Scalito's Way

So Dear Leader has decided to hearken to the call of the wingnuts, and nominate a "staunchly conservative" male judge to O'Connor's seat. Who is Samuel Alito? I'm sure we'll all be finding out a lot more about him in coming days, but for right now all you really need to know is that his decisions on the third circuit court of appeals have been so consistently conservative that he's been dubbed "Scalito" or "Scalia-lite" for his similarity to everyone's favorite judicial wack-job, Antonin Scalia. The AP reports:

Judicial conservatives praise Alito's 15 years on the Philadelphia-based court, a tenure that gives him more appellate experience than almost any previous Supreme Court nominee. They say his record shows a commitment to a strict interpretation of the Constitution, ensuring that the separation of powers and checks and balances are respected and enforced. They also contend that Alito has been a powerful voice for the First Amendment's guarantees of free speech and the free exercise of religion.

Liberal groups, on the other hand, note Alito's moniker and say his nomination raises troubling concerns, especially when it comes to his record on civil rights and reproductive rights. Alito is a frequent dissenter on the 3rd Circuit, one of the most liberal federal appellate benches in the nation.

In the early 1990s, Alito was the lone dissenter in Planned Parenthood v. Casey, a case in which the 3rd Circuit struck down a Pennsylvania law that included a provision requiring women seeking abortions to notify their spouses.

"The Pennsylvania legislature could have rationally believed that some married women are initially inclined to obtain an abortion without their husbands' knowledge because of perceived problems - such as economic constraints, future plans or the husbands' previously expressed opposition - that may be obviated by discussion prior to the abortion," Alito wrote.

Ladies and gents, I believe it's time to filibuster. Here's hoping the Dems can find their cojones.

UPDATE: Think Progress has all the links you need to understand why Alito is such bad, bad news for progressives.