After 13 hours at the office, I came home to watch some C-SPAN reruns of the first day of Judge Samuel Alito's confirmation hearing, and look for some blog material. I wasn't disappointed.
I missed Senator Kennedy's reputed antics, but I did catch Senators Brownback and Coburn spin their single-issue stories, arguing that abortion is the only issue before the Court worth talking about (or basing one's vote on).
I fear that their laser-beam focus is sorely misplaced, as the Supreme Court hears hundreds of cases, each fraught with implications and lasting consequences. So many other important Constitutional issues come before the Court: First Amendment freedoms; Fourth Amendment protections from unreasonable searches; Fourteenth Amendment restrictions on state legislatures pushing the due process envelope. Bush 43 has claimed there is no litmus test, but if the Republican senators from Oklahoma and Kansas are any indication, it looks to be the sole criterion.
Judge Alito himself came across with little fanfare in his opening statement. Nothing surprised me, except perhaps his reference near the end of his speech that when he was sworn in as a Judge for the 3d Circuit Court of Appeals, that he "placed [his] hand on the Bible." Is that still done? Did he really do that? Isn't raising one's right hand enough? And how does that practice stand up against the current analysis required to review statues under the Establishment Clause? How about putting your hand on the tax code: equally mysterious, and nearly as authoritative.
Last but not least, props go out to Christine Todd Whitman (despite the '-R' after her name). Her words were clear, and her recommendations sound. She did a much better job than Sen. Lautenberg in introducing the candidate and persuading the Judiciary Committee to see and respect her position. If only the Senators were paying attention...
No comments:
Post a Comment