[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2006, Book I)]
[January 28, 2006]
[Pages 141-143]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



The President's Radio Address
January 28, 2006

    Good morning. The United States Senate is now considering my 
nomination of Judge Sam Alito to be an 
Associate Justice on the Supreme Court. As Americans saw in his 
confirmation hearings, Sam Alito is a man of great character and 
integrity. He

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has more prior judicial experience than any Supreme Court nominee in 
more than 70 years. He understands that the role of a judge is to 
strictly interpret the law, not to advance a personal or political 
agenda. And throughout his extraordinary career, Sam Alito has earned 
the tremendous respect of his colleagues and attorneys across the 
political spectrum.
    This past Wednesday, I met with a distinguished group of 39 former 
law clerks to Judge Alito. During Judge 
Alito's 15 years on the bench, these fine men and women have worked side 
by side with him, providing legal research, discussing and debating 
pending cases, and seeing firsthand how he arrives at decisions. They 
are uniquely qualified to assess what kind of Supreme Court Justice Sam 
Alito would be, and they are united in their strong support of Judge 
Alito's nomination.
    One of Judge Alito's former clerks, 
who describes herself as a left-leaning Democrat, says this about Sam 
Alito: ``He's a man of great decency, integrity, and character. I 
believe very strongly he deserves to be confirmed as the Court's next 
Associate Justice.'' Another former clerk worked on Senator 
Kerry's Presidential campaign. She says this 
about Judge Alito: ``His approach to judging is not about personal 
ideology or ambition but about hard work and devotion to law and 
justice.'' In fact, Judge Alito has the strong support of all 54 of his 
former clerks, regardless of their political beliefs. They know him 
well, and they know he'll make an outstanding Supreme Court Justice.
    Judge Alito has also earned broad 
support from his fellow judges on the Third Circuit Court of Appeals. 
Seven of them took the extraordinary step of testifying on his behalf 
before the Senate Judiciary Committee. Former Chief Judge Ed 
Becker, who sat with Judge Alito on more than 
1,000 cases, said this about his colleague: ``He's a real judge, 
deciding each case on the facts and the law, not on his personal 
views.'' Another colleague on the Third Circuit who was appointed by 
President Clinton said this about Judge 
Alito: ``He is a fair-minded man, a modest man, a humble man, and he 
reveres the rule of law.'' This judge went on to say that, if confirmed, 
Judge Alito ``will serve as a marvelous and distinguished Associate 
Justice.''
    Judge Alito received the American 
Bar Association's highest possible rating, a unanimous ``well-
qualified.'' The ABA based its rating on its assessment of Judge Alito's 
integrity, professional competence, and judicial temperament. In the 
past, leading Democratic Senators have called the ABA rating the gold 
standard for judicial nominees.
    This past week, Judge Alito gained 
the endorsement of Pennsylvania's Democratic Governor, Ed 
Rendell. Governor Rendell said he was not 
pleased with the partisan way some of his fellow Democrats have handled 
Sam Alito's nomination. Democratic Senator Robert Byrd of West Virginia announced he was voting for Judge Alito, 
and he said that many people in his State were calling the treatment of 
Judge Alito by some Democrats, quote, ``an outrage and a disgrace,'' 
endquote. Another Democratic Senator expressed concern that the Senate 
confirmation process in recent years has become, quote, ``overly 
politicized, to the detriment of the rule of law,'' quote.
    The Senate has a constitutional responsibility to hold an up-or-down 
vote on Judge Alito's nomination. 
Throughout its 216-year history, the Senate has held an up-or-down vote 
on every Supreme Court nominee with majority Senate support. Judge Alito 
has demonstrated that he is eminently qualified to serve on our Nation's 
highest Court, and America is fortunate to have a man of his integrity 
and intellect willing to serve.
    I'm grateful to Judge Alito, his 
wife, Martha, and the Alito children for their patience and 
dignity during the process. And I look forward to the Senate voting to 
confirm Judge Sam Alito as the 110th Justice of the Supreme Court.
    Thank you for listening.

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Note: The address was recorded at 7:50 a.m. on January 27 in the 
Roosevelt Room at the White House for broadcast at 10:06 a.m. on January 
28. The transcript was made available by the Office of the Press 
Secretary on January 27 but was embargoed for release until the 
broadcast. The Office of the Press Secretary also released a Spanish 
language transcript of this address.