Farerwell Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist, Hello Two Conservative Activist Judges

[guywithmonsters]

Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist passed away last night of cancer. While his rulings on a great many cases were contrary to mine, his voice was steady his judgments firmly based in the law. He served the country for a great part if his life and for that I am indebted to him.

His passing comes days before the confirmation hearings for justice O'Connor's replacement begin and in the middle of the Katrina disaster. Make no mistake that President Bush filling these two posts on the Supreme Court will have a lasting effect on the country. We must be vigilant in our work to keep the Supreme Court as fair and balanced as we can. For all their talk against "activist judges", the Right has an opportunity to put two in the highest court in the land. They will if they can.

Please take a minute to contemplate the opinions of O'Connor's proposed replacement John Roberts and contact your Congressperson to express your views. They confirmations begin Tuesday.

Some info:

"As Deputy Solicitor General under the first President Bush, he argued to the Supreme Court that "Roe was wrongly decided and should be overruled....""

From Pro-Choice America: A brief synopsis on this issue and an easy to use form to email your representatives.

"Good evening. One of the most consequential decisions a President makes is his appointment of a Justice to the Supreme Court. When a President chooses a Justice, he's placing in human hands the authority and majesty of the law. The decisions of the Supreme Court affect the life of every American."

From Whitehouse.gov - President Bush's speech announcing the nomination. There's very little out there making a strong argument for his appointment (aside form his obvious legal abilities and experience). Roberts himself hasn't said much and no one seems to want to acknowledge his stances. Just look at how they tried to keep his work for the White House out of the hearing process.

"Judge Roberts has supported weakening women's rights and civil rights laws, cutting back the vital role of our courts in enforcing legal protections and restricting the ability of the people's democratically elected representatives to enact crucial, nationwide worker, anti-discrimination and environmental safeguards."

From Supreme Court Watch. A summary of his stances with links to more info.

"...Roberts and his colleagues reached out to decide a number of issues "not necessary to decide." And they decided every one in President Bush's favor, essentially granting him unchecked power to try, and to execute, enemy combatants. "

From Salon (you have to watch a commercial for a free pass). Roberts goes out of his way to side with Bush on the legal questions of Guantanamo.