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Updated Jan. 9, 2006, 1:43 p.m. ET
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Samuel Alito: The man, the myth, the potential justice
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Samuel Alito's confirmation hearings began Monday.
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By Lisa Sweetingham
Court TV
Alito was born on April Fools' Day, 1950, and was nominated to the Supreme Court on Halloween, 2005.
Despite reports that Alito was nerdy in grade school, his ninth-grade Latin teacher told a C-SPAN reporter that Alito was "never, never a nerd," but instead a "brilliant" student, adding, "very quiet, very serious, almost a humble kind of boy ... He was a listener."
As a boy, he dreamed of being a pitcher for the Philadelphia Phillies, and his wife sent him to a Phillies fantasy camp in Miami when Alito was in his 40s. He even has his own Phillies baseball card with his picture on it.
While the majority of his $788,750 financial portfolio is spread out in mutual funds, Alito also reports $161,000 of common stock in oil and gas corporation Exxon Mobil; $25,200 in McDonald's; $13,800 worth of Intel stock; $8,400 in Bristol-Myers Squibb and less than $2,500 in Disney. He lists the value of his West Caldwell, New Jersey, home at $869,550.
Colleagues say that when Alito's children were growing up, he was passionate about their involvement in sports. His daughter Laura, now in high school, is swim-team captain; his son Philip, now in college, played in Little League. Former law clerks say Alito often left the courthouse in stirrup pants, cleats and a baseball cap to go coach his son's games.
If confirmed by the Senate, Alito would be the fifth Roman Catholic justice — joining John Roberts, Antonin Scalia, Anthony Kennedy and Clarence Thomas — making it the first ever Catholic-majority Supreme Court. The remaining four Justices are Jewish (Stephen Breyer, Ruth Bader Ginsburg), Protestant (John Paul Stevens) and Episcopalian (David Souter).
"Bold Justice: The Judge Alito Blend" is a $7.95-per-pound blend of coffee first brewed by the T.M. Ward Coffee Co., near the Newark, N.J. courthouse, in honor of Alito's birthday. The shop owner describes it as "strong in the cup with some sweetness and a winey aftertaste," according to the New York Times.
Information was gathered from the questionnaire Alito submitted to the Senate Judiciary Committee and several other sources. |
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