“What the social conservatives want is someone who will overturn Roe. v. Wade and change the court’s direction on privacy…But [Roberts] represents the Washington establishment. These Washington establishment people are not revolutionaries, and they’re not out to shake up constitutional law. They might make course corrections, but they’re not trying to sail the boat to a different port.” So, John Roberts. (I was traveling/working and missed out on yesterday’s Clements bubble.) Early word seems to be that he’s a tried-and-true conservative — A member of the Federalist Society, he was a Rehnquist clerk and a protege of Ken Starr — but not necessarily an ideologue or throwback. He seems a bit shaky on civil liberties, at least if you’re a Guantanamo inmate or a 12-year-old eating fries on the DC Metro. (And, of course, there’s the worrying inconsistency on Roe v. Wade.) But, my first impression, like many, is that Dubya could’ve picked a lot worse. Still, let’s get him before the Senate and see what comes out. Update: Hmmm…questionable on the environment, voting rights, and church-state separation too.