Read This Now - SCOTUS Double Take

Jeffery Toobin's take on the SOTU Alito kerfuffle is also worth a read, he points out that the Justices are indeed political actors and that it's best that we, the public, realize this and come to grips with it...

And now everyone knows it. And for that reason, then, I don’t begrudge Alito his grimace. He was just being honest. Alito’s role in that room—and his place at the Court—is no different from that of the Republican members of Congress; both are dedicated political adversaries of the President. The camera—and the Justice—didn’t lie.

He also touches on the history between the President and Alito, suffice it to say there isn't any love lost here.