Senate Panel Unanimously Approves Breyer Nomination

Stephen G. Breyer’s nomination to the Supreme Court won unanimous approval from the Senate Judiciary Committee Tuesday, clearing the way for his expected confirmation by the full Senate.

Committee Chairman Joseph R. Biden Jr. (D-Del.) said the vote by 10 Democrats and eight Republicans should bring the panel’s recommendation before the Senate by Friday or early next week. Commending Breyer on his fairness and his skill in explaining complex issues, Biden said: “These qualities should serve Steve Breyer well on the Supreme Court.”

Breyer, 55, would become the nation’s 108th justice, replacing the retiring Harry A. Blackmun.

A federal jurist since 1980, Breyer is chief judge of the U.S. 1st Circuit Court of Appeals in Boston and a former chief counsel of the Judiciary Committee.

Informed by telephone of the committee’s vote by Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.), Breyer’s friend and home-state senator, the nominee said: “I’m very pleased. I’m absolutely delighted. It’s a fine vote of confidence.”

Only two committee members, Sen. Howard M. Metzenbaum (D-Ohio) and Sen. Charles E. Grassley (R-Iowa), expressed reservations as they approved the nomination. Metzenbaum, Breyer’s most persistent questioner during the nominee’s three days of testimony, said he was concerned about the candidate’s devotion to “the ordinary American.” Grassley said that he fears Breyer might interpret the Constitution too broadly.

The only major witness to oppose the nomination during the four-day hearing was consumer advocate Ralph Nader, who said Breyer’s judicial opinions showed a pro-business, anti-consumer bent.

Committee members said Breyer should win confirmation by the Senate before it starts its August recess. That would ensure that he could take his seat on the high court for the 1994-95 term that begins in October. The court is now in its summer recess.

Illustrating Breyer’s bipartisan support in statements before the committee vote, Sen. Howell Heflin (D-Ala.) praised him as a “principled moderate” and Sen. Orrin G. Hatch (R-Utah) called the nominee a “moderate pragmatist.”