January 10, 2006
Alito Nomination
Being a political junkie, it breaks my heart that I just can't get into the Alito - Supreme Court goings on.
But the general meme from the blogosphere has been that Alito is competent, highly intelligent and killing the Senators. Especially in light of an exchange like this one.
- Like the bad lawyer he has proven himself to be, [NY Senator] Schumer asked one question too many:
- Q: Does the Constitution protect free speech?
A: Yes, Senator, the First Amendment protects free speech.
Q. Well, why can you give me a straight answer on that issue but not give me a straight answer on abortion?
A. Because the text of the Constitution explicitly includes the term "free speech".
Case closed. It's like watching the Washington Generals play the Harlem Globetrotters.
Wow. Judge Sam "Alioto" should have thrown a brick at the Senator. It would have hurt less.
Hopefully this video turns up.
Update: The transcript has appeared.
- SCHUMER: Does the Constitution protect the right to free speech?
ALITO: Certainly it does. That's in the First Amendment.
SCHUMER: So why can't you answer the question of: Does the Constitution protect the right to an abortion the same way without talking about stare decisis, without talking about cases, et cetera?
ALITO: Because answering the question of whether the Constitution provides a right to free speech is simply responding to whether there is language in the First Amendment that says that the freedom of speech and freedom of the press can't be abridged. Asking about the issue of abortion has to do with the interpretation of certain provisions of the Constitution.
Not quite the same brick as originally described but a good answer, nonetheless.
Update #2 The video is available!.
Tip to my co-conspirators at SantorumBlog.
Hate to pounce on someone for a slip of the tongue, but my favorite part of the Schumer torture was when he asserted that Plessey overturned Brown v Board.
Posted by: jk at January 10, 2006 7:55 PMI have an unfortunately busy week. I wish I watch them cover to cover. What I saw, Alito comes off VERY well. He is competent and decent and displays an encyclopedic law knowledge.
Remind our Coloradans to send a letter to Senator Salazar, our own Gang of 14 member. You can do it right from his website: http://salazar.senate.gov/
Posted by: jk at January 10, 2006 7:59 PMAlito said there is a right to privacy in the Constitution. He cited both the 4th and 1st amendments. This is good.
He said he would "follow the law" but what exactly does this mean when he's sitting in judgment of that very law? This is the only weakness I can point to in his oratory.
Posted by: johngalt at January 11, 2006 12:16 AMAs for Kennedy, he is clearly senile. The voters of Massachusetts have an inflappable brand-loyalty in political representation. I'm fully convinced a plurality of them would vote for Tookie Williams over Tom Brady if he changed his name to Tookie Kennedy. Well, except for the part about him being dead.
Posted by: johngalt at January 11, 2006 12:20 AM | What do you think? [4]