Senate Vows Quick Vote on Bork to Speed 2nd Nominee

WASHINGTON — Leaders of both parties pledged Friday that the Senate would dispose of the nomination of Robert H. Bork quickly to allow President Reagan sufficient time to win Senate confirmation of another nominee this year.

Nevertheless, Bork’s decision to force a Senate vote is expected to complicate confirmation of another nominee. As a Senate Judiciary Committee aide put it: “It certainly makes the timing a lot more difficult for the White House.”

Already faced with a full calendar of business before adjournment later this year, Senate Majority Leader Robert C. Byrd (D-W. Va.) and Minority Leader Bob Dole (R-Kan.) both said the Senate should handle the Bork nomination and Reagan’s subsequent Supreme Court nomination as quickly as possible.

In Best Interest of Nation

“It is in the interests of the court and the country that the vacancy be filled as soon as possible,” Byrd added.

The Senate Judiciary Committee is expected to report the nomination to the floor formally no later than next Friday, and an aide to Byrd indicated that it would be taken up the following Tuesday, Oct. 20.

The committee voted 9 to 5 on Tuesday to recommend that the full Senate reject Bork, and 53 of the 100 senators are on record as opposing him.

On the Senate floor, Sen. Orrin G. Hatch (R-Utah) said he expects Bork’s supporters will want three to five days to present their case. Opponents probably will need a similar amount of time--bringing the Bork nomination to a vote no later than the week of Oct. 26.

Although timing for consideration of Reagan’s second nominee would depend largely on whether his choice is controversial, there are some procedures that cannot be shortened. For example, the screening process conducted by the FBI and American Bar Assn. takes a minimum of four to six weeks.

Could Delay Adjournment

As a result, according to sources, Byrd told a Senate Democratic caucus earlier this week that the process of confirming a Supreme Court justice could delay final adjournment of the Senate this year beyond the current target date of Nov. 21. Many senators already view that as an unrealistic target date.

Until a new justice is finally confirmed and sworn in, the Supreme Court may find itself deadlocked on many of the most controversial issues it faces. Nearly one-fourth of the last session’s cases were decided by the vote of Lewis F. Powell Jr., who retired in June. The remaining justices are split between four who usually come down on the conservative side and four who frequently line up on the liberal side.

Already on the court’s docket for the session that began Monday is a series of politically charged cases involving abortion regulations, the death penalty for juveniles and affirmative action in the workplace.

The justices also may be called upon to decide the constitutionality of the law establishing independent counsels to investigate charges of governmental wrongdoing and to determine whether mandatory drug testing violates the rights of government workers.

When the justices split 4 to 4, no decision is issued and the lower-court ruling stands.