ANTI-ROBERTS LEARNING CURVE: It's quite remarkable what Democrats have learned about the Supreme Court in the process of preparing their campaign to keep John Roberts from joining it. Apparently most Democratic members of the Senate are only now learning that Supreme Court appointments are for life! And because a lifetime can be a longtime, John Roberts must face the most extreme scrutiny. They seem to be afraid that Roberts' thinking won't evolve in the right direction over time. Actually that's a fair point. Ted Kennedy's views about confirmation hearings have definitely changed. He once declared that Thurgood Marshall (who became a longtime member of the Supremes) had every right not to answer senators' questions:

"We have to respect that any nominee to the Supreme Court would have to defer any comments on any matters which are either before the court or very likely to appear before the court."

Four decades later, Kennedy, seemingly a lifetime senator, insists that Roberts must prove his suitability for a lifetime appointment by answering every question. You know, just like Kennedy did in the wake of his unfortunate driving accident a longtime, lifetime ago. Oh, the grandstanding to come in these next few days of the first Supreme Court confirmation hearing of the Internet Age...