Kennedy Not Satisfied With Alito's Excuses

Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) fired off a strongly worded letter to Supreme Court nominee Samuel Alito,  challenging him for not recusing himself from a 2002 case involving Vanguard, where Alito has a six-figure investment, the Associated Press reports.

"You have given at least six different answers to the basic question of why you not only sat on the case, but presided, signed orders and joined an opinion upholding Vanguard's position in that case," Kennedy wrote. Getting to the bottom of Alito's real reason for not recusing himself, Kennedy said, would ensure a "less confrontational confirmation process. I urge you to provide prompt and clear written answers to the many remaining questions about your failure to recuse yourself."

Kennedy, also with 17 other senators, will question Alito during Judiciary Committee hearings beginning Jan. 9.

In response to Kennedy's gibe, the Republican National Committee issued a statement accusing him of partisan tactics. "It's laughable that Ted Kennedy of all people is attacking Judge Alito's integrity," RNC spokeswoman Tracey Schmitt said in a statement. "Senator Kennedy was one of the most outspoken defenders of Judge Stephen Breyer during his confirmation hearing when similar issues arose just over a decade ago. Just as he did with Chief Justice Roberts, Ted Kennedy will undoubtedly oppose Judge Alito's nomination. All he's doing is injecting naked partisan politics into what should be a dignified process."

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The staff of Money Management Executive ("MME") has prepared these capsule summaries based on reports published by the news sources to which they are attributed. Those news sources are not associated with MME, and have not prepared, sponsored, endorsed, or approved these summaries.

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