He is proposing changing the libel laws so that the criteria for libel apply equally to all persons. Currently, if the court declares that you are a “public figure” the law is different for you than it is for someone else.
BTW: Donald Trump’s sister testified in support of Judge Alito’s confirmation. She was, at one time, his boss.
Thank you for joining us, Judge Barry, and we look forward to
your testimony.
STATEMENT OF MARYANNE TRUMP BARRY, JUDGE, U.S.
COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE THIRD CIRCUIT, PHILADELPHIA,
PENNSYLVANIA
Judge BARRY. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Good afternoon. Good
afternoon, members of the Committee. It is my privilege to appear
before you and it is a particular privilege to speak on behalf of my
friend and colleague, Judge Samuel Alito.
Now, I warn you, I may be a little free and call him ‘‘Sam’’ on
occasion because Judge Alito and I go back almost 30 years, to
1977. In 1977, Judge Alito came to the United States Attorney’s Office
in the District of New Jersey following his clerkship with
Judge Leonard Garth, who was and remains a giant on our court.
Sam was assigned—see, I did it—to the Appeals Division and I was
the chief of that division, although in those days, I didn’t have very
much more experience than he did. Now, I have said Appeals Division.
That sounds very much more substantial than it was for what
it was, the three Assistant United States Attorneys working very,
very hard at a very, very responsible job.
We handled all the criminal appeals of those defendants who
were convicted at trial. It was our job to master the record, to analyze
the issues, to read the relevant cases, to write a persuasive
brief on behalf of the United States, and, if necessary, to argue the
case on the floor of the Court of Appeals. Nobody did it better than
Sam Alito. And if there were any doubt on that score, the best evidence
is the fact that after just 4 years as an Assistant United
States Attorney, he went directly to the Office of the Solicitor General.
Only the best are able to do that.
For the next 6 years, Judge Alito distinguished himself with public
service in Washington, D.C., and then he returned to the District
of New Jersey in 1987 as the United States Attorney. Important
cases were brought on his watch, organized crime cases, drug
trafficking cases, public corruption cases. I know, because I was
there, and as a district court judge at that time, having been appointed
by President Reagan, I handled some of his more important
cases.
Now, I mentioned the cases that were handled on his watch for
another reason. The tone of the United States Attorney’s Office
comes from the top. The standard of excellence is set at the top.
Samuel Alito set a standard of excellence that was contagious, his
commitment to doing the right thing, never playing fast and loose
with the record, never taking a short cut, his emphasis on first-rate
work, his fundamental decency. The Assistant United States Attorneys
who worked for him were proud to do so. They admired him
completely.
Now, of course, in 1990, Judge Alito became Judge Alito, and you
have heard the most glowing things said about Sam as a colleague
on our court. I embrace every glowing statement.
Let me just conclude with this. Judge Alito is a man of remarkable
intellectual gifts. He is a man with impeccable legal credentials.
He is a fair-minded man, a modest man, a humble man, and
he reveres the rule of law. If confirmed, Judge Samuel A. Alito, Jr.
http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/GPO-CHRG-ALITO/pdf/GPO-CHRG-ALITO-3-1-3.pdf