Life’s Goal Lost : Bork Stoic but Is Said to Feel Cheated

As the debate on Judge Robert H. Bork’s Supreme Court nomination drew to a close Friday, the federal judge sat in his appellate court chambers, carrying out business as usual without monitoring events on the Senate floor.

“The outcome was clear, and looking on would be like watching an operation on yourself,” one associate said.

But the judge’s apparent detachment--a characteristic that opponents attacked as evidence of a lack of compassion--masked searing disappointment over the unsuccessful confirmation effort, perhaps the most remarkable battle in the history of the nation’s judicial nominations.

For Bork, the rejection was a devastating personal blow. He had made crucial career choices, including accepting a seat on the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals here in 1982, in hopes of improving his chances of ascension to the highest court in the land. Several times before, the White House had considered nominating him; on each occasion, the idea was rejected. Last year, he was passed over for a younger man.

President Reagan chose to nominate Antonin Scalia, Bork’s friend and colleague on the appellate bench; but many observers believed that Bork would have been confirmed if he had been nominated at that time. Even Bork’s staunchest foes acknowledged that few nominees could match his qualifications gained as a federal judge, law professor and the government’s advocate before the Supreme Court as solicitor general.

Bork himself is said to feel cheated. He was, after all, a man who had his life’s goal within his grasp, but lost it--partly because he was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Chastises Supporters

Still, he maintained his stoic posture to the end. In a message to the Senate relayed through Republican Alan K. Simpson of Wyoming, a supporter, Bork deplored advertisements by his supporters targeted against senators who opposed his nomination, just as he objected to the negative ads directed against himself.

Bork refused to be interviewed Friday, saying only: “A time will come when I will speak to the question of the process due in these matters, but that time is not now.”

This reticence was described by one colleague as Bork’s way of seeking to avoid the appearance of “sour grapes,” which would be the inevitable consequence if he discussed his strong feelings about the ordeal he had just undergone.

To many supporters, Bork has good reason to complain. Although they had expected strong opposition to his conservative judicial philosophy, they felt that the maelstrom that resulted from his nomination had more to do with political considerations than with his professional background.

Scalia, for example, was regarded as equally conservative as Bork, and, in some areas of the law, even more conservative; but he sailed through the then-Republican-controlled Senate on a 98-0 vote.

Change in Political Climate

When Reagan finally nominated Bork, the political climate and issues had changed vastly. The nominee was to fill a vacancy created by the retirement of a pivotal justice, Lewis F. Powell Jr., potentially tipping the balance of the court to the conservatives. And election year 1988 was just over the horizon, raising the profile of a nomination made by a wounded, lame-duck President.

The colleague said Bork believes that his experience will cause other appellate judges who consider themselves potential candidates for the Supreme Court to take into consideration possible political fallout of their decisions--a burden that he believes is wrong.

“It also will cause prospective nominees not to write anything controversial for fear it will be used against them,” the colleague said.

Regardless of whether that proves true for others, the immediate question for Bork is what he decides to do with the rest of his life.

Back on Appellate Bench

Although expectations were that Bork would have left the appeals court had he not been nominated--speculation fueled by the fact that, unlike fellow judges, he had not arranged for law clerks for the next court year--he now will return to handling cases there.

“He has indicated his availability to return to the argument calendar,” the list of judges available to hear cases, a colleague said. “There’s no indication he will not be with us, and it’s pretty easy to hire law clerks.”

But, in the past, Bork made no secret of the fact that he did not enjoy the heavy load of administrative agency cases on the docket of the federal appeals court here.

“For the immediate future, he’s almost locked in, out of a sense of pride and not wanting to be a quitter,” one friend said. “But chances are great he won’t remain over the long run.”

Whatever Bork’s decision, he won’t make it alone.

Dependent on Family

If his experience in the confirmation process holds true for his next career move, he will remain heavily dependent on his wife, Mary Ellen, and three children, who sat behind him for the five days he underwent committee questioning and who influenced his decision to insist on a full Senate debate rather than withdraw.

Bork, in his statement Friday, said he owed a “special debt of gratitude” to his family. “Their love and counsel sustained me throughout the extended process we have been through together.”

His wife said: “The country has been deprived of the talents of what would have been maybe one of the greatest Supreme Court justices ever.”