NOT THAT IT MATTERS: E. J. Dionne is fit to be tied over Alito's failure to give the libs the answers they wanted. Not that it matters to Kennedy, Schumer, Durbin et al, but if only for the record it seems appropriate to note what the Canons of Judicial Ethics has to say about confirmation hearings:

“[A] judge or a candidate for…appointment to judicial office shall not…with respect to cases, controversies, or issues that are likely to come before the court, make pledges, promises or commitments that are inconsistent with the impartial performance of the adjudicative duties of the office.”

Senate Democrats had no problems when Anthony Kennedy (confirmed 97-0) said this at his hearings:

“the public expects that the judge will keep an open mind, and that he is confirmed by the Senate because of his temperament and his character, and not because he has taken particular positions on the issues.”

Senate Democrats had no problems when David Souter (90-9) said this at his hearings:

“can you imagine the pressure that would be on a judge who had stated an opinion, or seemed to have given a commitment in these circumstances to the Senate of the United States?”

Senate Democrats had no problems when Ruth Bader Ginsburg (96-3) said this at her hearings:

“no hints, no forecasts, no previews.”

Senate Democrats had no problems when Stephen Breyer (87-9) said this at his hearings:

“I do not want to predict or to commit myself on an open issue that I feel is going to come up in the Court….it is so important that the clients and the lawyers understand the judges are really open-minded.”

Not that any of this matters to today's "by any means necessary" liberal left. Still, these are the kinds of observations one might make if attempting to instruct someone - say, an elementary school student - basic the basics of critical thinking and fair play.