Harry Reid opposes John Roberts

Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid said on Tuesday John Roberts would be confirmed as chief justice of the United States but that he would oppose the conservative Supreme Court nominee because "I'm not too sure if his heart is as big as his head."

Reid, however, said the case against Roberts did not warrant Democrats raising a procedural hurdle known as a filibuster to block Roberts' nomination when it comes up for a vote in the U.S. Senate next week. It seemed likely Reid would be unable to muster the needed 41 votes in the 100-member Senate to sustain it in any event.

Democrats and Republicans have predicted Roberts will win bipartisan confirmation and be sworn in before the high court begins its new term on October 3. Members of both parties have praised the credentials of Roberts, a federal appeals court judge the past two years who received the American Bar Association's top rating for a seat on the Supreme Court.

But major liberal groups, along with a number of Senate Democrats, have raised concerns about Roberts' commitment to civil rights and women's rights, based largely on memos he wrote two decades ago in the conservative Reagan administration, ABC News reports.