Here Come De Judge

So the preznit finally unveils his big SCOTUS pick, and it's not Abu Gonzales, nor is it a chick. It's impressive that John Roberts whizzed through Harvard in three years. He sounds like a guy with a rigorous intellect.

So what's he doing hanging with a man that can't even ride a bicycle?

Surely Roberts was chosen at least in part because he's largely a cipher, and thus is valuable as a distraction from the ongoing mendacity and criminality of this White House. (Whatever Bush said about not having criminals in his stable should apply to the likes of Elliott Abrams as well as Karl Rove and Scooter Libby.)

One bad sign is that Roberts has already received a thumbs up from a political group that doesn't even have opposable thumbs -- the FRC, the wingnut di tutti wingnutti.

Family Research Council welcomed President Bush's nomination of Judge John Roberts to succeed retiring Associate Justice Sandra Day O'Connor. FRC President Tony Perkins released the following statement:
"President Bush has chosen an exceptionally well-qualified and impartial nominee for the Supreme Court. Judge Roberts is widely respected for his fair judgment, intellect and integrity, all things qualifying him to serve as the next Supreme Court Justice. I believe that Judge Roberts will strictly interpret the Constitution and not legislate from the bench.

"Judge Roberts is well-qualified and experienced and he deserves a fair up-or-down vote. There should be a fair hearing for this fair minded judge."

Gee Tony, you think you could have used "fair" at least a half-dozen more times? And the whole "legislate from the bench" canard -- bullshit. Clearly it's the hidebound conservatives who are doing the most legislating from the bench, as defined by the likelihood of overturning Congressional law (which, as we are constantly reminded by our strict Constitution pseudo-scholars, is activism). Get your story straight, assholes.

And as impressive as Roberts' educational record appears, his résumé seems to tell a different story.

Yet those who know Roberts say he, unlike Souter, is a reliable conservative who can be counted on to undermine if not immediately overturn liberal landmarks like abortion rights and affirmative action. Indicators of his true stripes cited by friends include: clerking for Rehnquist, membership in the Federalist Society, laboring in the Ronald Reagan White House counsel's office and at the Justice Department into the Bush years, working with Kenneth Starr among others, and even his lunchtime conversations at Hogan & Hartson. "He is as conservative as you can get," one friend puts it. In short, Roberts may combine the stealth appeal of Souter with the unwavering ideology of Scalia and Thomas.

Well, so far Roberts hasn't been outed as an Opus Dei loon or a secretary-harassing would-be porn star, so there's that.

It will be interesting to see whether the Democrats have a strategy planned here -- whether they want to dig through Robert's garbage just to make life difficult for an administration that's already on the ropes in a lot of ways; or if they're content to keep their powder dry until Rehnquist or Stevens retires, the latter of whom you can count on to ignite an apocalyptic confirmation battle.