Is Roberts Pro-Business?

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While Supreme Court nominee John G. Roberts' ideological beliefs can serve as a barometer to predict his future as a Supreme Court Justice, I'm hopeful that his stance on issues like Internet piracy, China trade and interstate commerce receive more attention. (Read Inc.com coverage of the Roberts nomination here.)

More than half of the constitution governs commerce, and it is the task of the Supreme Court to interpret and rule on the Constitution. Organizations like the National Federation of Independent Business and the American Enterprise Institute don't seem to have a take on Roberts' business acumen, which is alarming to me, but if history is any indication, the person Roberts will appear to be in front of the Senate and the jurist philosophy he'll uncork once he slides on that black robe will be very different. Byron White, JFK's only appointee to the nation's highest court, served a shade under 30 years -- and all of them as a very right-leaning judge. More recently, David Souter, an appointee of the senior Bush, has revealed himself to be very liberal -- and there are several other judges from Eisenhower's nominations of Earl Warren and William Brennan (the judge Souter replaced) to Sandra Day O’Connor who frequently went against the party that nominated them.

I'm not implying that the Senate confirmation hearings are a sham and that judges are dishonest. The trouble is that the appointment and confirmation process has deformed (especially of late) into a political dog and pony show that reveals little of a candidate's philosophy or opinion on issues pertaining to business, which essentially could be half of his job. With Roberts clocking in at 50 years old, and with the obvious frailty of Chief Justice Rehnquist, the gravity behind this appointment is strong. His rock-star resume (Harvard, clerk for Rehnquist, 39 cases in front of the Supreme Court, and a member in one legal capacity or another of three Republican administrations) shows he wields the political understanding to rally the court. Given his completely charming demeanor (even opposing attorneys have nothing but great things to say about him), his subtle but abundant confidence, and being that he has been called one of the greatest legal minds on the Earth, he's a ripe choice to replace Rehnquist once he gets on the court.

Also, Roberts has been called "pro-business," but what does that mean? He's successfully argued cases for Toyota, News Corp and Fox Communications before the Supreme Court but as I mentioned in this article about the selection process for Federal judges, an understanding of business is what is lacking in America's judiciary system, and no one seems to be sure if Roberts possesses this.

Regardless of Roberts being "pro" or "anti" business, a simple understanding of how business functions and the ramifications levied by the court is skyscrapers above most of the judges practicing in America. Roberts will likely be behind the bench come October, but before he gets there let's hope we learn a little more about him other than he's "pro-business."