"In the mid-and-late 1960s, changes resulted in many academically subpar applicants being admitted primarily because they belonged to minority groups," said a 1974 pamphlet issued by the group.
At the same time, the pamphlet said, alumni interviewers noticed more students of "weak character, suspect motives and lack of commitment to Princeton."
The Trustee Committee on Alumni Affairs published a denunciation of the group as "a persistently hostile and negative voice" that had done "a disservice to the university."
Founded in 1972, the group stopped publishing its quarterly magazine in 1985.
T. Harding Jones, one of the founders of the group, said he recalls Alito making a minor financial contribution to the group but added that he was not on the board, did not serve on the group's advisory committee, and was not involved in any aspect of its magazine. Records show that Alito wrote no articles and published no letters in the magazine.
Ralph G. Neas of the liberal People for the American Way said the 1985 letter "makes a powerful case against Alito's confirmation," because it underscores convictions reflected in several of his rulings on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit, which he joined in 1990. "What he was sharing with Ed Meese was his legal views," Neas said.
Neas said his group is "already working" on an anti-Alito TV ad based on the letter.
Staff writer Jo Becker contributed to this report.
