Memo to Senate Members: What do Americans Want in the Next Supreme Court Justice?

As we await President Obama's announcement of his choice to fill the U.S. Supreme Court vacancy created by Justice David Souter's retirement, new polling data reveal that Americans want Justices who disavow politics and who will uphold the Constitution and the rule of law as written, including on issues involving abortion.

By overwhelming majorities, Democrats, Republicans and Independents agreed that judges should exercise restraint and check their own beliefs and predispositions at the courthouse door. They agreed on upholding common sense abortion regulations already in place in the states, including parental consent laws, and objecting to late-term abortions and taxpayer-funded abortions in the U.S. and overseas. Further, this consensus was held even among Americans who self-described themselves as "pro-choice."

... Read more: http://www.aul.org/2009-05Survey