I’ve been checking out the John Roberts Supreme Court confirmation hearings. Here are a couple of thoughts.

1. Roberts is coming across very well, sounding exactly like a thoughtful judge should sound.

2. Sen. Arlen Specter put Roberts through a respectful but tough discussion of abortion rights and the value of legal precedent. Roberts deflected specific answers on abortion, and he struggled a little bit in appearing genuine in his deflections. Still, he said enough about the accepted process of judicial reasoning to enable him to be confirmable as someone within the mainstream. He did not say anything to suggest he might have a radical view of the law.

3. Sen. Leahy was not nearly as well prepared as Sen. Specter, and came across as not well focused in his questions. Still, Roberts answered Leahy’s questions in a manner that should permit Democrats to feel that Roberts is not a radical, and is enough in the mainstream to be an acceptable addition to the group of legal philosophers we call the “Supreme Court”.

’nuff for now. Roberts looking ok.