Now that Roberts' nomination has been reported out of committee, we strongly urge senators to vote their conscience and reject his nomination when it reaches the floor. The stakes are too high and the consequences too great to gamble.

We applaud the five judiciary members who voted their conscience and took a principled position in opposition to the nomination of John Roberts to be Chief Justice of the United States. However, we are profoundly disappointed that the committee, as a whole, ignored compelling evidence against his nomination.

All evidence indicates that Judge Roberts would use his undeniable impressive legal skills to bring us back to a country that most of us wouldn't recognize, where states' rights trump civil rights, where the federal courts or Congress can see discrimination, but are powerless to remedy it.

The only thing that's going to be fatal to this nomination is how she performs before the committee. If she performs all right, then she's obviously going to be approved. But if she doesn't perform well, she probably won't be approved.

The only thing that's going to be fatal to this nomination is how she performs before the committee.

Right now it seems like the uncertainty would make senators more circumspect with Roberts.