Topic: Education for Illegal Aliens
Senator: Sessions
Date: SEPTEMBER 15, 2005
Contents
SPECTER: Senator Sessions has asked for recognition briefly...
SESSIONS: Just a minute or two.
SPECTER: ... to clarify one point which he thinks requires that clarification.
SESSIONS: Thank you.
Judge Roberts, I commend you on your good humor, and even when they read a memo that suggested you said the EEOC was unAmerican when actually all you were doing was quoting a complaint and that you defended the EEOC and its rights and independence aggressively in that memo.
But I wanted to ask you about this Texas case. As I understand it, Texas decided that they would not fund education for illegal aliens that are here in the country. And that was challenged as being unconstitutional and went to the Supreme Court.
I know you have said that you, as a parent and as a person who believes in education, you absolutely believe in education for all children in some way, form or fashion. But you don't mean to suggest or prejudge, do you, the constitutionality of the right of the state of Texas to make that decision? That would be a matter of, I think, some importance perhaps again in the years to come.
ROBERTS: Well, no, Senator. And I did try to be very careful when separating the personal views with respect to the importance of education from the legal question there.
And the legal question, of course, was a close one.
ROBERTS: It divided the court 5-4. And, as I noted, among the dissenters were Justices White and O'Connor. And I don't think their legal position reflected any less than wholehearted view concerning the importance of education.
SESSIONS: Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
SPECTER: Thank you, Senator Sessions.
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