768
Souter, J., concurring in judgment
considerations that are fused in the whole nature of our judicial process . . . [,] considerations deeply rooted in reason and in the compelling traditions of the legal profession.' " Id., at 544-545 (quoting Rochin v. California, 342 U. S. 165, 170- 171 (1952)); see also Palko v. Connecticut, 302 U. S., at 325 (looking to " 'principle[s] of justice so rooted in the traditions and conscience of our people as to be ranked as fundamental' ") (quoting Snyder v. Massachusetts, 291 U. S. 97, 105 (1934)).
The second constraint, again, simply reflects the fact that constitutional review, not judicial lawmaking, is a court's business here. The weighing or valuing of contending interests in this sphere is only the first step, forming the basis for determining whether the statute in question falls inside or outside the zone of what is reasonable in the way it resolves the conflict between the interests of state and individual. See, e. g., Poe, supra, at 553 (Harlan, J., dissenting); Youngberg v. Romeo, 457 U. S. 307, 320-321 (1982). It is no justification for judicial intervention merely to identify a reasonable resolution of contending values that differs from the terms of the legislation under review. It is only when the legislation's justifying principle, critically valued, is so far from being commensurate with the individual interest as to be arbitrarily or pointlessly applied that the statute must give way. Only if this standard points against the statute can the individual claimant be said to have a constitutional right. See Cruzan v. Director, Mo. Dept. of Health, 497 U. S., at 279 ("[D]etermining that a person has a 'liberty interest' under the Due Process Clause does not end the inquiry; 'whether [the individual's] constitutional rights have been violated must be determined by balancing his liberty interests against the relevant state interests' ") (quoting Youngberg v. Romeo, supra, at 321).10
10 Our cases have used various terms to refer to fundamental liberty interests, see, e. g., Poe, 367 U. S., at 545 (Harlan, J., dissenting) (" 'basic liberty' ") (quoting Skinner v. Oklahoma ex rel. Williamson, 316 U. S. 535,
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