July 19, 2005

Bush has nominated John G. Roberts for the Supreme Court. Never heard of the guy myself. Google tells me he has been accused of being an anti Roe v. Wade activist by some pro choice groups. My first impression is that he sounds opposed to abortion rights but that no one can honestly accuse him of being an activist.

UPDATE: Speaking fuzzily and anecdotally, what I'm hearing on TV suggests to me that claims of Roberts' anti-choice sentiments have been a bit inflated. You could in fact get that impression from some of the blurbs below, notably the first and last.

I found a list of news blurbs on Roberts on this Planned Parenthood website:

John G. Roberts Jr.

"With impeccable credentials ... the question marks about Roberts have always been ideological. While his Republican party loyalties are undoubted, earning him the opposition of liberal advocacy groups, he is not a 'movement conservative,' and some on the party's right-wing doubt his commitment to their cause. His paper record is thin: as Deputy Solicitor General in 1990, he argued in favor of a government regulation that banned abortion-related counseling by federally-funded family planning programs. A line in his brief noted the Bush administration's belief that Roe v. Wade should be overruled."
— Washington Post, July 1, 2005

"Roberts has been floated as a nominee who could win widespread support in the Senate. Not so likely. He hasn't been on the bench long enough for his judicial opinions to provide much ammunition for liberal opposition groups. But his record as a lawyer for the Reagan and first Bush administrations and in private practice is down-the-line conservative on key contested fronts, including abortion, separation of church and state, and environmental protection. ...

"For Bush I, successfully helped argue that doctors and clinics receiving federal funds may not talk to patients about abortion. (Rust v. Sullivan, 1991)"
— Slate Magazine, June 24, 2005

"The official, who declined to be named, said appellate judges J. Michael Luttig of Richmond, John Roberts of Washington and Samuel Alito Jr. of New Jersey might top the list, which published reports say also includes several other judges and Attorney General Alberto Gonzales. ...

"Roberts, 50, voiced opposition to abortion rights as a government lawyer. In 1991, he co-wrote a government brief in support of federal law barring federally funded family planning organizations from offering abortion-related counseling. The government argued that Roe v. Wade 'was wrongly decided and should be overturned,' and that the high court's ruling in the landmark abortion case was not supported 'in the text, structure or history of the Constitution."
— Atlanta Journal-Constitution, June 24, 2005

"Roberts, 50, has seen his stock rise in recent months. Widely considered one of the top appellate lawyers to argue before the Supreme Court, Roberts was first nominated to the bench near the end of the elder Bush's presidency, and the nomination died in the Senate. He was confirmed two years ago with bipartisan support, but less is known about his views than those of other contenders."
— Chicago Tribune, June 22, 2005

"Many liberals think Roberts may be a sign of what's to come. They grew nervous with his dissents challenging the constitutionality of the Endangered Species Act and because of his support of the White House decision to keep the Cheney energy task force records secret."
— The Village Voice, June 21, 2005

"In the meantime, Republicans close to the preparations say that the White House has assembled research on some 20 Supreme Court candidates, with more intensive research on a handful of the most mentioned, all federal appellate judges and all conservative: ... John G. Roberts Jr. of the District of Columbia ... "
— The New York Times, June 20, 2005

"White House officials have prepared for the prospect by culling long lists of possible candidates, poring through old cases and weighing a variety of factors from judicial philosophy to age. Bush and his inner circle have had tightly held deliberations and no one can say for sure whom he might pick for chief justice, but outside advisers to the White House believe the main candidates are federal appeals Judges John G. Roberts ... "
— The Washington Post, June 19, 2005

"A former Rehnquist clerk has also been mentioned as a possible court nominee. John G. Roberts, who has been on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit since June 2003, was one of President Bush's least contentious picks for the bench. ...

"Roberts, 50, has generally avoided weighing in on disputed social issues. Abortion rights groups, however, have maintained that he tried during his days as a lawyer in the first Bush administration to overturn Roe v. Wade."
— Associated Press, June 18, 2005

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