Sessions: I could support a pro-choice nominee

The top Republican on the committee overseeing President Obama’s Supreme Court nomination said Wednesday he could support a nominee who supports abortion rights.

Senate Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.), whose ascension to that position was pushed in part by conservatives worried about the appointment of a pro-choice judge, said he had no litmus test for nominees when it came to abortion.

“i don’t believe in a litmus test,” Sessions said during an appearance on Fox News. “I believe a judge can have a different view on abortion than I have, and still receive my vote.”

Asked if a pro-choice nominee could win his vote, Sessions said, “Yes.”

“I would like to know how they analyze the logic behind Roe vs. Wade,” he said. “If they are faithful to the law, then we can get along pretty well.”

Sessions said that the pressure would be on centrist Democrats to make sure Obama’s nominee made its way through the Senate.

He also said that a nomination by the end of the week wouldn’t be too surprising, and said he expected a confirmation vote in September, not August.