As the hearings to confirm John Roberts as the next Chief Justice of the Supreme Court continue, Northwestern students said they fear social policy changes and infringements on rights if Roberts is approved.
“I’m afraid that the Supreme Court as a whole will become too conservative,” said Weinberg freshman Samuel Ludington. “Some laws may be passed that aren’t necessarily best for Americans.”
Two spots opened on the Supreme Court this summer, a rare occurrence that will allow President Bush to elect justices who might represent ideals of the Republican party. Roberts, a conservative, is Bush’s choice to replace William Rehnquist, who died earlier this month.
“President Bush will have a chance to put his stamp on the Supreme Court,” said Stephen Calabresi, a constitutional law professor at NU since 1990.
No one has yet been nominated to fill the seat left by former Justice Sandra Day O’Connor. O’Connor, who retired in July, was often considered the deciding vote in major court decisions, including the University of Michigan affirmative action cases in 2003.
Although students have concerns about the new direction of the court, NU law professors stressed that court rulings were not likely to change dramatically with Roberts’ nomination.
“One justice can’t do much of anything on the Supreme Court by himself,” said John McGinnis, a professor of constitutional and international law at NU.
Still students worried about potential changes to social policies.
Weinberg sophomore Anne Leung said she feared having more conservatives on the court could hinder women’s rights. She plans to become a corporate lawyer, a field she said is “dominated by white, Republican men.” She said she worried about her job opportunities.
Ludington said new legislation on gay rights and abortion could cause an uproar among college students. But he would welcome changes to affirmative action policy brought about by Roberts and the other new justice, he said.
Ludington, who is half black, said he would like to think that he got into NU based on merit and not his skin color, but said he thinks that’s not realistic.
“I would like to see a race-blind admissions policy based on credentials and scores,” he said.
But law professors suggested policy was unlikely to change with Roberts in charge and another vacancy yet to be filled.
Having Roberts and another conservative justice would make Justice Anthony Kennedy, a moderate, the swing vote, said law professor Steven Calabresi. This doesn’t guarantee that the majority of the court would vote conservatively on arising issues, he added.
The Roe v. Wade ruling that legalized abortion is unlikely to be overturned, he said. Even if Roberts and the second nominee vote to overrule it, it is unlikely that Kennedy would, and the conservatives would not have the majority vote necessary to pass a law, he said.
Roberts has so far deflected questions on abortion and religious issues, preferring to remain tight-lipped about his platform. Justices don’t want to take a stance on cases that haven’t come up yet, McGinnis said. There is no way President Bush can push an agenda through Roberts, he added.
“Any justice is going to be his own master and not subservient to the president who appointed him,” he said.
However, Calabresi still holds doubts.
“I don’t think the law is likely to change much, but it’s impossible to begin to figure it out until we know who the second nominee is,” Calabresi said.
Reach Lauren Pond at [email protected].
