WASHINGTON, Nov. 17 (UPI) -- Pennsylvania Republican Arlen Specter appeared likely Wednesday but not certain to win his battle to become Senate Judiciary Committee chairman.
Having made his case to the GOP caucus over the last few days, Specter got a boost Tuesday when Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch, the committee's current chairman, gave his endorsement, saying Specter would "be a great chairman."
But, according to the Hill newspaper Wednesday, Specter has not satisfied some critics that he can be a strong chairman, despite the ongoing controversy swirling around his position on a woman's right to an abortion.
Some GOP leaders -- including Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn., and Republican confernce chairman Sen. Rick Santorum, R-Pa., -- have been unwilling to comment on whether he supports Specter's bid for the chairmanship.
A moderate Republican Specter's positions on many issues are in conflict to those held by some of his Republican colleagues. The likelihood Specter would take the gavel at the committee with jurisdiction over judicial nominations, constitutional amendments and legal issues like tort reform -- a second term priority for the president -- led to the grassroots and Internet campaign against him by conservatives.
Specter's appointment must be ratified by the GOP members of the committee as well as the full Republican conference when it meets in January.
