Roberts a Federalist Society Leader, Despite Denials
July 25, 2005
The conservative Federalist Society has been a force on the right for decades, and counts three former or current Bush Cabinet Secretaries among its membership. Supreme Court Nominee John G. Roberts, Jr. denies any membership with the Federalist Society. The White House went so far as to call reporters who wrote that he was a member, and told them that Roberts, in fact, did not recall being a member. However, a 1997-1998 Leadership Directory names Roberts as a member of the steering committee. Roberts continues to deny membership despite the revelation of the directory and the White House continues to cover for him. The Republican Administration calls for a "fair" confirmation process, but how fair can that process be if the nominee and the White House will not be frank with the American people?
Roberts' Name Listed in Federalist Society Leadership Directory
Roberts Was on the Federalist Society Steering Committee According to its 1997-1998 Leadership Directory. The Washington Post obtained a copy of the Federalist Society Lawyers' Division Leadership Directory, 1997-1998. The directory lists Roberts, then a partner at the law firm Hogan & Hartson, as a member of the steering committee of the organization's Washington chapter. Included in the entry is his firm's address and telephone number. Since Roberts has served only two years on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit and has a long career as a government and private-sector lawyer, he does not have much of a public paper record that would show his judicial philosophy. Working with the Federalist Society would reveal an extremist right wing philosophy. Though the organization keeps its membership rolls secret, many high profile members of the Bush Administration are acknowledged current or former members. [Washington Post, 7/25/05]
- Roberts Is One of 19 Steering Committee Members Listed in the Directory. The Federalist Society Leadership Directory lists Roberts as one of the 19 steering committee members. The Post reported that, "Among the others on the list are such prominent conservatives as William Bradford Reynolds, a Justice Department civil rights chief in the Reagan Administration; Ethics and Public Policy Center President M. Edward Whelan III; and the late Barbara Olson, who was a Capitol Hill staff member at the time. Her husband, former U.S. solicitor general Theodore B. Olson, is listed as president of the chapter." [Washington Post, 7/25/05]
- Roberts Was "Recruited" to Serve on Steering Committee. Federalist Society Executive Vice President Leonard A. Leo said that either he or another official of the organization recruited Roberts for the committee. Roberts's task was to serve "as a point of contact within the firm to let people know what is going on" with the organization. [Washington Post, 7/25/05]
Roberts Has Publicly Denied Membership in the Federalist Society Since 2001. The Washington Post reported, "In 2001, after he was nominated by President Bush for the seat he currently holds on the court of appeals, Roberts spoke to Post reporter James V. Grimaldi and asked him to correct an item Grimaldi had written that described Roberts as a member of the Federalist Society. In a subsequent column, Grimaldi wrote that Roberts 'is not and never has been a member of the Federalist Society, as previous reported in this column.'" [Washington Post, 7/25/05]
- Roberts Failed to Divulge Membership in the Federalist Society During His Confirmation to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. In a 2003 Senate Judiciary Committee questionnaire, Roberts does not include the Federalist Society in the list of organizations of which he is a member. [Senate Judiciary Committee Questionnaire, 2003]
- Today, Roberts Declined to Explain Listing in the Federalist Society Directory. Supreme Court nominee John Roberts declined to explain why he was listed in a Federalist Society leadership directory when the White House says he doesn't recall being a member of the conservative legal organization. Roberts was asked by a reporter about the discrepancy during a morning meeting with Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif. His only reply was, "No, no, no thanks." [AP, 7/25/05]
White House Officials Cover for Roberts, Stating That They Would Deny His Membership Even If They Had Known of Roberts Work on the Steering Committee. The day after Bush announced Roberts's nomination, the officials working on the nomination asked the White House press office to call each news organization that had reported Roberts's membership to tell them that he did not recall being a member. The Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times, USA Today and the Associated Press printed corrections. White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said Roberts "has no recollection of being a member of the Federalist Society, or its steering committee." Roberts has acknowledged taking part in some Federalist Society activities, Perino said. When asked if the White House would have done so knowing about the leadership directory, Perino said "Yes." [Washington Post, 7/25/05]
Vital Stats: The Federalist Society
Group Website: http://www.fed-soc.org
Group's Location: Washington, DC
Group's Officers: Eugene B. Meyer, President; Leonard A. Leo, Executive Vice President.
Board of Directors: Prof. Steven G. Calabresi, National Co-Chairman; Hon. David M. McIntosh, National Co-Chairman; Prof. Gary Lawson, Director; Mr. Eugene B. Meyer, Director; Hon. T. Kenneth Cribb Jr, Counselor; Mr. Brent O. Hatch, Treasurer.
Group's Mission Statement: "In its mission and purpose, the Federalist Society is unique. By providing a forum for legal experts of opposing views to interact with members of the legal profession, the judiciary, law students, academics, and the architects of public policy, the Society has redefined the terms of legal debate. Our expansion in membership, chapters, and program activity has been matched by the rapid growth of the Society's reputation and the quality and influence of our events. We have fostered a greater appreciation for the role of separation of powers; federalism; limited, constitutional government; and the rule of law in protecting individual freedom and traditional values. Overall, the Society's efforts are improving our present and future leaders' understanding of the principles underlying American law."
Federalist Society Is A Conservative Legal Network Of 25,000 Members. The Federalist Society is a collection of conservative to libertarian attorneys dedicated to preserving strong states rights positions that works hard to promote its members through ideological networking. The Federalist Society also works to promote its members to the federal judiciary. Founded by a group of conservative law students in 1982 at the University of Chicago and Yale law schools, the Federalist Society was originally supervised by Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia and Yale Law School professor Judge Robert Bork. Today, the Federalist Society has grown to include more than 25,000 conservative attorneys, policy experts and political activists, and operates on an annual budget of $3 million. According to the Oregonian, "[a]t the bedrock of the Federalist Society is an unbending belief in limited government and a skeptical approach to regulation." In conservative circles, membership in or association with the society has become a badge of ideological and political reliability. Roberts's membership was routinely reported by news organizations in the context of his work in two GOP administrations and legal assistance to the party during the contested 2000 presidential election in Florida. [The Nation, 3/26/01; New York Times, 5/9/01; Will column, Newsweek, 5/14/01; Institute for Democracy briefing paper, The Federalist Society and the Challenge to a Democratic Jurisprudence, 1/01; www.fed-soc.org; Oregonian, 4/19/01; Washington Post, 7/25/05]
Federalist Society Members Are Anti-Choice Activists. The Federalist Society actively targets the 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling that legalized abortion. According to NARAL, "Of the twelve lawyers the Society currently designates on its website as 'experts' on abortion/Roe v. Wade, almost all have fought for Roe's overturn; many have actively campaigned outside the courtroom for anti-choice causes, and several have engaged in political efforts against Roe." [NARAL Fact Sheet on Federalist Society, www.naral.org]
Federalist Society Members Called For Abolition of SEC, Overturning Brady Bill, Supported California Anti-Affirmative Action Initiative. Members of the Federalist Society are proponents of many conservative causes, which they frequently advocate in the practice group newsletters. In the Summer, 1998 Corporations, Securities and Antitrust newsletter, an article headlined "The Case for Abolishing the SEC" was featured. An early issue of the Civil Rights practice group newsletter was "almost exclusively devoted to Proposition 209," according to the Institute for Democracy. Past Federalism and Separation of Powers practice group newsletters have discussed invalidation of the Brady Bill. The Fall, 1997 Labor and Employment Law practice group newsletter featured an article entitled "Sex, Lies and Statistics: The Wage Gap." [Institute for Democracy briefing paper, The Federalist Society and the Challenge to a Democratic Jurisprudence, 1/01]
Federalist Society Members Have Argued Against Affirmative Action, Punitive Damages Awards By Juries. Members of the Federalist Society have argued some of the most conservative positions in law and politics, including: affirmative action programs are unconstitutional discrimination against whites; the Fifth Amendment "takings" provision supports constitutional challenges to a number of laws, from zoning to workers compensation laws; harassment-free workplace laws violate free speech rules; and that punitive damages awards by juries are "a capricious, unpredictable, randomly destructive scheme of punishment." [Washington Post, 4/18/01]
