Home
>
Political
>
John Roberts ? Supreme Court Nominee

John Roberts ? Supreme Court Nominee

President Bush's selection of the Hon. John Roberts is an interesting choice. The betting, and there had been betting, was on a minority or female candidate. Instead, President Bush swings for the fences with a middle-aged, white male. Let the ugliness begin.

Competency

Regardless of your political views, Roberts' intellectual competency cannot be questioned. This man was a very competent lawyer and is a thoughtful judge. As an advocate, his arguments before the Supreme Court were always creative and thorough. As a judge, his written opinions reveal sound analytical skills and logical interpretations of the facts at hand.

The current court constituency has been together for far too long and is intellectually vacant on many issues. The leading intellectuals, Rehnquist and O'Connor are the undisputed "thinkers" on the court. Obviously, O'Connor is gone and Rehnquist will undoubtedly take a reduced roll in light of his serious health issues. The poor man looks like hell!

Of the remaining justices, none is particularly sharp and certainly not a leader of the court. Scalia is a publicity hound and hurls insults at all who disagree with him. Thomas issues opinions that nearly everyone agrees are simply bizarre. Stevens has always taken a back seat and Ginsburg certainly will be in the minority. The remaining Justices are often wildly inconsistent and certainly have issued a number of opinions that turn on the most inane of facts. The recent contradictory decisions regarding the 10 Commandments are perfect examples of a Court gone adrift.

If confirmed, John Roberts will be the first step in bringing solid legal reasoning back to the bench. By solid, I don't mean liberal or conservative thinking. I simply mean decisions that are logically consistent. Of all the current Justices, Roberts would clearly be the best choice for Chief Justice when Rehnquist finally leaves the bench. .

Okay, we've established Robert's is a quality judge. What effect will his confirmation have on the landmark decisions, particularly Roe v. Wade?

Landmark Decisions

Make no mistake, John Roberts is very conservative. Generally, he will side with the conservatives on the bench, but not always. His vote will be critical since he is replacing Justice O'Connor, the historical swing voter. Depending upon your political leanings, this as either a good or bad thing.

Roe v. Wade

Will Roe v. Wade be overturned? This is the key to Roberts' tenure on the bench. Personally, his conservative leanings would suggest Roe is dead in the water, but not so fast. Roberts also has a strong belief in upholding landmark cases that have set precedent for an area of law. Obviously, Roe is such a case. Nobody can predict what he will do, but we can predict that the choice will shape his future on the bench.

If Roberts votes to overturn Roe, we will see a complete re-writing of all the landmark cases. By voting to overturn, Roberts will position himself solidly with the conservative Justices on the court. Everything will be open game and the legal landscape will change dramatically.

If Roberts votes to uphold Roe, you can expect the conservative Justices to remain the minority for the foreseeable future. This prediction has everything to do with Justice Scalia.

Although championed by conservative groups, those in legal circles know that no single person has been a bigger obstacle for the conservative movement on the bench. The problem, quite simply, is Scalia is a jerk. He has a very bad habit of personally attacking other Justices in written opinions when they don't agree with him. Justices O'Connor, Kennedy and Sauter were all supposed to be conservatives, but became moderates on the bench. The generally agreed cause is the personal attacks Scalia let fly in his dissents. Kennedy, in particular, is known to bristle at the mention of Scalia. Though they issue denials, it is well known that many Justices are not on speaking terms with Scalia. If you would like to learn more on the division, pick up a copy of "A Court Divided: The Rehnquist Court and the Future of Constitutional Law."

If Scalia personally attacks Roberts in written opinions, human nature suggests Roberts will move towards the middle. Scalia will do just such a thing should Roberts vote to uphold Roe. In short, it all comes down to Roberts' decision on Roe v. Wade.

One way or another, the Supreme Court is about to come front and center in the public eye. Within the next five years, we should see at least two more Justices, Rehnquist and Stevens, leave the bench. Once they retire, the court should remain stable for at least ten years. If only we knew how they would rule!

Richard Chapo is with http://www.sandiegobusinesslawfirm.com - a firm providing legal advice to California businesses. Visit http://www.sandiegobusinesslawfirm.com to read more legal articles.

recurring cleaning service Mundelein ..

In The News:

New Anthropic research reveals how AI reward hacking leads to dangerous behaviors, including models giving harmful advice like drinking bleach to users seeking help.

The Fox News AI Newsletter gives readers the latest AI technology advancements, covering the challenges and opportunities AI presents.

Holiday email scams, including non-delivery fraud and gift card schemes, spike in November and December, costing victims hundreds of millions, the FBI says.

Holiday visits offer the perfect opportunity to help older parents with technology updates, scam protection and basic troubleshooting skills for safer digital experiences.

Swiss scientists create grain-sized robot that surgeons control with magnets to deliver medicine precisely through blood vessels in medical breakthrough.

Researchers exploited WhatsApp's API vulnerability to scrape 3.5 billion phone numbers. Learn how this massive data breach happened and protect yourself.

Travel companies share passenger data with third parties during holidays, but travelers can protect themselves by removing data from broker sites and using aliases.

Xpeng's humanoid robot moves so realistically that crowds believed it was fake, marking a major advancement in robotics technology ahead of 2026 commercial launch.

Researchers discover phishing scam using invisible characters to evade email security, with protection tips including password managers and two-factor authentication.

iPhone and Android users can reduce battery drain and data usage by restricting Background App Refresh to Wi-Fi connections instead of mobile networks.

Scammers nearly stole an Apple account by exploiting the support system with authentic-looking tickets and phone calls, users can protect themselves with safety steps.

FoloToy restored sales of its AI teddy bear Kumma after a weeklong suspension following safety group findings of risky and inappropriate responses to children.

Threat intelligence firm Synthient uncovers one of the largest password exposures ever, prompting immediate security recommendations.

Viral video shared by Elon Musk shows Tesla's Optimus humanoid robots performing tasks from cooking to construction, garnering over 58.5 million views on social media.

Chinese hackers used Anthropic's Claude AI to launch autonomous cyberattacks on 30 organizations worldwide, marking a major shift in cybersecurity threats.

Apple's new Sleep Score feature gives you a rating for your nightly rest quality. Learn how to set it up on your Apple Watch and iPhone today.

Essential phone settings to enable before losing your device, including Find My network, location services and security features for iPhone and Android.

The Fox News AI Newsletter gives readers the latest AI technology advancements, covering the challenges and opportunities AI presents.

Cybersecurity research shows weak passwords remain a major threat, with simple patterns and number sequences putting millions of accounts at risk.

New Android malware BankBot YNRK silences phones, steals banking data and drains crypto wallets automatically. Learn how this advanced threat works.

FDA approves first human trial for Paradromics' brain-computer interface that could restore speech for paralyzed patients through neural technology.

New phishing platform QRR targets Microsoft 365 users across 1,000 domains in 90 countries. Learn how to spot fake login pages and protect your accounts.

OpenTable now uses AI to track your dining habits and share insights with restaurants. Learn what data they collect and how to protect your privacy.

Google's discontinued Nest thermostats still secretly upload home data to company servers despite losing smart features, raising serious privacy concerns.

New Android malware NGate steals NFC payment codes in real-time, allowing criminals to withdraw cash from ATMs without your card. Learn protection tips.

John Roberts ? Supreme Court Nominee

Political