Sirotablog: Drawing the Line on Alito

Tuesday, November 15, 2005

Drawing the Line on Alito

Note to every Senator in the country looking for some useful info on Samuel Alito: If you aren't plagiarizing Nathan Newman, you aren't doing your job.

While the rest of the country was up in arms to references to abortion in Samuel Alito's job application with the Reagan Administration, Nathan Newman caught something a little bit more pernicious. Namely, Alito appears to disagree with the principle of one person, one vote.

Now the White House is saying that Alito's personal opinions shouldn't held against him. Fine, but Alito isn't expressing his personal opinion ("I dislike minorities" or "I hate abortion"), but his legal opinion ("disagreement with Warren Court decisions"). Expressing disagreement with a law might indicate (in judicial speak) a personal difference. Expressing disagreement with a written decision of the Supreme Court is a legal opinion.

And if a Supreme Court nominee's legal opinions are not fodder for discussion, I really have no clue what is.

Pat Leahy is showing cojones on this issue. That's good. Now is the time to fight.

--Matt Singer

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Progressive Legislative Action Network (PLAN)

I am co-chairing the new Progressive Legislative Action Network (PLAN), an organization dedicated to passing progressive legislation in all 50 of America's state capitals. PLAN held its formal kickoff on August 16, 2005 with more than 120 state legislators from 40 states. Read this article about PLAN and how progressives are going to start taking the fight to the states.

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About David Sirota

I am the co-chairperson of the Progressive Legislative Action Network (PLAN) - a position I took after finishing a stint as a fellow at the Center for American Progress. I am also a Senior Editor at the In These Times magazine, and a writer for Working Assets, and a twice-a-week guest on the Al Franken Show. I have just completed a book for Random House's Crown Publishers entitled "Hostile Takeover" - it will be released Spring 2006. I also write a bi-weekly section for the Nation Magazine called Permanent Minority vs. Towards the Majority about Democrats failures and successes. For more on what I do, see this Washington Post story about my blog, this Molly Ivins column about my work, or this Newsweek profile about me. Feel free to email me at david@davidsirota.com with any thoughts/criticism. Note: this online publication represents my personal views, and not the official views of the organizations I work with.

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Tuesday, November 15, 2005

Drawing the Line on Alito

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