Misleading Answers From Roberts

The Roberts hearings have raised more questions than they have answered. Roberts is certainly intelligent and skillful at evading questions.

On the opening day Roberts compared himself to an umpire whose job is to interpret the rules rather than make them. From what I’ve seen of many current Republicans, my question is which rule book he is playing out of. Is he playing from the real Constitution of the United States or that imaginary one which many conservatives follow? In this imaginary Constitution which some conservatives adhere to there is no separation of church and state. In this imaginary Constitution there are few limits on the government’s power to intervene in the private lives of individuals, but the government has no regulatory powers over big business.

The tone of the hearings could be seen in the response Biden received when he observed that, “His answers are misleading with all due respect.” Specter responded, “Wait a minute! Wait a minute! They may be misleading but they are his answers.”

Misleading answers appear to be all we are to receive. I was pleased to see Roberts express the belief that Row v. Wade is established law and to see his expressions of reluctance to overturn it. I’m just not sure this has meaning since he declined to answer Biden’s question as to how he would respond to a state passed a law which banned abortion.

Roberts expressed such questionable support for preserving abortion rights and during other questioning agreed in principle that there are some limits to executive power, although I’m not confident that he would ever take action against an over-reaching Republican government. I have one question I would like to ask John Roberts: If the White House were to hire death squads to kill abortion providers or those who seek abortions, would you consider this to be either in violation of Row v. Wade or an abuse of executive power?