Poll: Dems should confirm conservative

Majority of likely voters want support for Bush court pick

A majority of likely American voters believe Senate Democrats should confirm any qualified conservative nominated by President Bush for the Supreme Court.

According to a recent Rasmussen Reports survey, just 24 percent believe Democrats should oppose such a nominee, and 58 percent believe the pick should be confirmed.

The latest survey shows Republicans and unaffiliated voters strongly support confirmation. Democrats are evenly divided � 43 percent say their senators should vote to confirm while 38 percent take the opposite view.

The divide among Democrats is strictly along ideological lines, the poll taker said. Fifty-eight percent of liberal Democrats want their party to oppose confirmation of a qualified conservative. Fifty-eight percent of moderate and conservative Democrats take the opposite view.

The survey also found 64 percent of men, and 53 percent of women believe Senate Democrats should vote to confirm a qualified conservative nominee.

That view is shared by 61 percent of white Americans and 50 percent of other Americans.

Another survey this year showed that 42 percent of Americans have a favorable opinion of the U.S. Supreme Court. Nearly as many, 41 percent, have an unfavorable opinion.