Democrats pushed and prodded Samuel Alito Jr. on Wednesday, the second full day of questioning the Supreme Court nominee, trying to find holes in his explanation for his membership in a conservative Princeton alumni group and to pin down his views on the constitutionality of abortion.

For the most part, Alito stood them down and, in his cautious monotone, provided the same answers he did the day before to the 18 members of the Senate Judiciary Committee.