Monday, November 7, 2005
Alito
This article about nominee Alito was reassuring. After hearing comparisons made to Scalia, these words, admittedly stated by a friend, but a liberal friend, offer hope:
J. L. Pottenger Jr., a friend of Judge Alito's at Princeton and Yale who is now a professor at Yale, said: “The reason I'm hoping he gets confirmed, even though I am a liberal, maybe an ultraliberal, is because I think he's an honest, well-intentioned guy who believes in judicial restraint in the model of Supreme Court Justice John Harlan and I can't really argue with that as a judicial philosophy. I don't think he's an ideologue. I don't think he's going to be out there trying to roll back the clock.”
It is about as good as you can get with a very conservative administration. It could turn out that Bush, who arrogantly declared a “mandate” after a slim victory, and seemed indifferent to all but the sound of his own distant drummer, will pick two of the best Justices the Court has seen in a long time. All Bush has to do is get Alito confirmed, which he can do with or without the Dems; all Alito has to do is be the fair-minded and restrained individual which people claim.
I have to add: Doesn't this line from the same article look like the perfect premise for a TV sitcom?:
He lives in suburban West Caldwell, N.J. - a quiet homebody with simple tastes married to a live wire and occasional practical joker.
Judge gets home, dour and tired from a long day of deciding the fate of the nation. Walks to sofa; sits on whoopee cushion.