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September 12, 2005
Supreme Court confirmation hearings
Listening to talk radio this morning, a host was bemoaning the fact that no one was calling into his show to say *anything* about the hearings to appoint Judge John Roberts to the Supreme Court, and that he really felt like no one cared, because it appears to be a slam dunk appointment. The host was practically begging listeners to call in and say that this appointment mattered to them. Only one caller addressed the issue, and only after she had originally called to ask a different question, and the host decided to ask her what her opinions were.
I wasn't originally going to watch the hearings. I haven't been keeping track of the lead-up to the hearings. But after this host made such a fuss, I decided to pay very close attention. And I'm glad I did.
Privacy seems to be a big issue on the docket for questioning in today's hearings (I'm watching streaming video on CSPAN.org). While the privacy issue in most people's minds applies mostly to the looming fear that Roe v. Wade may be repealed by the court, Sen. Kennedy's remarks seemed to allude to how privacy is a huge issue in terms of civil liberties and freedoms, and I'm wondering whether or not USA PATRIOT Act issues will figure prominently. I'll reiterate, I haven't been tracking the lead-up on this (or reading my feeds, for that matter), so political pundits and other librarians may have already commented on this, and I just haven't seen it.
Another interesting comment was made by another speaker (I didn't write down the name) about how blogs on the Internet have made quite the fuss over released documents about the candidate, and how many political bloggers have made commentary on the inaccuracies of those documents, as well as on the records which have not been released. It's crazy and cool for blogs to actually be on transcript in a government hearing, even if through a somewhat disparaging remark.
The third comment I've heard so far that caught my ear (since I'm writing this up as a listen to the streaming video) was made by Sen. Joseph Biden about how the chances were very good that Judge Roberts's court, should he be appointed, would hear cases on issues such as the constitutionality of micro chipping your kid will be presented as a case, and that other such technology- and Internet-related issues may befall the first justice appointed in the Internet age. After recently starting the book Radical Evolution (I had to return it because there was a hold, but it's on my list to get it back and return it), I'm not surprised that this might come up, but I'm also surprised that the hearing committee member had the foresight to present it as an issue.
OK, I didn't mean to blog the hearings real-time, but I keep hearing interesting things. One more comment, then I'll add more comments later as necessary.
Sen. Herb Kohl just mentioned that one of the past writings of Judge Roberts referred to the "so-called right to privacy", and how on the whole, his past judgments and writings have had a someone belittling view of civil rights in general, which could certainly mean something for USA PATRIOT Act cases that make it to the Supreme Court.
Wow. I'm impressed. If you're not listening, you should be. If you can't listen or watch right now, check for transcripts and archive video and audio streams on CSPAN.org later. If Roberts is indeed appointed as chief justice, as is the current plan, librarians should be paying attention.
September 12, 2005 12:57 PM