Free Republic

For John Roberts, it was a "hapless toad'' in the path of a California housing development that represented the limits of the federal government's power to regulate activities within a state. For Samuel Alito Jr., it was a machine gun. In a lone dissenting opinion as a federal appeals court judge in 1996, Alito argued that the federal ban on possessing machine guns was unconstitutional -- a stand described by both admirers and detractors Tuesday as one of the most revealing cases in the lengthy judicial record of President Bush's nominee to the U.S. Supreme Court. "He understands the original...

It looks like the third time was the charm for the Federalist Society. Supreme Court nominee Samuel Alito has long been an active participant in the conservative legal society, an influential group that sometimes goes to great lengths to play down its influence. Alito has been a member for at least 15 years and has spoken before both the national organization and its student chapters on a number of occasions. That's a welcome change for the group after the last two Supreme Court nominations: -John Roberts, the new chief justice, is well-liked by Federalist Society members but belatedly denied he'd...

* Yesterday Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid demanded that the Senate go into closed session to demand a report to follow up on a 2004 Senate Intelligence Committee investigation on what the CIA knew or didn't know in the run-up to the Iraq war. * Invoking Senate Rule 21 he forced a closed session of the US Senate to "demand, on behalf of the American people why these investigations aren't being conducted." * For the record Rule 21 reads: On a motion made and seconded to close the doors of the Senate, on the discussion of any business which may,...

George W. Bush has nominated Judge Samuel Alito of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit to the Supreme Court. Judge Alito has a strong record academically and in government. He was U.S. attorney for New Jersey, a high-pressure job in a state where corruption is—how shall we say this?—not unknown. To be confirmed for that position, Alito would have to have been approved by New Jersey's two Democratic senators at the time, Bill Bradley and Frank Lautenberg, the latter of whom is again serving in the Senate. From my knowledge of those two men, I believe they...

WASHINGTON - With interest groups across the spectrum gearing for a battle over conservative Supreme Court nominee Samuel Alito, the fate of the nominee may well rest in the hands of the Senate's bipartisan "gang of 14." The "gang" of mostly centrists, striving to reduce tensions over President George W. Bush's conservative judicial nominees, won't gather until Thursday to discuss Alito. But one Republican member, Mike DeWine of Ohio, called Alito a "mainstream conservative" and said critics should not try to kill his nomination through a procedural move called a filibuster. "This is a good solid pick by the president,"...

Samuel Alito Jr. has the most judicial experience of any U.S. Supreme Court candidate since Benjamin Cardozo in 1932, and the most conservative judicial record of any candidate since Robert Bork in 1987. Alito's 15 years on the Third U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Philadelphia provide a storehouse of ammunition for both supporters and opponents of President Bush's nominee to succeed retiring Justice Sandra Day O'Connor. A sampling of his 300 published opinions shows a careful, workmanlike judge who quietly explains his conclusions without needless rhetoric, ideological pronouncements or attacks on opponents. Alito can vote to uphold a city's...

New Haven -- As a law student 31 years ago, Samuel A. Alito cautioned against trying to glean justices' personal opinions from their decisions. Now that the 1975 Yale Law School graduate is President Bush's nominee to the Supreme Court, reporters, congressional aides and interest groups are trying to do just that: sifting through Alito's writings from 15 years on the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Philadelphia in preparation for what's expected to be a contentious confirmation fight. Alito would replace retiring Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, a moderate voice who has been a swing vote on many issues...

ANALYSIS: Specter of filibuster is raised as GOP right prepares to flex its power Washington -- President Bush's nomination of Samuel Alito Jr. for the Supreme Court sets up a direct clash with Senate Democrats, finally igniting the momentous judicial battle that both parties have been anticipating for years. Republicans see an opportunity to install a lasting conservative majority on the high court as they characterize Democrats as obstructionists who try to accomplish in court what they cannot accomplish through legislation. Democrats sense a chance to portray their opponents as reactionaries who would set back the causes of civil rights,...

The nomination of Samuel Alito Jr. to the Supreme Court raises a lot of questions about the judge's attitudes toward federalism, privacy and civil rights. But it has already answered one big question about President Bush. Anyone wondering whether the almost endless setbacks and embarrassments the White House has suffered over the last year would cause Mr. Bush to fix his style of governing should realize that the answer is: no. As a political candidate, Mr. Bush had an extremely useful ability to repeat the same few simple themes over and over. As president, he has been cramped by the...

There's a paradox in George W. Bush's nomination of Samuel Alito for the Supreme Court. The coming fight might not be good for Alito, but it's going to be great for Bush. To get anywhere in politics, you need a base. Of course, you also need a majority, but first you need strong supporters - only then can you build toward 50 percent plus one. The base was what Bush was in danger of losing, thanks to government overspending and the disastrously failed nomination of Harriet Miers. By appointing Alito, Bush has taken a big step toward reclaiming his base....

As an appeals court judge, Samuel Alito has compiled a massive record that includes more than 240 opinions. Of these, the most illuminating may well be his 41 dissents -- opinions that he has written by himself, rejecting the views of his colleagues. When they touch on issues that split people along political lines, Alito's dissents show a remarkable pattern: They are almost uniformly conservative. In the overwhelming majority of cases, he has urged a more conservative position than that of his colleagues. In his dissents, at least, he has been a conservative's conservative -- not always in his reasoning,...

WASHINGTON -- With the nomination of Samuel Alito, the nation's long-term needs and the president's immediate needs converge. Our nation properly takes its political bearings, always, from the Constitution, properly construed on the basis of deep immersion in the intellectual ferment of the Founding Era that produced it. That is why our democracy inescapably functions under some degree of judicial supervision. The nation has long needed a serious debate about the proper nature of that supervision. And the president needed both a chance to demonstrate his seriousness and an occasion to challenge his Democratic critics to demonstrate theirs in a...

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Sen. Mike DeWine said he would back conservative threats to change Senate rules to ban filibusters of judicial nominees if anyone dared to use the tactic to challenge President Bush's latest Supreme Court choice. The Republican from Ohio took a lot of criticism from conservatives when he helped forge a deal with Democrats preserving the minority party's right to filibuster nominees, but only in "extraordinary circumstances." The compromise stopped a logjam in the Senate over Bush's nominees to lower courts. DeWine said the latest Supreme Court nominee, veteran appeals court Judge Samuel Alito, is "within the mainstream...

WASHINGTON -- President George W. Bush nominated veteran judge Samuel Alito for the Supreme Court Monday, seeking to reshape the judiciary and mollify conservatives who derailed his previous pick. Ready-to-rumble Democrats said Alito may curb abortion rights and be "too radical for the American people." Drawing an unspoken contrast to failed nominee Harriet Miers, Bush declared that the appeals court judge "has more prior judicial experience than any Supreme Court nominee in more than 70 years." Abortion emerged as a potential fault line. Democrats pointed to Alito's rulings that sought to restrict a woman's right to abortion. Senate Judiciary Committee...

WELL, THAT'S MORE LIKE IT. In Judge Sam Alito, President Bush has chosen a more plausible High Court nominee. Make that a much more plausible nominee. His legal qualifications are exceptional, his character widely attested. And having spent 15 years on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, he has demonstrated an approach to judging that clearly identifies him as a judicial conservative. Two points are worth noting on day one of this nomination. The first is Alito's legal experience. His many years on the Third Circuit mean that he knows the labor of an appellate judge,...

MSNBC's Chris Matthews: "[I]'m Sitting Here Holding In My Hands, A Pretty Disgusting Document, This Is Put Out Not For Attribution. But It Comes From The Democrats, They're Circulating It. I Can Say That." (MSNBC's "MSNBC Live," 10/31/05) Matthews: "[T]hen Their Complaint Sheet Against Judge Alito's Nomination. The First Thing They Nail About This Italian American Is He Failed To Win A Mob Conviction In A Trial 20 Years Ago, Or Something Way Back In '88." (MSNBC's "MSNBC Live," 10/31/05)    Matthews: "In Other Words, They Nail Him On Not Putting Some Italian Mobsters In Jail From The [Lucchese] Family....

Contact: Tracey Schmitt 202-863-8614 WASHINGTON –RNC Chairman Ken Mehlman issued the following statement on Senator Chuck Schumer’s political attacks on Supreme Court nominee, Judge Samuel Alito.“Earlier this year, Senator Schumer showed us that he was willing to use Hurricane Katrina to raise campaign cash.  It was wrong to politicize a natural disaster and it's wrong to distort what should be a thoughtful and deliberate process to place an eminently qualified judge on the High Court.  This isn’t the first time that Senator Schumer has made ominous threats about a nomination to further his political and fundraising goals.  Senator Schumer needs...