Underneath Their Robes

Please, Senator Schumer, No More Bus Analogies!

Commenting on speculation over the weekend that a SCOTUS nomination for Judge Janice Rogers Brown would be announced at a wreath-laying ceremony for Rosa Parks, Article III Groupie expressed her fear that such a move would lead to "tortured, bus-related metaphors."

Even though that scenario did not come to pass, Senator Chuck Schumer (D-NY) decided to offer us a tortured, bus-related simile anyway. He was quoted in this Washington Post article as follows:

"Like Rosa Parks, Judge Alito will be able to change history by virtue of where he sits," Schumer said. "The real question today is whether Judge Alito would use his seat on the bench, just as Rosa Parks used her seat on the bus, to change history for the better or whether he would use that seat to reverse much of what Rosa Parks and so many others fought so hard and for so long to put in place."

It goes without saying: this is perfectly dreadful stuff. A3G agrees with Hugh Hewitt:

Chuck Schumer just argued that it is possible that Judge Alito, as Justice Alito, would roll back the achievements of Rosa Parks. That can only be understood as Schumer's belief that Judge Alito could find segregationist policies acceptable under the constitution. While it is undeniable that the nomination of Robert Byrd would have raised such a question, it is preposterous and indeed base to even hint at such a thing about a distinguished judge and public servant.

Aside from being utterly without foundation, Senator Schumer's bus analogy is silly and stupid. And if you're going to be silly and stupid, why not go all the way? Expect Senator Schumer -- who displayed an interest in movies during the Roberts confirmation hearings -- to deliver the following remarks during the floor debate on Judge Alito's nomination (in that nasal and annoying voice of his):

We've all seen the movie Speed. Think of the Supreme Court as a bus. The Supreme Court Bus, with moderates like Sandra Day O'Connor and Anthony M. Kennedy at the wheel, is hurtling down the Highway of Justice. If the speed of the Supreme Court Bus drops below 50 miles per hour, the Bomb of Reactionary Conservatism will explode -- making meaningless all of the distance that the bus has traveled since the days of the Warren Court.

We can't let that happen. Our Supreme Court Bus still has many miles to travel down the Highway of Justice. We must stop Judge Samuel Alito now, before he stops our Bus!

Heaven help us... Can someone please throw Chuckie from the bus?

Happy Halloween from A3G!

Article III Groupie has been very busy blogging about our fabulous Supreme Court nominee, Judge Samuel A. Alito, Jr. But A3G didn't forget that today is a special day. Happy Halloween!

Alas, this year there's no special Halloween-related programming here at UTR. But feel free to go back and check out last year's holiday post, Judicial SIGHT-ations: Halloween Special Issue, in which A3G revealed what Judge Alito's colleague, Judge Walter K. Stapleton, dressed up as for Halloween last year. Or head over to Judge Alito's blog, to find out what costume he donned tonight. (Here's a hint: invisible jet sold separately.)

Did A3G go trick-or-treating today? Sadly enough, no; she didn't have the time. But if she could have, she would have dressed up as the scariest person that she can think of. "I'll get you, Ninth Circuit conservatives, and your little dogs too!"

Power-Washing the Supreme Judicial Deck

Looking for information about the latest Supreme Court nominee, Judge Samuel A. Alito, Jr.? You've come to the right place. Just scroll down the page to the next post, or click here or here. But if you're looking for some Alito counterprogramming, then continue reading this post, a quick digression from UTR's Supreme Court nomination coverage.

Article III Groupie knows next to nothing about sports, but a more sports-minded reader brought this New York Times article to her attention. It's a profile of the handsome and hunky Nick Hartigan, who is the Ivy League's "leading rusher" this season. (A3G has no idea what that means; perhaps Gregg Easterbrook can enlighten her. She gathers that it's a good thing.)

Unless the football player in question is someone like Justice Byron White or Judge Morrison C. England, Jr., pigskin prowess doesn't interest A3G. But a reader emailed her about the Hartigan profile because of this tidbit:

After Nick Hartigan finished his freshman year at Brown University, he and two friends started a power-washing business to clean the wooden decks of homes in Washington and its suburbs. One of their first customers was the Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy, who learned Hartigan was studying political science and told him, according to Hartigan: "It's gobbledygook. You need to study history." So, Hartigan said, he decided, "O.K., I'm double-majoring in history."

How kind of Justice Kennedy to offer academic advice to the college kid washing his deck! Happily enough, AMK's advice has served Hartigan well:

Hartigan kept that promise and is carrying more than just the football as he nears the end of his senior season as the leading rusher in the Ivy League with 946 yards, on 176 carries.

He has a 3.91 grade point average, he has been nominated for a Rhodes scholarship, he is writing a senior thesis about religion in recent American politics, he is applying to law schools like Harvard and Yale, and he wants a career in law and government.

As you explore your budding interest in the law, Nick, please feel free to email A3G; she'd be happy to offer you information and advice about legal careers. In return, you can "power-wash her deck" -- any day of the week!

The Alito Nomination: A Few Quick Reactions

Article III Groupie actually has a very busy day -- and week -- ahead of her, so she's disappointed that the official announcement of Judge Samuel A. Alito's Supreme Court nomination comes at such a hectic time for her. But hey, the world doesn't revolve around A3G; it just seems that way sometimes. And even if President Bush's timing may not be ideal, his chosen nominee certainly is! (Check out Michelle Malkin's comprehensive round-up of blogospheric reaction, as well as Confirm Them, of course.)

Links to much of UTR's extensive past coverage of Judge Alito are collected in this post; if you're hungry for more information about the nominee, they should keep you well-fed for quite some time. In addition, here are some off-the-cuff observations and queries, plus a few links, concerning this morning's announcement by President Bush that he'll be nominating Judge Alito to the SCOTUS:

1. Does anyone know: When was the last time that a Third Circuit judge was nominated to the Supreme Court (if ever)?*

2. It's interesting to see President Bush turning once again to the Third Circuit for a home run of a pick (Michael Chertoff, Sam Alito), to salvage an initial nomination disaster (Bernard Kerik, Harriet Miers).

3. Judge Alito's acceptance speech was elegant, eloquent, excellent. A3G felt a shiver run up her spine when Judge Alito started to get choked up near the end of his remarks.

4. Some helpful surveys and analyses of Judge Alito's jurisprudence in specific areas: business law (Larry Ribstein); securities law (Dave Hoffman); copyright law (William Patry); sentencing and criminal law (Doug Berman).

5. Battle of the "juniors": Is Samuel A. Alito, Jr., an even stronger SCOTUS nominee than John G. Roberts, Jr.? Professor Ann Althouse thinks so; Ed Whelan, who clerked for Justice Scalia, shares that opinion.

6. Judge Alito is fairly affluent, even if he's not as filthy rich as the justice he would replace if confirmed, Justice Sandra Day O'Connor. (Gavel bang: How Appealing.)

7. Democratic Senators Frank Lautenberg and Bill Bradley supported Samuel Alito's prior nominations to serve as U.S. Attorney for New Jersey and a judge on the Third Circuit. (Robe swish: How Appealing.)

8. Judge Alito's family is quite attractive. Judge Alito and his wife, Martha Alito, have two children, Philip Alito and Laura Alito. The kids are too old to be as adorable as Jack Roberts and Josie Roberts, but they're still rather photogenic.

9. Check out the results of Hugh Hewitt's cool SCOTUS poll, which show (a) tremendous support for the Alito nomination and (b) a willingness to consider the consitutional option if the Democrats attempt to mount a filibuster. (Granted, the audience of Hewitt's blog is not representative of the public at large; conservatives like A3G are overrepresented in his readership. But the poll results are still encouraging.)

10. Based on the Google searches bringing people to this blog, it's clear that many of you are curious about Judge Alito's religion. As noted by Professor David Bernstein, Judge Alito is Catholic; if he is confirmed, there will be a Catholic majority on the Supreme Court.

11. Alito's mother, Rose Alito, is amusingly outspoken. This AP article reports as follows:

[Judge Alito] was born on April Fool's Day to a mother who was candid enough to tell the world he was upset that he didn't get the Supreme Court nomination a month ago.... More candid that her son might wish, she said, ''I think he was upset that he didn't get there in the first shot, that Miers got it.''...

If confirmed, Alito would be the fifth Catholic on the Supreme Court. ''Of course he's against abortion,'' his mother said, another comment supporters in Washington might wish she'd held back.

12. As noted here, Judge Alito helped coach his son, Phil Alito, to victory in the 2004 Duke University Moot Court Competition. Phil and his partner, Justin Greenbaum, had to argue "a hypothetical case in which an alternative student publication wanted to publish an article about Sept. 11 praising the terrorist attacks and the students publishing the literary magazine charged their constitutional rights were violated by the school's censorship."

As noted in this comment, given the case the students had to work on, they couldn't have asked for a better coach. At the time, Judge Alito had pending before him a high-profile appeal raising First Amendment issues in the student newspaper context. How neat!

* Update: This appears to be the first time that a Third Circuit judge has been nominated to the Supreme Court. A reader drew A3G's attention to this helpful chart of former Third Circuit judges and how their judicial appointments were terminated (e.g., by resignation, death, and even an impeachment back in 1913). No appointment on the list was terminated because of appointment to the Supreme Court. Although it's possible that a Third Circuit judge could have been nominated but not confirmed to the Supreme Court, A3G is not aware of that happening.

A further update: Howard Bashman confirms that "Judge Alito is also the first judge serving on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit ever to have been nominated to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court." Howard is also a big fan of Judge Alito:

At some point over the days to come, I will explain why I enthusiastically support this nomination. For now, my wife (who thinks Judge Alito is a great person, too) and I just want to take a moment to wish Judge Alito well in the days ahead, for he is a truly kind, intelligent, and compassionate person who undoubtedly will serve the Nation with great distinction on the Supreme Court just as he has served to this point with great distinction as a U.S. Court of Appeals judge.

Judge Samuel Alito: Under His Robe

According to news reports, Judge Samuel A. Alito, Jr., will soon be named as President Bush's Supreme Court nominee. To learn more about Judge Alito, check out these three great reports, from people with firsthand knowledge of what Sam Alito is really like: Eric Muller, Orin Kerr, and Michael Cernovich.

Of course, as a leading judicial celebrity, Judge Samuel Alito is no stranger to the pages of Underneath Their Robes. To locate Article III Groupie's prior posts on Judge Sam Alito, go to Google and type in the following (or click here):

--site:underneaththeirrobes.blogs.com alito

In addition to A3G's recent open letter to President Bush in favor of nominating Judge Samuel Alito, here are a few highlights from UTR's coverage of this superb jurist:

1. A judicial sightation of Judge Alito, "wandering down Broad Street in Newark, New Jersey," in the direction of T.M. Ward's Coffee Shop.

Ward's, by the way, has named a blend of coffee after SCOTUS nominee Alito. In the wake of President Bush's official announcement, expect sales of "Judge Alito's Bold Justice Blend" to skyrocket! The Philadelphia Inquirer has this report:

At T.M. Ward Coffee Co. in downtown Newark, near Alito's office, the judge is known more for his taste in coffee than for his legal philosophy. Store clerk Vera Barbosa said that Alito's law clerks wanted to do something special for his birthday a few years ago, so they persuaded the store to come up with a special blend for him.

"Judge Alito's Bold Justice Blend" -- a mix of Colombian, Java and New Guinea with a bit of espresso -- remains a hot seller at the coffee shop, Barbosa said, and Alito often stops by for it - by the cup and by the pound.

"He's a great man," Barbosa said. "He's very polite. He comes in whenever he has a chance. He's very nice."

2. A comparison of Judge Alito to the lovely and talented Kate Winslet, in The Race to the Courthouse: Some Insights from the Oscars.

Back in that post, A3G compared five Supreme Court short-listers to the five nominees for Best Actress at this year's Oscars. A3G wrote:

Both Alito and Winslet have been on the scene for a while, and they are justifiably held in high regard. For many years, they have been working hard and turning in fine performances. They are personally pleasant, and they are exceedingly well-liked.

But they face the same problem: How can they steal the momentum from their flashier, more aggressive colleagues? Despite his misleading nickname of "Scalito," the unassuming Judge Alito isn't nearly as forceful a personality as Justice Scalia. How can Judge Alito avoid becoming breakfast for Judge Luttig's pack of hungry wolves -- the powerful network of well-placed Luttigators, who all share a cult-like devotion to the aggrandizement of their former boss?

By the way, although A3G loves nicknames, she will generally avoid using the moniker of "Scalito" (whose origin is explained at Stuart Buck's blog). As noted by Fred Barbash and Peter Baker of the Washington Post, "most observers believe that [nickname] greatly oversimplifies his record. Alito is considered far less provocative a figure than Scalia both in personality and judicial temperament. His opinions and dissents tend to be dryly analytical rather than slashing. In addition, his appeals court record is not uniformly conservative on the sorts of issues that arise in Supreme Court confirmation battles."

So, although conservatives should be happy that President Bush has selected a nominee "in the mold of Justice Scalia and Justice Thomas," liberals should not have a reaction of knee-jerk antipathy towards Judge Alito.

3. A judicial sightation of Judge Alito at the local Shoprite supermarket. According to UTR's source, the possible future Associate Justice "bags his own groceries"!

4. A lengthy footnote about Judge Alito, in a post suggesting that President Bush nominate Jennifer Lopez, Oprah Winfrey, or Janet Jackson's right breast to the Supreme Court. A3G expressed fear that Judge Alito's status as one of the Great Unwashed would hurt his SCOTUS candidacy. She's happy to be wrong!

5. A quick post noting that Judge Alito "is known for being brilliant, mild-mannered, and unfailingly polite."

6. In this post about then-Judge Michael Chertoff, a former colleague of Judge Alito, A3G noted (item #14) that Judge Alito's wife, Martha Alito, "was formerly the law librarian in the U.S. Attorney's Office where he worked."

7. In this post about Judge Consuelo M. Callahan, A3G identified Judge Alito (and then-Judge Roberts) as a top SCOTUS possibility. A3G described Judge Alito as "relatively young, impressively credentialed, and reliably conservative, but not fierily or flamboyantly so."

The moral of the story of Judge Alito's nomination: sometimes nice guys do finish first. On behalf of UTR's readers, A3G says:

WE LOVE YOU JUDGE ALITO!!!

Breaking News: Judge Alito Is the SCOTUS Nominee!!!

There's no official announcement yet, but news outlets are reporting that President Bush has selected Judge Samuel A. Alito, Jr., as his nominee to the United States Supreme Court. An announcement is expected at 8:00 a.m. EST.

Article III Groupie didn't predict that Judge Alito would be the nominee, at least not in recent weeks.* SCOTUSblog's Tom Goldstein did predict Alito, making him three-for-three in major SCOTUS predictions -- the undisputed champ of Supreme Court prognostication.

In this case, A3G is absolutely thrilled to be wrong. Judge Alito is a simply sensational choice, her personal favorite among all the short-listers. A3G is honored that the president and his advisors heeded her impassioned, eleventh-hour plea to select Samuel Alito over J. Michael Luttig for the Court.

Judge Alito, A3G can't accept flowers from you; but a shout-out on your blog would be lovely, thanks! An offer to clerk for you on the Supreme Court would also be accepted with gratitude.

Congratulations, Judge Alito!!!

* Back in this post, in November 2004, A3G mentioned Judge Sam Alito -- alongside then-Judge John G. Roberts, now Chief Justice Roberts -- as a top SCOTUS possibility.

UTR Discovery Request: What Is Harriet Miers Reading?

Now it's time for a break from UTR's copious SCOTUS speculation. A reader recently sent Article III Groupie a link to the AP photograph at right, along with this email:

a3g, while i'm sure you're busy dealing with real issues like the next supreme court nominee, i'm still trying to follow good ol' harriet (you know, i wouldn't want to upset specter & have him think i was denying harriet's due process). i stumbled across this image & thought you'd be the perfect detective to solve my quandry.

clearly, from the picture, harriet has bought a new book -- 20% off nonetheless (at least we know she's thrifty!) -- to help her cope with her supreme court withdrawal. while i want to think it's a self-help or motivational book, the cover looks a lot like dan brown's "da vinci code." so what's she reading?

Does anyone know the answer to this question? A3G does see a resemblance to the Da Vinci Code, and she wouldn't be surprised to learn that Harriet Miers has picked up that book, given HEM's weakness for books that are "guilty pleasures" (which A3G discussed back in this post).

But A3G doesn't think that the Da Vinci Code is Harriet's purchase -- if you click on the photo and take a closer look, you'll see that the title lettering on Miers's book starts too far down the page. If you think you might know the book that Harriet bought, please post a comment to this post. Thanks!

Driving Miss Janice: Will Judicial Diva Brown Take the SCOTUS Wheel?

Earlier today, Professor Doug Berman raised this possibility:

This article reports that President Bush "and First Lady Laura Bush were scheduled to participate in a wreath-laying ceremony this evening honoring late civil rights activist Rosa Parks."  Wouldn't it be an incredible moment of political theater and strategy to announce the SCOTUS nomination of Judge Janice Rogers Brown at this event?  The President could describe Brown as the judicial equivalent of Rosa Parks, and framing the nomination in such terms would, I think, greatly impact the political dynamics and debate surrounding this nomination.

Professor Ann Althouse condemned such a stunt as being in "mind-shattering bad taste"; A3G largely agreed, but added that it might also "partake of a certain 'so bad it's good' quality." (Carol Platt Liebau seemed to share A3G's view: it would leave President Bush open to charges of politicizing an apolitical event, but it would undoubtedly give rise to "a blockbuster moment.")

It now appears that there will be no SCOTUS announcement today, so this point may be moot. But if you're curious about what A3G meant when she said that announcing a Jance Rogers Brown nomination at a Rosa Parks ceremony might be "so bad it's good," consider how it would allow Judge Brown to deliver nomination acceptance remarks dominated by tortured, bus-related metaphors:

Back when I was a state court judge, a status that some commentators have described as "icky," I was sitting at the back of the judicial bus.  When I was confirmed to the exalted D.C. Circuit, our nation's preeminent federal appeals court, I moved up to the front of the bus. Now, if confirmed to the U.S. Supreme Court, I will be driving that damn bus. I've come a long way, babies!

Of course, even if tonight's ceremonies for Rosa Parks come and go without an announcement, Judge Brown might still end up as the nominee. Feddie is now predicting that she will get the nod, and Erick thinks it is a definite possibility. With everyone fixated on Judge Alito and Judge Luttig, nominating Judge Brown would take many by surprise -- and President Bush sure likes surprises.

SUPREME COURT NOMINATIONS ARE FUN!!!

A Win-Win-Win-Win Situation?

This comment, by an unidentified reader of this blog, led Feddie to offer this exciting speculation: President Bush's Supreme Court nominee will be Judge Edith Hollan Jones, "The Horsewoman of the Right-Wing Apocalypse" (a high compliment here at UTR).

Meanwhile, all of the Alito-Luttig speculation has led Professor Douglas Berman to offer this equally delicious possibility: President Bush will nominate Judge Janice Rogers Brown to the Court, perhaps at this evening's wreath-laying ceremony in honor of the late Rosa Parks. (Professor Ann Althouse opines that announcing Judge Brown's nomination at the Rosa Parks ceremony would constitute "[a]n incredible moment of mind-shattering bad taste," and A3G is inclined to agree with her. But such a move would partake of a certain "so bad it's good" quality, too.)

Friends, we find ourselves in a win-win-win-win situation. All of the folks whose names have been bandied about in the past few days -- Samuel Alito, Michael Luttig,* Janice Rogers Brown, Priscilla Owen, Edith Jones, Karen Williams, Alice Batchelder, Emilio Garza -- would be great SCOTUS picks. They are all brilliant, splendidly credentialed, highly conservative jurists. Barring a very unforeseen development, we will all be extremely happy campers in the very near future.

* Does Article 3 Groupie harbor "player hate" for Judge Luttig, whose unmatched ability to feed his clerks to the Court leaves the rest of us out in the cold? Of course she does; she feels great resentment and schadenfreude towards Judge Luttig and his hardy crew of Luttigators. But A3G can't deny that Judge Luttig is a legal genius and a staunch conservative. As such, he would be an excellent SCOTUS nominee, as well as a very fine justice if confirmed. (A3G does not put much stock in these rumors about Judge Luttig, which are inconsistent with the incredible intellect he has demonstrated over his long judicial career.)

Alito : Luttig :: Clement : Roberts

The growing Supreme Court buzz around Judge Samuel A. Alito, Jr. is reaching highly suspect, Clement-ine proportions. Is the White House trying to fake us out using the same strategy that it previously employed? Article III Groupie is reminded of the old saying that President Bush once horribly mangled: "Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me."*

Perhaps because of this feeling of déjà vu, A3G's theory that Samuel Alito is playing "Edith Brown Clement" to the "John Roberts" of Judge J. Michael Luttig is gaining traction. Over at the Washington Post's excellent Campaign for the Court blog, Fred Barbash provides this helpful round-up of the Alito buzz in the morning newspapers -- which he dubs "the Edith Brown Clement Memorial Sweepstakes."

The similarities to the Clement situation are striking. Speculation about Judge Clement's supposed absence from chambers on the day of President Bush's nomination announcement -- Clement was rumored to be on vacation** -- fueled the rumor that she was going to be the nominee. Similarly, the Alito buzz is being fed by his own absence from chambers (and presence in D.C.), as reported in today's Washington Post:

Adding to the speculation were reports by those close to the process that Alito arrived in Washington Thursday night. Asked why the judge came to town and whether he was in chambers yesterday, Alito's clerk laughed and said he would have to take a message. The White House, meanwhile, declined to comment.

To all the liberal interest groups and left-wing bloggers, A3G says: Don't be fooled; don't take the bait. Sic your attack dogs on Luttig -- he's your man. Even though Alito would be a great SCOTUS pick, he is a mere decoy.

Update: There is a long and provocative reader comment appended to this post, which appears to be based on these rumors about Judge Luttig (first reported at TalkLeft, as far as A3G knows; scroll down to the bottom of the page).

* President Bush said, "Fool me once, shame on -- shame on you. Fool me -- you can't get fooled again."

** This rumor was incorrect, according to this reader comment, as well as this Washington Post article (which places Judge Clement in New Orleans on that day). A3G read about Judge Clement's supposedly being on vacation here (see update #2).