How Do You Like Your Alito, Rare or Well-Done?

The grilling of Judge Samuel Alito begins today and it should be entertaining, if nothing else. The Dems are demanding that he answer all of their questions regardless of subject or relevance to cases which may come before the court, and regardless of the fact that Ruth Bader Ginsburg basically told the committee to cram it when she was questioned. Expect to hear lots of Dem comments about the "swing seat" that he'll be occupying.

Of course, there is no "swing seat" on the court. That's a completely made up description designed to pressure the president to avoid a conservative nomination and to justify the inappropriate questions of the Senate Dems. There certainly were no calls from Dems to maintain the "conservative" seat of Byron White when he was replaced by staunch liberal Ginsburg.

I fully expect Schumer, Durbin, Kennedy and Leahy to make complete asses of themselves, which will bring joy to conservatives everywhere and certainly won't help them make a case against Alito. If anything, their antics will generate sympathy for the judge since he has to sit there and listen to it. Alito's a pretty smart guy, and although he may not come off quite as smooth as John Roberts, I'm confident he'll hold his own against these rubes.

A number of bloggers will be attending the hearings and posting live updates. Check out Powerline and Captain's Quarters as the day wears on.

UPDATE: Two other good sources of hearing updates: Bench Memos and Confirm Them.