Washington, Oct. 31, 2005-Edwin
Meese III, chairman of the Center for Legal and
Judicial Studies at The Heritage Foundation, issued the following
statement today on the nomination of Judge Samuel Alito to be
associate justice of the Supreme Court:
"President Bush has made an outstanding choice in nominating Judge
Samuel Alito for the Supreme Court. Judge Alito is a distinguished
scholar, a gifted lawyer with broad and impressive experience, and
is known in the bar as one of the greatest appellate judges in
America today.
"Judge Alito's legal credentials are impeccable. He won the top
prizes at one of the leading law schools in the nation. I know
personally of his outstanding qualities from his dedicated service
in the Justice Department in three significant posts during the
Reagan and Bush administrations.
"His impressive legal experience includes: several years as an
assistant to the solicitor general, where he argued a dozen cases
before the high court; deputy assistant attorney general in the
Office of Legal Counsel, which advises the president and Cabinet
secretaries on constitutional issues; U.S. attorney for New Jersey;
and for 15 years, as an appellate judge on the 3rd U.S. Circuit
Court of Appeals. Indeed, Judge Alito has more federal judicial
experience than 105 of 109 of the Supreme Court justices when they
were appointed.
"Judge Alito also has the personal characteristics and dedication
to the rule of law that will make him a renowned justice of the
Supreme Court. He is a humble man with the highest integrity, an
even temperament, and a sound judicial philosophy. In his actions
as a lawyer and a judge, he has shown careful and consistent
fidelity to the Constitution and laws as written, without injecting
bias or personal preferences.
"We thank the president for his fidelity to the Constitution and
laws in naming such a distinguished jurist. It is now up to the
Senate to act promptly to consider and vote on this nomination to
fill the vacancy on the high court that was announced on July
1."