HARTFORD, Conn., May 6 (UPI) -- An American Bar Association committee has said Connecticut Superior Court Judge Vanessa L. Bryant is unqualified to fill a vacant federal judgeship.
For months, an influential group of Connecticut lawyers -- including both state and federal judges -- has privately questioned Bryant's experience and credentials, mounting a quiet but intense lobbying effort to derail her nomination by President George W. Bush, the Hartford Courant reported.
Bryant was recommended to Bush by Republican Connecticut Gov. M. Jodi Rell. U.S. Sen. Joe Lieberman, D-Conn., also supports Bryant's nomination.
There is substantial opposition to Bryant's nomination within the state bar, but lawyers critical of her refuse to express their concerns publicly, the newspaper said.
Some lawyers think the negative ABA evaluation may prove insurmountable for Bryant, regardless of how she ultimately is rated by the state bar.
Should Bryant prevail, winning a favorable vote in the U.S. Senate, she would become the first black woman in New England appointed to a powerful, lifetime federal judgeship.
