The Liberal Patriot

The Reagan Syndrome

J.G. Schwam - January 12, 2006

Either Judge Alito has a serious long term memory problem, is ashamed of his prior affiliations or afraid that if he tells the truth about his past work and affiliations he’ll be exposed for what he is, the new N word, Neo-Con.

Like Alito the now US Supreme Court Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. also seems to have memory problems. The Washington Post reported in July of 2005 that Roberts, the then Supreme Court nominee repeatedly said that he has no memory of belonging to the Federalist Society, but his name appears in the controversial conservative organization's 1997-1998 leadership directory.

On December 1, 2005 Alito said he had "no recollection" of being a member of Concerned Alumni of Princeton (CAP), a Vietnam era group that advocated far-right, anti-coeducational and anti-affirmative action views.

Prior to Alito’s now famous, in fairness alleged, but than more likely contrived lapse of memory in November of 2005 The Daily Princetonian interviewed Sally Franks of Princeton’s class of 1980. Franks, who while at Princeton sued several organizations they referred to as Prospect Avenue eating clubs for denying women membership said that she did not know about Alito’s membership at that time but said, "But I know about CAP and what kind of an organization CAP was in the late 70s and the early 80s and how reprehensible and scary it is that someone trying to be on the Supreme Court would have touted his membership in a job application." Alito does too. The organization was indeed reprehensible, clearly misogynistic and based on racist principles that if favored by the university would place it in violation of two civil rights statutes enacted prior to Alito’s membership.

Nor does Alito ever remember making a donation to the organization. In the same November 2005 article The Princetonian quoted former CAP board Andrew Napolitano class of 72', and friend of Alito's, who said in what he refers to as a Alito’s new statement “should end debate on the issue”. Napolitano in trying to minimize the nature of the group also said; "In my opinion, it's a dead issue, because this was not the type of organization where one attended meetings, or rallies, or participated," Napolitano said Wednesday. "One was either on the board of directors — which was six of us — or one was a contributor, which was thousands of alumni, and that was really it."

Napolitano’s statement means nothing. If he was friend of Alito's and a board member of the organization one would think he would know if his friend was member of an organization on whose board he sat at the same time Alito claimed to be a member in an application he submitted for a Reagan administration job. Even it was as loose an organization as Alito’s friend says it is illogical that he would not know that Alito if was or was not a member. But as one would expect Napolitano does not answer the question.

There are two plain facts here; one could draw either one of two conclusions from Alito’s statements surrounding his membership in CAP and Robert's dissavowal of his Federalist Society affiliation. Either, like Regan they may expect us to believe that their inability to remember can be attributed to slowly advancing Alzheimer’s, as we would later learn Reagan actually did have. Or they are simply lying. Since we never did find out if Reagan’s lack of ability to recall events even more recent than Alito’s CAP membership and Roberts' Federalist Society membership could be attributed to Alzheimer’s or convenient mendacity we cannot conclude if either is the explanation for Alito’s and Roberts' convenient memory lapses.

We can however draw the conclusion that there is a new affliction that appears to afflict not only Roberts and Alito but may afflict many more conservatives, as many are sure to soon be called before the federal bar to answer questions about their relationship to the simmering Abramoff scandal. We'll call it The Regan Syndrome.

It is too late save America from having to live with a chief justice that may be afflicted with this scourge that could be raging across the GOP's membership like the bird flu across the Asian flyways.

But we can save the high court from another victim of this growing anathema to truth. Fax this to your Democratic Senators. Tell them to filibuster Alito before it's too late, stop the Reagan Syndrome before it becomes a beltway pandemic.

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