Alito, a conservative, but not an ideologue

According to a story in the New York Times, which confirms other accounts I've seen, Alito is smart, conservative, and intellectually honest.

At Princeton, classmates recall, Samuel Alito welcomed the arrival of women on campus shortly after starting his studies there. 'We were quite pleased to see the change,' said Clyde E. Rankin, a lawyer in Manhattan who was a classmate. Later, Mr. Alito helped several classmates write a report supporting a right to privacy that extended to one's bedroom.

But one fellow student recalled that Mr. Alito advised against canceling campus activities to protest the Vietnam War, arguing it would limit people's right to go on with their lives. 'People are understating how deeply conservative he is - deeply in his bones,' said the classmate, Samuel L. Lipsman.

That's probably the best we can hope for from Bush. If he and Roberts are both smart, personally conservative, and intellectually honest, perhaps they will help ground the court. Let's hope so.