Ashcroft Promises To Enforce Law

Tuesday, January 16th 2001, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

WASHINGTON (AP) â€” Attorney General-designate John Ashcroft, answering critics of his anti-abortion and civil rights views, pledged Tuesday to enforce the nation's laws despite his ``personal preferences.''

While Ashcroft said in an opening statement at his Senate confirmation hearing that he believes the Roe v. Wade case legalizing abortion was ``wrongly decided,'' he accepts it ``as the settled law of the land. The Supreme Court's decisions on this have been multiple, recent and emphatic.''

He insisted that, if confirmed, he would be ``advancing the national interest, not advocating my personal interest,'' adding that he would enforce federal laws protecting women's access to abortion clinics.

``No woman should fear being threatened or coerced in seeking constitutionally protected health services,'' he said.

Not since the Clarence Thomas hearings a decade ago has the Senate Judiciary Committee held hearings amid such an onslaught of criticism against a nominee from civil rights and women's groups.

``From racial profiling to news of unwarranted strip searches, the list of injustice in America today is still long. Injustice in America against any individual must not stand,'' Ashcroft said.

The nominee, a Republican former senator from Missouri, commented on several specific issues in his opening statement and then told senators they could ``pummel me with questions.''

``When I swear to uphold the law, I will keep my oath, so help me God,'' Ashcroft said, holding his hand up as he completed his statement.

Four people in the hearing room crowd of 200 immediately began yelling, ``Ashcroft kills!'' Within seconds, they were surrounded by police officers, who carried one protester out of the room as the other three left without resisting.

Ashcroft, a gun-control opponent who has been opposed by liberal women's groups, said that as a senator he voted to ``deny the right to bear arms to those convicted of domestic violence offenses.''

He said he supported mandatory background checks for gun show sales and increased federal funds for law enforcement.

Ashcroft testified that his opposition to Missouri Supreme Court Justice Ronnie White, whose confirmation to be a federal judge was rejected, was ``well founded.'' Critics charged that Ashcroft's opposition to White, who is black, was based on race.

``Studying his judicial record, considering the implications of his decisions and hearing the widespread objections to his appointment from a large body of my constituents, I simply came to the overwhelming conclusion that Judge White should not be given lifetime tenure as a U.S. District Court judge,'' Ashcroft said.

Ashcroft declared: ``I understand that being attorney general means enforcing the laws as they are written, not enforcing my own personal preferences.''

Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., chairman of the Judiciary Committee until President-elect Bush is sworn in on Saturday, said the hearing ``is not about whether Senator Ashcroft is a racist, anti-Catholic, anti-Mormon or anti-anything else. Those of us who worked with him in the Senate do not make that charge.''

But Leahy also said that Ashcroft, in some confirmation battles, ``was not just in the minority of the United States Senate, but in a minority among Republicans in the Senate. Now we have to ask if somebody who has been that unyielding in a policy outlook can unite all Americans.''

He said senators must ask ``what positions he would urge upon the Supreme Court; in particular, whether he'd ask the Supreme Court to overturn Roe v. Wade or to impose more burdensome restrictions on a woman's ability to secure safe and legal contraceptives.''

Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, who will be chairman after Saturday, strongly defended his former Senate colleague, saying he felt ``a great sense of comfort'' in the nomination.

``Those charged with enforcing the law of the nation must demonstrate both the proper understanding of that law and a determination to uphold its letter and spirit,'' Hatch said. ``This is the standard I have applied to nominees in the past, and this is the standard that I am applying to John Ashcroft here.''

Senate GOP Leader Trent Lott said last week he expects all 50 Republicans in the Senate will vote for Ashcroft's confirmation. Most Democratic senators have refrained from saying how they will vote.

Bush has said Ashcroft's hearing doesn't have to be ugly ``if the senators will tone down their rhetoric.'' Other supporters joined Bush in insisting that Ashcroft would enforce the law regardless of his personal views.

Led by abortion rights advocates, women's groups said Tuesday they would work together to defeat the nominations of Ashcroft and of Tommy Thompson to be secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services because both men oppose abortion rights.

Ashcroft's hearing kicks off a busy week of Senate confirmation hearings for a number of Cabinet nominees, including Gale Norton, a former Colorado attorney general Bush has chosen to be interior secretary. She is opposed by environmentalists. Another controversial nominee, Linda Chavez, withdrew as Bush's labor secretary nominee last week.

Ashcroft was defeated for re-election in November by the late Gov. Mel Carnahan, who won despite his death in a plane crash. His widow, Jean, was named to fill the seat and agreed to introduce Ashcroft at the opening of his confirmation hearings, which are expected to continue through Friday.

Meanwhile, Ashcroft's wife, Janet Ashcroft, said Tuesday on ABC's ``Good Morning America'' that she was attacked by a rapist several years ago ``and John's response to me was absolutely perfect, which amazed me. ... His response to my situation was exactly the way any woman would want him to respond.''