US Judge Samuel Alito, nominee to the US Supreme Court, defended himself before the Senate judiciary committee on Monday, parrying claims that he is a conservative ideologue by insisting he judges each case on its merits and believes judges should not have a political agenda.
On the first day of what are likely to be gruelling hearings on his nomination to replace Justice Sandra Day O?Connor, Mr Alito made a brief opening statement in which he outlined his judicial philosophy and sketched his background as a child of immigrant parents growing up in a modest neighbourhood in New Jersey.
?A judge can?t have any agenda, a judge can?t have any preferred outcome in any particular case,? said the nominee, whose monotone delivery contrasted sharply with the polished, telegenic performance of the last nominee to come before the committee four months ago, John Roberts, chief justice.
?In every single case, a judge has to do what the law requires,? he said. ?Good judges are always open to the possibility of changing their minds.?
?Good guy, bad guy?
But Democratic senators signalled that Mr Alito would face tough questions over the next few days in several key areas: his views on abortion, on congressional power and on the power of the executive in wartime.
