I haven't read the transcripts, but I did tape the first two days of the hearings and have viewed a good portion of the Q&A sessions. I came away with the impression from Alito, that he believes the Constitution is first and foremost, followed by statutes. Alito said stare decisis deserves consideration in the context of personal deliberation, but precedent should never be used by itself upon which to draw any final conclusions.
Yep.