators to endorse her. Republicans and Democrats are seeking more information about Miers's five-year service as a presidential aide.
``These hearings pose a difficulty for the nominee on how much she's going to be able to say,'' said Senate Judiciary Chairman Arlen Specter, who will preside over her confirmation hearings. Barring Miers from answering ``many, many, many questions'' limits ``the ability of the Senate to evaluate'' her, he said.
Specter said he is still negotiating with the White House for more complete answers to a questionnaire she filled out last week. Bush yesterday rejected a Judiciary Committee request to reveal the advice Miers has provided at the White House on constitutional issues. Specter and the panel's top Democrat, Vermont Senator Patrick Leahy, have joined in pressing for the material.
At least, Specter said, the White House should be able to specify what issues Miers worked on without violating any confidence. Critics of the administration policy also contend that revealing Miers's policy positions, as opposed to her legal advice, wouldn't reveal privileged information.
``The full confirmation process is in her hands,'' Specter said. ``If she does well, she will be confirmed, but it's up to her.'' He said the Senate isn't seeking any information that would violate White House confidentiality.
Some conservatives suggested that a stalemate over White House documents could end up being a face-saving reason for the administration to withdraw Miers's nomination.
``That is actually a magic bullet,'' said Manuel Miranda, executive director of the Third Branch Conference in Washington. It ``allows the president to say `I have to defend the integrity of the White House.''' Miranda is opposing Miers's nomination.
Not all successful high court nominees were judges. The most recent examples are William H. Rehnquist, who was an assistant attorney general, and Lewis F. Powell, a lawyer in private practice, when they were nominated in 1971 by President Richard M. Nixon.
Bush told reporters that providing the Senate with memos containing Miers's advice would chill his ability, or any president's, to get candid advice from his aides.
``People can learn about Harriet Miers through hearings, but we are not going to destroy this business about people being able to walk into the Oval Office and say, `Mr. President, here's my advice to you,''' Bush said.
The remarks were in response to a question about whether he had a contingency plan to withdraw the nomination.
Republicans as well say they need information about her role in formulating administration policy to judge her qualifications, as long as it doesn't breach executive privilege.
``I'd be interested in those memos, not so much the positions she took but their quality,'' said Mississippi Senator Trent Lott, one of several Republicans who have voiced skepticism about the nomination.
If the White House refuses to provide information about Miers's policy role, ``we may have to extend the hearings,'' said Kansas Republican Sam Brownback last week. He has questioned whether Miers would be a reliable conservative vote on the high court.
So far, Miers has declined during private one-on-one meetings with senators to offer more than a glimpse of what she has done at the White House. She has acknowledged that she advised Bush on judicial appointments while refusing to discuss policies she helped draft.
California Democrat Dianne Feinstein complained that, during her conversation with the nominee, Miers didn't respond when asked whether she would disqualify herself from voting on issues she worked on at the White House.
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