Justice Alito: Dobbs, A Color Blind Constitution, And The Balancing Of Power

Uncommon Knowledge

Hoover Institution

Politics, History, News:politics, Science, News

4.8 • 1.9K Ratings

🗓️ 17 June 2025

⏱️ 64 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

In this wide-ranging conversation, Supreme Court Associate Justice Samuel Alito discusses the principles that guide his judicial philosophy. From his majority opinion in Dobbs v. Jackson to his views on originalism, precedent, and the role of the courts in American democracy, Alito offers a candid defense of the Constitution as a fixed and enduring document. He explores the meaning of the Equal Protection Clause, the limits of judicial power, and the tensions surrounding race-conscious policies. Justice Alito also reflects on the practical realities of the Court and the deeper meaning of constitutional interpretation, speaking with clarity, conviction, and with an eye toward the long view of American jurisprudence. Recorded on June 6, 2025.

Transcript

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0:00.0	Welcome to Uncommon Knowledge.
0:11.0	I'm Peter Robinson.
0:13.0	Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court, Samuel Anthony Alito Jr. grew up in New Jersey,
0:19.0	earned his undergraduate degree at Princeton, and then earned
0:21.7	his law degree from Yale.
0:23.8	He began his legal career as an assistant U.S. attorney in New Jersey, then served in the
0:28.5	Reagan administration, first as assistant to the Solicitor General, and then as deputy
0:33.3	assistant to the Attorney General.
0:35.0	Have I got that right?
0:36.0	Yes.
0:37.0	Excellent. In 1990, President George H.W. Bush appointed him to the Attorney General. Have I got that right? Yes. Excellent. In 1990, President George
0:39.2	H. W. Bush appointed him to the Third Circuit Court of Appeals. Fifteen years later,
0:44.1	President George W. Bush nominated Justice Alito to replace retiring Justice Sander Day O'Connor.
0:51.7	Justice Alito is now third in seniority on the Supreme Court.
0:56.4	Justice Alito and I will not be talking about cases before the court. That would violate every protocol at this institution.
1:04.2	But Justice Alito has been kind enough to offer this layman a tutorial in how to think about constitutional issues. Mr. Justice Alito, thank you for
1:14.7	inviting us into this. This is the West Conference Room of the Supreme Court building.
1:19.3	Well, welcome. It's a pleasure to have this opportunity.
1:24.2	The notion of a restoration, here's this layman's first question.
1:30.4	The Warren Court, which is the Supreme Court under Chief Justice Earl Warren, who served
1:34.6	as chief from 1953 to 1969, let me quote, legal scholar Daniel Frost, quote, Chief Justice
1:42.0	Warren is remembered primarily for extending rights to the weak, the disenfranchised, and the oppressed.
	...

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