08/4/05
In the national discussion concerning Judge Roberts, this piece of information from http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/la-na-roberts4aug04,1,6120343.story?coll=la-headlines-politics&ctrack=1&cset=true#Scene_1 should not be ignored:
·
In 1996, activists won a landmark anti-bias ruling with the aid of the
high court nominee.
WASHINGTON — Supreme Court nominee
John G. Roberts Jr. worked behind the scenes for gay rights activists, and his
legal expertise helped them persuade the Supreme Court to issue a landmark 1996
ruling protecting people from discrimination because of their sexual
orientation. Then a lawyer specializing in appellate work, the conservative
Roberts helped represent the gay rights activists as part of his law firm's pro
bono work. He did not write the legal briefs or argue the case before the high
court, but he was instrumental in reviewing filings and preparing oral
arguments, according to several lawyers intimately involved in the case….The
case was one of several Roberts worked on pro bono at Hogan & Hartson, a
prominent Washington law firm that expects partners to volunteer time in
community service.
That is on top of Roberts’ statement concerning Roe vs. Wade in 2003 at http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,163028,00.html :
…during his confirmation
hearings in 2003, Roberts insisted that the brief contained the
administration's opinion, not necessarily his own.
"The statement in
the brief was my position as an advocate for a client," he said.
Roberts also insisted he
would respect Supreme Court precedent.
"Roe v. Wade is the settled law of the land. ... it's a
little more than settled. It was reaffirmed in the face of a challenge ...
There's nothing in my personal views that would prevent me from fully and
faithfully applying that precedent," Roberts said in response to a
question from Sen. Richard Durbin, D-Ill….