The Supreme Corporation

The Senate confirmation hearings for Supreme Court nominee John Roberts began today. I support his nomination as Chief Justice. There is nothing in his records to suggest that he is an extremist ideologue. In fact, some social conservatives are concerned he is not bold enough on abortion, and other such controversial laws.

The role of a justice on the highest court in the land is to simply address constitutional issues brought before it, not to make new laws or undo established precedent. Judicial restraint is a strongly held belief by Mr. Roberts according to his record. However, exactly what cases will come before the court under Roberts and how he handles them are somewhat unpredictable. This has been true for every justice nominee, and often how a particular justice rules has been in conflict with what was expected by the particular president who nominated him or her. That is why a Supreme Court justice receives a lifetime appointment; to be free from political ideological pressures in deciding individual cases.

There is nothing to suggest that John Roberts will not be nominated, no matter how "tough" the questioning is, or how little information Roberts is likely to divulge to the Senate. The Democrats will make it appear as if they are being thorough to ensure their constituents they are not simply going to roll over and play dead for President Bush. The Republicans are sure to make things as comfortable as possible for Mr. Roberts, with few truly challenging questions to provide insight into his views. The so called "litmus test" line of questioning coming from some Democrats will not result in anything more than partisan bickering over the same issues we debate with each other in every day life, and few answers from Mr. Roberts himself. In the end, the confirmation process will just be a steady stream of sound bites in an entertaining format brought to you by your favorite Senators (i.e. Ted Kennedy, Bill Frist) with their corporate lobbyists' advertisement money, and a 98-0 vote for Chief Justice William Rehnquist's successor. Aaah, democracy you can pay for, isn't that sweet?