With the New Jersey State Senate Judiciary Committee’s announcement that confirmation proceedings will be held on May 31st for Bruce Harris’s nomination to the New Jersey Supreme Court, Senate Republican Leader Tom Kean, Jr. issued the following statement encouraging fairness and professionalism in considering Mr. Harris’s nomination:
Bruce Harris is an accomplished attorney and public servant who is, by any objective measure, well-qualified to serve on our state’s highest court. More important than the personal and racial diversity that he would bring to the Supreme Court is the diversity of legal and professional experience he offers a body that makes decisions affecting the lives of everyone in our state.
Bruce deserves a fair hearing and open-minded consideration by members of the committee. As a public and commercial finance attorney and a long-standing local elected official, Bruce Harris uniquely understands how the Supreme Court’s interpretation of the State Constitution impacts the citizens of this state.
Unfortunately, the last confirmation conducted for a Supreme Court nominee was anything but fair, impartial, or deliberate. Phil Kwon was rejected for reasons of partisanship and politics rather than his merits and qualifications.
The Senate already has one black eye from the Kwon fiasco. I encourage my colleagues not to further shame this institution and conduct Bruce Harris’s hearing with the seriousness that is required by our state Constitution.
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