Not A Big Surprise

Well, the ACLU is completely opposed to the nomination of Samuel Alito for Supreme Court justice. Hmmm, is anyone really surprised about this? I'm certainly not as they (the ACLU) seem to be against anyone or anything that shows signs of being conservative. There have only been two other occasions when the ACLU has actually opposed a Supreme Court nominee. Robert Bork was one and the other? Chief Justice William Rehnquist. Here is part of their announcement:

NEW YORK — The American Civil Liberties Union announced today that it will oppose the nomination of Judge Samuel A. Alito, Jr. to replace Justice Sandra Day O’Connor on the United States Supreme Court.

“At a time when our president has claimed unprecedented authority to spy on Americans and jail terrorism suspects indefinitely, America needs a Supreme Court justice who will uphold our precious civil liberties,” said ACLU Executive Director Anthony D. Romero. “Unfortunately, Judge Alito’s record shows a willingness to support government actions that abridge individual freedoms.”

Throughout his career, Judge Alito has promoted an expansive view of executive authority and a limited view of the judicial role in curbing abuses of that authority. Two years ago, Justice O’Connor eloquently expressed what is at stake in these critical times when she wrote: “A state of war is not a blank check for the president when it comes to the rights of the nation’s citizens.”

Romero also noted that Judge Alito has written a series of troubling decisions on race, religion, and reproductive rights while sitting on the federal appeals court. These are precisely the issues in which Justice O’Connor often cast a critical swing vote on a closely divided Supreme Court.

Jay at Stop the ACLU has even further, though not particularly surprising, information.