DESPITE arguments otherwise, a Supreme Court nominee is the closest our country gets to an appointed politician, and political influence should play a crucial role in a confirmation vote among qualifications and a record by which to judge the nominee. In a time at which President Bush has a dismal 39 percent approval rating according to a Washington Post poll, the president must reach out to Democrats now more than ever if he does not want a nasty judicial confirmation fight. Bush had a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to show once again that he can be someone to unite the deep partisan split in the country -- he wasted this occasion, like he has in the past, by nominating Circuit Judge Samuel Alito to the Supreme Court. All Democratic senators should fight tooth and nail against this nominee, even if that means a filibuster.
One reason why Chief Justice John Roberts' confirmation went smoothly was because the president was replacing a conservative justice, William Rehnquist, with another conservative. Last month's nomination of Harriet Miers to replace retiring Justice Sandra Day O'Connor was a textbook case of how Bush attempted to disguise a potentially conservative justice as a moderate -- Congress and the country just was not able to know enough about her. Had Bush decided to nominate a candidate with well-known moderate conservative beliefs, Bush could have maintained a conservative court while reaching a compromise with Democrats.
Bush has instead decided to appeal only to his base with Alito -- a nomination that is a serious mistake. Alito, known to many Washington insiders as "Scalito" due to a stances similar to very conservative Justice Antonin Scalia's, could turn the Court backwards by taking away individuals' rights and rights to and from religion, issues that should worry all Democrats.
His most infamous dissent comes from his vote in the 1991 case Planned Parenthood v. Casey, in which he argued for forced spousal consent for abortions by claiming that consent would not overturn O'Connor's "undue burden on the mother" test. Fortunately, both the Third Circuit Court of Appeals and the Supreme Court did not agree, and the law was struck down. Additionally, though Alito has stated that he would let the law guide him on a patient's right to die, his record suggests he would likely vote against that right in cases. Each individual right that is chipped away is another loss for Democrats and the country.
Alito has proven himself through previous cases that he would slowly chip away at the separation of church and state. Alito has argued for the display of religious symbols on state property in the 1999 case ACLU v. Schundler, with the flimsy argument that the display also contained secular figures such as Frosty the Snowman and a banner hailing diversity. Imagine a Supreme Court justice allowing a religious display such as the Ten Commandments in the courthouse by arguing that it also displays a secular image such as the scales of justice. People elect politicians, not priests, and should therefore make sure that judicial nominees support this distinction.
Bush's pick shows another display of his disappointing subservience to the radical right wing of the Republican Party. According to The New York Times, Bush did not consider Senate Democrats' resistance to Alito's nomination even when Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid dismissed Alito early on. Democrats must act partisan now if they are to reach a compromise on a more moderate judicial nominee -- solely accepting the status quo by confirming Alito will result in a conservative court that will be out of the mainstream and does not represent the American public fairly and independently. Americans have been accustomed to a moderate court for over half a decade, and a conservative court would only split this country further once citizens discover how many of their rights can be taken away by a partisan justice system. Consider a court with a justice that has upheld strip searches of innocent children. With many Americans disagreeing with this opinion (even Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff, according to Slate magazine) the nation would be more divided, not united. History can be a way to see into future consequences, and Americans will realize this if Alito is confirmed.
In this partisan battle, it is up to Democrats to make the president shift the court to the middle, not to the right. Alito is not the man for this. The Supreme Court has an obligation to represent the constitution for all Americans, not just a majority. If Alito is confirmed, conservative Christians will receive a victory at the expense of the others who deserve the law's protection, such as abused pregnant spouses and citizens who do not share Judeo-Christian beliefs.These people rely on our justice system -- and the Supreme Court -- the most.
Adam Silverberg's column appears Fridays in The Cavalier Daily. He can be reached at asilverberg@cavalierdaily.com.
Read More
PATEL: Personal development courses support students beyond the gradebook
By Heer Patel | 4 days agoThe University must rethink its approach to education beyond traditional major-specific requirements and mandate personal development courses.
EDITORIAL: Commercialization threatens U.Va.’s educational mission
By Editorial Board | 5 days agoAfter all, measuring the University’s worth in terms of accrued capital, operational efficiency and numerical rankings molds this space into just another cookie-cutter institution.
YOUNIS: Why every U.Va. student should say yes to English
By Ayat Younis | January 9, 2025Every student at the University, regardless of their primary field of study, can professionally and academically benefit from engaging with the English department.
