Alito's trials and tribulations.

Well it looks like he isn't doing the magic mystery tour like Roberts, but Supreme Court nominee Samual Alito has made it quite clear that he is no liberal pansy. He believes Roe was wrongly decided and the only reason he would not overturn it is if stare decisis compels it. Understand that point, Alito will overturn Roe unless he believes stare decisis prevents it. Look, everyone might not date an aspiring lawyer (I do), so if I remember correctly stare decisis means "to stand by things decided."

Alito STATED that respect for precedent (stare decisis)--is "not an inexorable command" and that the court can overturn prior rulings when there is "special justification.” This should be of no surprise given that in a 1985 job application to be Assistant Attorney General in the Justice Department, Samuel Alito admitted he personally believed “the Constitution does not protect a right to an abortion.” (video link about it here). Alito did agree with Supreme Court decisions protecting the right to privacy for married or unmarried couples to use contraceptives. This is contrary to what he did on the 3rd circuit court of appeals where he voted to uphold a Pennsylvania ruling that stated a wife must inform her husband if she has had an abortion. He did stop short of a constitutional right to abortion. This all makes sense, married couples can use contraceptives but those that aren't married or are victims of rape and incest cannot.

This lack of support for Roe seems to be right in tune with what The National Association of Women Lawyers (NAWL) is thinking. NAWL's Committee for the Evaluation of Supreme Court Nominees, has evaluated Judge Samuel Alito for the position of Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. The Committee determined that Judge Alito is not qualified to serve on the Court from the perspective of laws and decisions regarding women's rights or that have a special impact on women.

I still can't get over the fact that abortion and laws concerning abortion are continually discussed and written by old white men who know nothing about anything when it comes to pregnancy. Also, I still am bitter that Bush didn't choose a capable woman to replace O'Connor (I know he had Meirs but you also see I placed capable in front of woman). The Alliance for Justice released a report (pdf link) that 'highlights' in 196 brief pages that Alito has a history of coming down on the side of big business and big government at the expense of ordinary people, as well as siding with government, governmental power, and government's ability to intrude on our personal lives (Bush is loving this, my post here). The Washington Post has a graphic about all his rulings (here). Lets just hope that the approval process goes horribly and the dems put up a fight, perhaps even some republicans can join in when they realize how ultra conservative he is.

Ohh and if you didn't know it already Robert Novak is a liar.