Rainbow Warrior
Fables of the Strict Constructionist

In my glee over the Prince of Darkness, I forgot to even mention this bit about SCOTUS nominee John G. Roberts--yet another omission of a group he was a member of or helped with legal work/consultation. No, it's not the Federalist Society this time--it's THE GAYS (via NYTimes):

Judge John G. Roberts Jr., the Supreme Court nominee, gave advice to advocates for gay rights a decade ago, helping them win a landmark 1996 ruling protecting gay men and lesbians from state-sanctioned discrimination. Judge Roberts, at the time an appellate lawyer for the Washington firm of Hogan & Hartson, did not write legal briefs or argue the case, lawyers involved said. But they said he did provide invaluable strategic guidance working pro bono to formulate legal theories and coach them in moot court sessions. Judge Roberts did not disclose his role in the case to the Senate Judiciary Committee, which asked about pro bono work in a questionnaire. News of his participation was first reported Thursday in The Los Angeles Times, and it set off an immediate scramble on both the left and the right, upending perceptions of the nominee in both camps. The White House immediately sought to reassure Judge Roberts's conservative backers, telephoning prominent leaders, including Richard Land of the Southern Baptist Convention, but it appeared that not all of them had been convinced. The 1996 case, Romer v. Evans, is considered a touchstone in the culture wars, and it produced what the gay rights movement considers its most significant legal victory. By a 6-to-3 vote, the Supreme Court struck down a provision of the Colorado Constitution that nullified existing civil rights protections for gay men and lesbians and also barred the passage of new antidiscrimination laws.

The key here was that he was doing this as pro bono work--which is essentially volunteer work that a lawyer chooses to do. So I don't think he'll be able to hide behind the "I was just expressing the opinion of my client, not my own personal beliefs" excuse that's been trotted out quite a bit in regards to other cases he had a hand in, one way or another. This definitely adds a curious shade to the paint-by-numbers view we've been fed of Mister Roberts up till now.