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Justice Alito Honors History, Heroes, and Friendship
It was a day of national remembrance, recollection and forward-looking. September 11, 2006 at Pepperdine University would not have been just another day even without the visit of the United States Supreme Court's newest Justice. But visit he did- to honor those lost five years ago- and to give his thoughts on the Constitution and issues facing the Supreme Court and, perhaps most enjoyably, to banter with his old friend and colleague, Professor Douglas Kmiec, Pepperdine's Caruso family chair in constitutional law.
It was a day of national remembrance, recollection and forward-looking. September 11, 2006 at Pepperdine University would not have been just another day even without the visit of the United States Supreme Court's newest Justice. But visit he did- to honor those lost five years ago- and to give his thoughts on the Constitution and issues facing the Supreme Court and, perhaps most enjoyably, to banter with his old friend and colleague, Professor Douglas Kmiec, Pepperdine's Caruso family chair in constitutional law.
Justice Samuel A. Alito made his second visit to Pepperdine School of Law- the first since his confirmation to the highest court. Visiting at Kmiec's invitation, Alito started the day in the professor's Constitutional Law class, leading discussion on two Supreme Court cases dealing with the balance of power under the Constitution.
Then, with an earnest nod to the national importance of the day, he joined those gathered at Pepperdine's most profound vista, Heroes Garden, to remember the lost and to acknowledge the heroism of alumnus Tom Burnett and others on Flight 93, who acted so that more might not be lost to tragedy that day.
To the delight of a standing-room-only crowd of more than 450 squeezed into the law school's Caruso Auditorium, the esteemed justice passed along, in a Constitution Day forum, words of wisdom and his impressions of life on the Supreme Court before taking questions from an interested student body. But, before all this, Prof. Kmiec and his daughter, Kate, a third year law student, entertained participants – and the justice – with a recounting of the families' close connection years back, when Alito was pleased to read Kate's favorite: Green Eggs and Ham by Dr. Seuss.
The father-daughter duo read a page from the story's "new" version written by Prof. Kmiec, a play on words summarizing the Senate confirmation process recently experienced by now Justice Alito ("Sam I Am"). The entertaining introduction proved both a natural jumping-off point for nearly forty minutes of questions directed at the Justice, and proof that he was indeed "happy to come to Pepperdine to visit old friends," as he addressed the group.
"I thought that when someone becomes a Supreme Court justice, something magically happens to their mind," Alito remarked. "Nothing like that happened."
Instead, he explained, it is a continual learning experience – a time of learning from colleagues and about traditions. "It's a place that honors tradition," he remarked – recalling the Marshall Chair, originally used by Chief Justice Marshall, in which every new justice sits for a few moments before being sworn in, as well as the Harlan Bible, which all new justices sign in a tradition dating from when the first Justice Harlan gave it to the Court.
"I saw the signatures of Oliver Wendell Holmes, and Felix Frankfurter. I just sat there with a ball-point pen ready to sign the Bible and it just didn't seem right," Alito remembered.
But as students asked and he answered questions on the legal doctrine of stare decisis, media interpretation of Supreme Court proceedings and the Founders' possible shortsightedness in allowing the Supreme Court such constitutional freedom, the "rightness" of his place among those Supreme Court greats seemed obvious and his humility true.
"As the Justice began speaking, one could tell that he is not a man of self-importance but humility," commented second year student Mary Skouras, about his presentation in Kmiec's class. "Justice Alito did not teach us or ask us questions as though he knew every answer, but seemed to be aware that even he, an expert and interpreter of the Constitution, is also continually learning about the Constitution."
