"The right of privacy is nowhere mentioned in the Constitution," McConnell wrote. "The Supreme Court brought great discredit on itself by overturning state laws regulating abortion without any persuasive basis in constitutional text or logic."

On church and state

On another simmering social issue — the relationship between church and state in America — McConnell has built a legal foundation from which conservatives argue that it's constitutional, advantageous and well within American tradition to mingle political and religious goals.

McConnell believes that government does not breach the wall between church and state when using religious institutions to administer federal social programs, or when a university offers public funds to student religious groups. He supports school voucher programs and aid to parochial schools.

"We don't get too much of the white bread and mayonnaise from you. It's a very, very strong, passionate statement for everything," Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., told McConnell, reviewing the scholar's writings at his confirmation hearing in 2002.

But when testifying during those hearings, McConnell sounded more accommodating to the notion of privacy and abortion rights, and provided a more textured reading of the law.

The Supreme Court's reasoning in Planned Parenthood v. Casey, the landmark case that re-affirmed Roe v. Wade, was more solidly grounded than the original decision, said McConnell.

Roe "has been reconsidered and reaffirmed now by justices appointed by Presidents Nixon, Ford, Reagan, Bush (and) Clinton after very serious re-argument," said McConnell. "Today, it is much more reflective of the consensus of the American people."

A constitutional amendment banning abortion "is not going to happen," McConnell told the senators. And he spoke approvingly of a German Supreme Court ruling that recognizes a government's obligation to restrict abortions 15 days after conception, but does not necessarily criminalize the procedure.

Liberals remain worried. McConnell's vow to restrict himself to applying "settled" law as an appellate judge won't matter if he is appointed to the Supreme Court, whose members have the authority to rethink the law.

A nuanced record

On other issues, McConnell's record proves to be equally nuanced.

McConnell opposes a constitutional amendment to ban flag burning. He is against mandatory school prayer. He thinks the question of assisted suicide for terminally ill patients should be left to state "experimentation" and regulation.