Bush has nominated the Pentagon's top lawyer, William Haynes, to a seat on the ultra-conservative 4th Circuit Court of Appeals. Haynes' nomination is now in jeopardy, due to the Iraqi prisoner abuse scandal:

Sen. Richard J. Durbin, D-Ill., said yesterday that senators want to determine what role, if any, the Pentagon general counsel, William J. Haynes II, had in establishing "interrogation tactics and techniques which have now been dramatized so negatively to the world." Durbin contended that Haynes had been evasive in response to key, earlier questions.

He also quoted Haynes as having told the Federalist Society, a conservative legal group, "'Congress specifically authorized the president not only to use deadly force, but also any lesser force needed, to capture and detain enemy combatants to prevent them from engaging in continued hostilities against the United States.'"

Durbin is calling for a new confirmation hearing for Haynes. Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-MA) is calling for further investigation into Haynes:

Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, D-Mass., called yesterday for the Senate Judiciary Committee to summon Haynes and other responsible legal officials at the Department of Defense to testify about legal issues raised by the prisoner-abuse scandal at Abu Ghraib prison in Baghdad. Until a hearing is held, further action on Haynes' nomination would be inappropriate, Kennedy wrote to Sen. Orrin G. Hatch, R-Utah, the Judiciary Committee chairman. And after a hearing the panel should talk about its favorable report on Haynes' nomination, Kennedy added.

Kennedy submitted another five pages of questions he wants put to Haynes, "related to the prisoner-abuse scandal, linked investigations and related issues." A Republican on the Committee acknowledged the scandal has hurt Haynes' chances for confirmation: