WASHINGTON -- Ending a long battle that twice shut down the federal judicial confirmations, the Senate finally voted 93-5 to confirm Ted Stewart as Utah's newest federal judge.
Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, gave one last verbal poke in the eye Tuesday to Democrats who had held the nomination hostage in recent weeks to try unsuccessfully to force votes on two controversial California judge nominees."This is not a time for partisan declarations of victory," he told the Senate.
But then he declared one anyway by noting Democrats' hostage-taking won them nothing more than precisely what he "proposed prior to the filibuster" that blocked Stewart.
In that deal, Hatch promised to restart all the confirmations he stalled in retaliation for the block of Stewart -- with not much time remaining in this year's session of Congress -- and to have four immediate votes on nominees besides Stewart.
The Senate rejected one of those nominees, Ronnie White of Missouri, on a 45-54 vote after Republicans complained he is soft on the death penalty. However, Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., questioned if Republicans rejected him because he is black.
Meanwhile, Hatch took time to praise Stewart, for whom he waged an unusually tough fight.
He said Stewart "is the epitome of good character, broad experience and a judicious temperament."
Following the vote, Stewart, chief of staff for Gov. Mike Leavitt, broke his months-long silence on his controversial nomination by issuing a written statement: "I am honored by, and grateful for, the confidence shown in me by Senator Hatch and President Clinton, and today, the Senate of the United States in confirming my nomination for this important position of federal district court judge."
Leavitt, who must now find a new chief of staff, said Stewart will be missed "but will make a great contribution to justice in his new role as a federal judge."
Meanwhile, local Democrats pulled no punches in blasting Hatch and the confirmation, which they had opposed along with national environmental groups.
Meg Holbrook, chairwoman of the Utah Democrat Party, said Hatch used "outrageous" tactics in pushing the nomination through and that Stewart is ill-prepared for the job.
"Orrin Hatch says that he should be president and the one to choose judges since he has the most experience doing so, and they should not be what he calls 'activist judges.' " Holbrook said. "Well folks, we know what kind of judges he would choose -- partisan political activist friends with limited legal experience."
Stewart acknowledged in his confirmation hearing that he has appeared in court as a lawyer only once, early in his career.
However, he was a member for seven years of the Utah Public Service Commission, a quasi-judicial body that regulates utilities. It issued 1,500 decisions when he was a member, and only four were overturned by courts.
He also worked in private legal practice and as a judge advocate general on property matters for the Utah National Guard. He was a longtime aide and counsel to Rep. Jim Hansen, R-Utah.
Besides shutting down confirmations to overcome recent Democratic blocking of Stewart, Hatch shut the nomination process down once earlier this year to prod Clinton to nominate Stewart.
Clinton had developed cold feet after national environmental groups opposed Stewart, who had criticized Clinton's secretive formation of the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument when he was director of the state Department of Natural Resources.
During his confirmation hearing in July, Stewart vowed to strictly follow the law -- and said he would not, as national environmental groups worry, seek ways to subvert the president's public lands policy.
"My personal view is irrelevant," Stewart said during questioning at his confirmation hearing about his environmental beliefs. He said as a lower-court judge, he would be required to follow the law and precedent set by higher courts.