Alito, In and Out of the Mainstream

In Analysis, Nominee Defies Portrayals by Left and Right

By Amy Goldstein and Sarah Cohen

Washington Post Staff Writers
Sunday, January 1, 2006; Page A01

During 15 years as an appeals court judge, Supreme Court nominee Samuel A. Alito Jr. has been highly sympathetic to prosecutors, skeptical of immigrants trying to avoid deportation, and supportive of a lower wall between church and state, according to an analysis of his record by The Washington Post.

Alito has taken a harder line on criminal and immigration cases than most federal appellate judges nationwide, including those who, like him, were selected by Republican presidents, the analysis found.