
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: THURSDAY, July 26, 1990                   TAG: 9007260027
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL                    PAGE: A-6   EDITION: STATE 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: WASHINGTON                                LENGTH: Short

COURT NOMINEE TALKS TO SENATORS

Supreme Court nominee David Souter paid courtesy calls on Senate leaders Wednesday while the Bush administration warned Democrats against trying to pin down his views on controversial cases when serious confirmation questioning begins.

Souter, whose nomination was formally submitted by President Bush on Wednesday, said nothing publicly to hint at his opinions on such issues as abortion and affirmative action as he visited senators.

His vote on the divided court could be decisive on those and other issues, and some Democrats - as well as abortion-rights and other interest groups - have said he should be closely questioned on them during the confirmation hearings expected to begin in September.

But Attorney General Dick Thornburgh, in an appearance at the National Press Club, cautioned senators about probing too deeply.

"To try to pin down any prospective appointee on a specific issue or a specific case would seem to me to verge on the improper and certainly be unwise," the attorney general said.

He expressed confidence that the nominee, who has been receiving extensive advice from the White House, would turn away such inquiries.

"I think I trust to Judge Souter's wisdom and experience to enable him to walk the line between giving the members of the Senate an appropriate road map to his judicial philosophy, politely declining to respond to questions that are case or issues-related," Thornburgh said.

While most senators agree it would be improper to ask Souter's opinions on specific cases, several have said they intended to pursue controversial issues more generally.

by CNB