Who Will Be The Judiciary Committees Ranking Member?
Thusfar, no decisions have been made with respect to Sen. Specter’s committee assignments. At least, that’s the official world. But here’s the lay of the land. As I noted earlier, Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-UT)–the senior member of the Judiciary Committee behind (at least until today) Arlen Specter–can not become its ranking member. His staff confirms it. The rules of the Senate Republican Conference forbid it. Hatch was chairman of that committee from 1995-2001 (with a brief interruption in 2001 thanks to Jim Jeffords) and then again from 2003-2005, and conference rules stipulate that “[o]nce a Senator has completed six years as Chairman of a committee, there will be no further opportunity for that Senator to serve as Ranking Member of that same committee if control of the Senate shifts and Republicans go into the Minority.” Behind Hatch, though, are Sens. Grassley (R-IA), Kyl (R-AZ), and Sessions (R-AL). Let’s tackle them in reverse order. • Sessions is the ranking member of the Subcommit
