NewsMax.com Wires
Thursday, Dec. 28, 2000

The appointment of Roger Gregory to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit gives the judicial body its first black judge in history and fills the nation's longest-standing court vacancy. Clinton named Gregory under his authority to make recess appointments while Congress is out of session.

Gregory, a Richmond, Va., litigator, was nominated earlier this year but never got a hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee, according to White House officials.

Setting Up Ashcroft

An administration official told the Associated Press that Clinton wanted to make a point before the next session of Congress debates Bush's attorney general appointment, John Ashcroft.

As a U.S. senator, Ashcroft opposed Clinton's nomination of Missouri Supreme Court Justice Ronnie White, the first black to serve on the state's high court, as a federal judge.

Leftist black groups have vowed to make an issue out of Ashcroft's opposition to White.

Clinton pushed the appointment through after the Administrative Office of the United States Courts declared the vacant seat a "judicial emergency." It has been vacant longer than any other judicial seat in the nation, nearly a decade.

"It is unconscionable that the Fourth Circuit, with the largest African-American population of any circuit in our nation, has never had an African-American appellate judge," Clinton said.

Clinton blamed the GOP Senate leaders for blocking the confirmation of his past nominations of liberal black judges to the court: Judges James Beatty, nominated in 1995 and again in 1997; James Wynn, nominated in 1999; Andre Davis, nominated in October; and Gregory, nominated in June.

"As I said when I first nominated Roger Gregory, it is long past time to right that wrong. Justice may be blind, but we all know that diversity in the courts, as in all aspects of society, sharpens our vision and makes us a stronger nation. Time and again, for five years now, I have tried and tried to fill these gaps in justice and equality, and time and again, for five years now, the Senate majority has stood in the way," Clinton said.

The 4th Circuit Court hears appeals from trial courts in Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia and West Virginia.

"I look forward to serving with integrity and distinction and to serve with the honored jurists on the Fourth Circuit. I look forward to the collegiality and also their wise counsel," Gregory said.

Senate Democrats will hold a majority from Jan. 3 until Jan. 20, after which Vice President-elect Dick Cheney becomes president of the Senate, giving control to Republicans. Opponents of Gregory's nomination could use a filibuster to block the nomination.

Copyright 2000 by United Press International. All rights reserved.

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