Dear Senators, In regard to Judge Alito . . .
Guy T. Sturino
January 13, 2006
After eighteen hours of listening to Senators question Judge Alito, very little has changed except that what was once just hearsay is now first hand evidence. Judge Alito, if given the opportunity, will vote to decimate Roe v. Wade. He will, if confirmed, support the Presidents? power to ignore the laws passed by Congress. As a Justice, Judge Alito will strengthen the power of law enforcement to intrude on the lives of ordinary citizens. A Justice Alito can be expected to enrich corporations at the expense of the rights of workers, and reverse gains made by women and minorities. He will, if given a share of the final and unquestionable authority of the United States Supreme Court, diminish the ability of Congress - and the Supreme Court itself - to oversee the actions of the Presidency.
No, not even once did Judge Alito directly confirm any of these statements. He also did not, even once, chose to deny them. Instead, hiding behind some supposed ethical tenet which keeps us from knowing his position on the law, refused to answer direct questions. But, in his refusal, his careful choice of words left his innermost beliefs unmistakable. Samuel Alito, the man, showed himself to be extremely sincere and intellectually honest. So much so, that even as he dodged issues, he could not bring himself to so much as feint toward a belief he doesn?t truly hold. The result was that what he did not say provided volumes of solid information.
Judge Alito is undoubtedly a warm hearted, gentle and humble individual who seems to believe that he is not following an agenda. The glowing testimonials delivered by his fellow judges made it clear that, in their minds, Judge Alito is the epitome of self-restraint in his application of the law. However, we must remember that they too spend their lives in the intellectual pursuit of dissecting the words of earlier decisions in order to apply the words which strike them as most reasonable.
Therein lies the rub. What Judge Alito honestly believes to be reasonable is quite different from the vast majority of his peers, especially when it comes to individual rights, corporate responsibility, Congressional authority and presidential power.
Those who would support Judge Samuel Alito?s confirmation as Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States primarily on the belief that Roe v. Wade must be overturned would be well advised to consider carefully the total long term cost of that action.
To those who would say that Judge Alito's digressions from mainstream thought have been minimal in number and should be disregarded, I suggest the opposite. Judge Alito's digressions from mainstream thought have been, and will continue to be, tremendous in impact, and should carry trememdous weight in the Senate's decision.
Senators, the rest is up to you.
No, not even once did Judge Alito directly confirm any of these statements. He also did not, even once, chose to deny them. Instead, hiding behind some supposed ethical tenet which keeps us from knowing his position on the law, refused to answer direct questions. But, in his refusal, his careful choice of words left his innermost beliefs unmistakable. Samuel Alito, the man, showed himself to be extremely sincere and intellectually honest. So much so, that even as he dodged issues, he could not bring himself to so much as feint toward a belief he doesn?t truly hold. The result was that what he did not say provided volumes of solid information.
Judge Alito is undoubtedly a warm hearted, gentle and humble individual who seems to believe that he is not following an agenda. The glowing testimonials delivered by his fellow judges made it clear that, in their minds, Judge Alito is the epitome of self-restraint in his application of the law. However, we must remember that they too spend their lives in the intellectual pursuit of dissecting the words of earlier decisions in order to apply the words which strike them as most reasonable.
Therein lies the rub. What Judge Alito honestly believes to be reasonable is quite different from the vast majority of his peers, especially when it comes to individual rights, corporate responsibility, Congressional authority and presidential power.
Those who would support Judge Samuel Alito?s confirmation as Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States primarily on the belief that Roe v. Wade must be overturned would be well advised to consider carefully the total long term cost of that action.
To those who would say that Judge Alito's digressions from mainstream thought have been minimal in number and should be disregarded, I suggest the opposite. Judge Alito's digressions from mainstream thought have been, and will continue to be, tremendous in impact, and should carry trememdous weight in the Senate's decision.
Senators, the rest is up to you.
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