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Masterful! Brilliant!

by John F. Tamburo, Editor in Chief, Publisher
Originally Posted: 9/16/2005 11:26:00 AM

The Honorable John Roberts, Circuit Judge of the District of Columbia circuit, has ensured that he will be confirmed by the United States Senate, and will become the seventeenth Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court.  In his confirmation hearings, he put on a law clinic.  There was not one single question from any senator present that came remotely close to stumping Judge Roberts.  At the same time, he was able to prove to my complete satisfaction that he is no "stealth nominee."  I can easily see that he is a strong believer in judicial restraint.  He is a conservative in the mold of Scalia and Thomas.  Chief Justice Rehnquist sits in heaven, looking down, thrilled that his seat is going to the most stellar jurist to be proposed to sit on the court since Rehnquist himself was nominated by President Nixon in the early 1970s.

"His chief loyalty would be to the Constitution and to the law!  Imagine that!  A judge that thinks that it’s not his job to legislate from the bench!"

Judge Roberts is masterful and brilliant.  When Dicky "Our troops at Guantanamo are Nazis" Durbin, unfortunately our senator from Illinois, asked him if he would be there for the little guy, meaning, "will you promise to be more liberal than Ginsburg,"  He has the answer:  His chief loyalty would be to the Constitution and to the law!  Imagine that!  A judge that thinks that it’s not his job to legislate from the bench!  I was watching the confirmation hearings last night on delay.  I was ready to dance on my coffee table until I remembered it had a glass top.

Judge Roberts wonderfully addressed my hot button issue:  Relying on foreign court cases to make United States law.  Judge Roberts explained why this is so entirely repugnant to our Constitution and our republican system of government.  He made the right statement.  He touched the issue with a needle:  The people of the United States have a say in those who make laws.  The people of the United States have a say in who becomes a judge, at any level.  At the federal level, they elect the President, who appoints the judge, and they elect the Senators, who advise the President and consent to that nomination.  So the law developed by our Congress and our state legislatures, as well as the court precedents developed within our borders, is linked to the people.  We had a say.

Then Judge Roberts noted that the American people have no say in foreign case law!  Well!  What a complete and simple truth!  He then noted that foreign law varies widely, and a judge could find whatever precedent he or she needs to justify his or her personal preferences, and then use that foreign precedent to justify implementing the judge’s personal agenda!  He made mention of Iran and Afghanistan.  Imagine if some crackpot judge decided to rely on Chinese case law to outlaw Christian groups that were not government-approved.  He made it clear that he would never use foreign case law in his decision making!  Bravo!

"Every time Judge Roberts opened his mouth, not letting the left-wing senators pigeonhole him or manipulate his positions or words, he showed his brilliance and their shrillness.  I cannot think of anything more wonderful than the notion of Chief Justice Roberts."

Every time Judge Roberts opened his mouth, not letting the left-wing senators pigeonhole him or manipulate his positions or words, he showed his brilliance and their shrillness.  I cannot think of anything more wonderful than the notion of Chief Justice Roberts.  He pledged to work for consensus in court opinions.  Considering that he is a very strong conservative, Judge Roberts will use his unmitigated legal excellence and outstanding personal skills to swing the court to the judicial restraint position.  He has the collegial skills (anyone who can withstand Dickie Durbin, Leaky Leahy and Chappaquidick Kennedy as skillfully as Roberts has the wisdom of Solomon and the patience of Job) to persuade, not bully, the court into the right place.

Judge John Roberts is easily the most qualified Supreme Court nominee in the last 33 years.  He deserves the confirmation he will receive, and I will be the one cheering the loudest when he is sworn in.