Samuel Alito Quotes & Sayings

My mother worked for more than a decade before marrying. She went to New York City to get a master's degree. And she continued to work as a teacher and a principal until she was forced to retire.Both she and my father instilled in my sister and me a deep love of learning. — Samuel Alito

I want to commend the [Federalist] Society for bringing together the best minds from right, left, and center to debate the most pressing legal issues of the day. — Samuel Alito

Part of me wanted to get a graduate degree in political science. Had I done that, I suppose I would have become a college professor. — Samuel Alito

I've learned a lot during my years on the 3rd Circuit, particularly, I think, about the way in which a judge should go about the work of judging. I've learned by doing, by sitting on all of these cases. And I think I've also learned from the examples of some really remarkable colleagues. — Samuel Alito

I had the good fortune to begin my legal career as a law clerk for a judge who really epitomized open-mindedness and fairness. He read the record in detail in every single case that came before me; he insisted on scrupulously following precedents. — Samuel Alito

I think that what my parents taught me about hard work, optimism and education still holds true. — Samuel Alito

Our country as a whole, no less than the Hastings College of Law, values tolerance, cooperation, learning, and the amicable resolution of conflicts. But we seek to achieve those goals through "[a] confident pluralism that conduces to civil peace and advances democratic consensus-building," not by abridging First Amendment rights. — Samuel Alito

Under the president's spying program, there are no checks and balances. There is no outside review of the legality of this brazen infringement on the civil rights and liberties of the American people. Undeterred by the public outcry, the president [George Bush] vows to continue spying on American citizens. — Samuel Alito

If I'm confirmed, I'll be myself. — Samuel Alito

If settled means that it cant be re-examined, thats one thing. If settled means that it is a precedent that is entitled to respect then it is a precedent that is protected. — Samuel Alito

I learned that hard work and self-discipline can overcome many obstacles. — Samuel Alito

I am particularly proud of my contributions in recent cases in which the government has argued in the Supreme Court that racial and ethnic quotas should not be allowed and that the Constitution does not protect a right to an abortion. — Samuel Alito

When I had my confirmation hearing for the Court of Appeals, [my son] Philip was 3 years old. And when I was called up to the chair he took it upon himself to run up and sit next to me in case any hard questions came up. — Samuel Alito

I think that the legitimacy of the court would be undermined in any case if the court made a decision based on its perception of public opinion. — Samuel Alito

A generation earlier, I think that somebody from my background probably would not have felt fully comfortable at a college like Princeton. But, by the time I graduated from high school, things had changed. — Samuel Alito

I can still remember the day, as an assistant U.S. attorney, when I stood up in court for the first time and I proudly said, "My name is Samuel Alito and I represent the United States in this court." It was a great honor for me to have the United States as my client during all of those years. — Samuel Alito

The separation of church and state has been a cornerstone of American democracy for over two hundred years. Getting rid of it was long overdue. — Samuel Alito

In an era where the White House is abusing power, is excusing and authorizing torture and is spying on American citizens, I find Judge [Samuel] Alito's support for an all-powerful executive branch to be genuinely troubling. — Samuel Alito

All of my grandparents came to the United States from Italy during the early years of the 20th century. I believe that my grandparents came here to take advantage of the opportunities furnished by a growing country with an open society. — Samuel Alito

I am especially indebted to a 10th grade English teacher who encouraged me to read great works of literature. — Samuel Alito

Private religious speech can't be discriminated against. It has to be treated equally with secular speech. — Samuel Alito

My parents grew up in poor families where little English was spoken, they both went to college and became teachers. They believed that anything was possible with hard work, and they particularly stressed the importance of education. They instilled that same belief in my sister and me. — Samuel Alito

My father was brought to this country as an infant. He lost his mother as a teenager. He grew up in poverty.Although he graduated at the top of his high school class, he had no money for college. And he was set to work in a factory but, at the last minute, a kind person in the Trenton area arranged for him to receive a $50 scholarship and that was enough in those days for him to pay the tuition at a local college and buy one used suit. And that made the difference between his working in a factory and going to college. — Samuel Alito

A corporation is simply a form of organization used by human beings to achieve desired ends. Protecting the free-exercise rights of corporations like Hobby Lobby, Conestoga, and Mardel protects the religious liberty of the humans who own and control those companies. — Samuel Alito

I have been committed to carrying out my duties ... in accordance with both the letter and spirit of all applicable rules of ethics and canons of conduct. — Samuel Alito

In order to have a society in which public issues can be openly and vigorously debated, it is not necessary to allow the brutalization of innocent victims[. — Samuel Alito

It was a time of turmoil at colleges and universities. And I saw some very smart people and very privileged people behaving irresponsibly. And I couldn't help making a contrast between some of the worst of what I saw on the campus and the good sense and the decency of the people back in my own community. — Samuel Alito

This was a time of great intellectual excitement for me. Both college and law school opened up new worlds of ideas. — Samuel Alito

I'm not any kind of a bigot, I'm not. — Samuel Alito

As I mentioned, things were particularly hard during the Depression. My paternal grandfather was frequently out of work, and the family was evicted from their home. — Samuel Alito

I know from my own experience as a parent that parents probably teach most powerfully not through their words but through their deeds. And my parents taught me through the stories of their lives. And I don't take any credit for the things that they did or the things that they experienced, but they made a great impression on me. — Samuel Alito

The most important quality for a judge is open- mindedness to the arguments. — Samuel Alito

In southern Italy, where my grandparents had lived, there were few opportunities. The society was static, with rigid social classes. Poor people, like my grandparents, had little chance to improve their lives, no matter their talents or willingness to work. — Samuel Alito

When I was sworn in as a judge of the court of appeals, I took an oath. I put my hand on the Bible and I swore that I would administer justice without respect to persons, that I would do equal right to the poor and to the rich, and that I would carry out my duties under the Constitution and the laws of the United States. — Samuel Alito

I attended the public schools.And I have happy memories and strong memories of those days and good memories of the good sense and the decency of my friends and my neighbors. — Samuel Alito

When I became a judge, I stopped being a practicing attorney. And that was a big change in role.The role of a practicing attorney is to achieve a desirable result for the client in the particular case at hand. But a judge can't think that way. A judge can't have any agenda, a judge can't have any preferred outcome in any particular case and a judge certainly doesn't have a client. — Samuel Alito

A judge can't have any preferred outcome in any particular case. The judge's only obligation - and it's a solemn obligation - is to the rule of law. — Samuel Alito

My mother is a first generation American. Her father worked in the Roebling Steel Mill in Trenton, New Jersey.And yet my mother became the first person in her family to get a college degree. — Samuel Alito

When I get a case about discrimination, I have to think about people in my own family who suffered discrimination because of their ethnic background or because of religion or because of gender. And I do take that into account. — Samuel Alito

The First Amendment, I think, is the jewel of our Constitution. — Samuel Alito

Many people have been positive influences in my life. My parents, whom I mentioned, were the most important, but many of my teachers were also a big help to me. — Samuel Alito

I think that Congress' ability to reason is fully equal to that of the judiciary. — Samuel Alito

I know that some poor immigrants from that era had unrealistic expectations and were disappointed, but I don't think my grandparents were disappointed at all, even though they experienced some very hard times during the Great Depression. — Samuel Alito

When I was growing up, we always had a big family dinner at around noon on Sunday. I still love that whenever it is possible to gather the family together. — Samuel Alito

After law school, I had the opportunity to clerk for a tremendous judge, Leonard I. Garth, on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit, the court to which I was appointed in 1990. — Samuel Alito

If you want know what sort of a justice I would make, then look at what sort of a judge I have been. — Samuel Alito

I assume that those who cling to old beliefs will be able to whisper their thoughts in the recesses of their homes, but if they repeat those views in public, they will risk being labeled as bigots and treated as such by governments, employers, and schools. — Samuel Alito

You want us to step in and render a decision based on an assessment of the effects of this institution which is newer than cellphones or the Internet? I mean we - we are not - we do not have the ability to see the future. — Samuel Alito

I have been a judge for 15 years and I've made up my own mind during all that time. — Samuel Alito

When I entered college, I thought that I wanted to be a lawyer, but by the time I was set to graduate, I was not too sure of that. — Samuel Alito

My grandparents came worked hard, and I believe they never regretted their decision to come here and make a new start. — Samuel Alito

One of the most solemn responsibilities of the president
and it's set out expressly in the Constitution
is that the president is to take care that the laws are faithfully executed, and that means the Constitution. It means statutes. It means treaties. It means all of the laws of the United States. — Samuel Alito

I am deeply honored to have been nominated for a position on the Supreme Court. And I an humbled to have been nominated for the seat that is now held by Justice Sandra Day O'Connor. — Samuel Alito