January 31, 2006

Alito is confirmed.

The Court's new era begins. Goodbye to Sandra Day O'Connor. I have long been a great admirer of hers. This is the first moment in history when the number of women on the Court has declined, unfortunately. But Samuel Alito and John Roberts are brilliant newcomers, and they should serve us well.

12 comments:

goesh said...

With 15 years on the bench already, I like to think he will fullfill his duties in a proper and impartial way. He is in his prime and should give the nation many good years of service. The same can be said of Judge Roberts. I'm glad the hearings are over and Kennedy's red-faced righteousness did not impress me in the least. His huffing and bellowing has done nothing to strengthen the DNC.

bearbee said...

New Jerseyites hold center stage with the newly appointed Justice Alito and now the debate over Ben Bernanke to replace Greenspasm.....

Unknown said...

It's going to be verbally tricky for young Kossacks to refer to "BusHitler" getting "Bulshito" on the bench.

Eugene said...

Perhaps Democrats should start to worry that a "strict constructionist" is a once center-right federal judge who's been mugged by the Senate Judiciary Committee.

goesh said...

I browsed one Liberal site and one of the respondents, after first listing Bush/Alito as just another crime against humanity, started listing other crimes and moral outrages, one of which was Bush exposing our troops to bird flu in Iraq. From Alito to dead chickens, they sure can reach and stretch.

Matt Cline said...

Ann, I'm a bit surprised to hear you say that you've been a longtime admirer of SDC. It seems like you have some mixed feelings about SDC's case-by-case approach to law. Is your admiration on a personal level?

Commander Carrots said...

As usual, Ann's positive post is a reason for commenters to launch into attacks against Democrats...you know, the party that does NOT control all three branches of government, but which is somehow still the cause of all problems in this country?

This comments section is a lot more like DKos than you might think.

Steven Taylor said...

Uncle Buck,

In scanning these comments, I must admit that I hardly see any attempt to blame the Democrats for the ills of the country. Indeed, I most of the comments in this list aren't even aimed at the Democrats.

Take the above, and especially the lack of vitriol, and it is rather difficult to compare this place to Kos' place.

Ann Althouse said...

Matt: I like her centrist position, but wish she would commit to clearer doctrine. I think some of her work on federalism, especially in her first decade on the Court, is especially good.

Gahrie said...

In The Middle:

Chief Justice Roberts and Jutices Thomas and Scalia were reying on a concept called Stare Decisis. The facts of the Oregon case were legally identical to the Raich case. Even though two of the three disagreed with the outcome of the Raich case, they felt the Court had a duty to be consistent with it, or explicitly overrule it.

Unknown said...

Chief Justice Roberts and Jutices Thomas and Scalia were reying on a concept called Stare Decisis. The facts of the Oregon case were legally identical to the Raich case. Even though two of the three disagreed with the outcome of the Raich case, they felt the Court had a duty to be consistent with it, or explicitly overrule it.

What a joke. They won't stick to stare decisis when it comes to abortion. Let's face it - is there one case where Scalia or Thomas have gone against Catholic doctrine? I can't think of one. Roberts will be the same.

Scalia, Thomas, and Roberts voted against assisted suicide, despite their belief in federalism, because they are afraid of going to hell.

I expect Alito to be independent minded though, and not check with the Pope first on how to decide.

Craig Ranapia said...

Well put, Professor Althouse. As someone who isn't a law scholar, I'd just say someone who could infuriate both the loony left and the rabid right with such metronomic regularlity had to have been doing something right. :)