Despite Washington's distance from Madison, the decisions handed down from the U.S. Supreme Court have a lasting impact on our daily lives. Only 50 years old, President Bush's nominee for Chief Justice, John G. Roberts, could have a generational influence on the course of American law and government. Womens' rights, environmental concerns, the right to privacy and copyright issues are likely to be prominent in future Supreme Court decisions and are of importance to students.
Roberts' credentials remain unquestioned. A Harvard Law graduate, Roberts clerked for Chief Justice William Rehnquist, argued thirty-nine cases before the Court and worked for the administrations of Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush.
Roberts is a solid conservative and strict constructionist, exactly what we expected from the president. Roberts' conservative outlook alone is no reason to disqualify him.
The chink in Roberts' armor lies is his lack of judicial experience and decisions. Roberts has only been a judge since 2003, serving on the Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. This makes it difficult to ascertain Roberts' true judicial perspective on most of today's biggest issues.
During Roberts' previous confirmation hearing he said Roe v. Wade was \the settled law of the land"" and ""there's nothing in my personal views that would prevent me from fully and faithfully applying that precedent."" Years earlier, as principal deputy solicitor general in the George H.W. Bush Administration, he authored a brief that declared, ""We continue to believe that Roe was wrongly decided and should be overruled."" These mixed messages on abortion are concerning; however, we feel his statements as a judicial nominee should be given greater weight than work he was directed to do for a political administration.
Roberts has also been involved in the Recording Industry Association of America's legal fight against copyright infringement and Internet downloading services. When the RIAA attempted to force Verizon Internet Services to reveal certain subscribers' names, Roberts protected subscribers by ruling for Verizon.
On the environment, Roberts has been less than spectacular. He denied protection to endangered toads in California and, as an attorney for coal companies, argued in favor of removing the peaks from mineral-rich mountains in West Virginia.
While there are many downfalls to his nomination, John Roberts is an acceptable conservative choice from a conservative president to replace Chief Justice Rehnquist. As students, our role in the nomination is to remain informed on the ongoing confirmation hearings and voice our concerns to Senators Kohl and Feingold, members of the judiciary committee.
