President Obama hasn’t disappointed with his selection for the Supreme Court. Sonia Sotomayor was raised in public housing in the South Bronx. She graduated at the top of her class at Princeton and worked as an editor of the Law Review at Yale. She was originally nominated as a District Judge in a reciprocal deal President George H.W. Bush brokered with Sen. Patrick Moynihan. She was elevated to the Appeals Court by Bill Clinton in 1998. She was confirmed by a 67-29 vote, including seven currently-serving Republican senators (Bob Bennett, Thad Cochran, Susan Collins, Judd Gregg, Orrin Hatch, Richard Lugar, and Olympia Snowe). I’d also note that she had the vote of Jesse Helms and Little Ricky Santorum.
Her most controversial ruling was in Ricci v. DeStefano in which she sided with the city of New Haven, Connecticut against white firefighters who were challenging affirmative action in hiring. This ruling is going to be used to arouse a white backlash against her nomination. If you listen to the phone calls on CSPAN, you know that the prep work for white backlash was well prepared.
In many ways, Sotomayor is a perfect reflection of Obama. Humble beginnings combined with hyper-achievement against heavy odds. I’m impressed. But then, as a Princetonian and lifelong Yankees fan, I’m biased in her favor.
Two of the Republicans in your list are Orrin Hatch, so were there seven currently serving Republican senators or just six?
I imagine this is going to be a mudfight, but then I imagine that ANYONE that Obama nominates would cause a mudfight, so I guess we’ll just have to see how ugly it gets. I’m curious to see if the Republicans on the JC block her nomination by holding firm and not letting a single minority seat vote for her. Even though Hatch voted for her in the past, I don’t see that as a slam dunk to put her on the SC. And if the GOPers think that obstructionism is their path to power, I think that obstruction of all the GOPers on the JC is about the only way her nomination goes down (barring some explosive revelation about her past, I guess).
My misprint. Richard Lugar is the seventh. Frist voted for her. Domenici voted for her. Frank Murkowski voted for her. Arlen Specter voted for her.
The Republicans will make a fuss over Sotomayor simply to stir up their base and generate fundraising.
This speech ]will be a source of controversy:
Read the rest.
one person’s controversy is another’s source of unyielding pride.
let the haters do what they do – they hate. this will provide them with the low hanging fruit to show how bigoted they are towards latinos and women.
I think if they filibuster it will backfire big time among women in general and the and Latino/Latina citizens of this country.
Frankly I could care less about the GOP, it’s the idiot dems like Nelson I worry about.
i hear you
I read the whole speech and didn’t see anything at all wrong with it but then again I’m not Lou Dobbs-who I’ll bet will be using one of his favorite words today-‘ethnocentric’ as it usually drips from his mouth almost as an insult.(maybe he’ll surprise everyone given that his own wife is Latina-we’ll see).
Since all Americans are not white it truly is absurd to believe that somehow white Americans are the only valid or ‘real’ American experience or norm. The arrogance and stupidity of that belief always amazes me.
As an aside this belief is always rammed home to me every Memorial Day when the plethora of war movies are shown and all the war movies have no one other than white people in them-history whitewashed as it were.
Glenn Beck on twitter: “Does the nominee still have Diabetes? Could the Messiah heal her, or does she just not want to ask?”
I take it this is a fake?
not a fake
I knew that wasn’t fake..sounds exactly like him given other things he’s said about Obama/Messiah…and the Obama bobblehead dressed as Jesus he likes to drag out.
THANKYOU! for posting this link. I read it in the nyt when it was first published and thought it was exciting then. Now, I urge all to read the whole speech. It is worth the time.
Thanks Boo- once again, you have proved the worth of your presence!!!!!
When she was speaking and the camera pulled back and showed a white man, a Latino woman and a black man standing on that podium – I got kind of emotional. It made me think there is hope for this country.
I thought she did a fine job with her remarks.
It’s hard to find solid info on her judicial/political worldview among all the “American dream” schmaltz. Personally I couldn’t care less about her childhood or her “hyper-achievement”. I think all the ethnic-based hype is demeaning her abilities as a jurist. All I want to know is, will she be a worthy successor to Souter in upholding the Constitution and common sense.
She should be easily confirmed unless the Dems ramp up their parliamentary incompetence/cravenness. The Gops will be in an impossible place if they are forced to filibuster the old-fashioned way. The spectacle of holding up the Senate for days or weeks to bully the court’s first hispanic (and a female one at that) will stimulate their base at the same time it shrinks it further.
BooMan, you went to Princeton? You effete liberal elitist!
I am VERY VERY pleased with this pick.
In the little that I have read about the decision, it seems that Judge Sotomayer ruled in accordance with a strict reading of the law. Notably absent is any empathy for the firefighters. This what I would expect from a Republican. What are her views on warrantless wiretaps and torture? I suspect they match Obama’s. This is no liberal judge. I hope she will not become yet another shill for corporate interests. Is she at least pro-choice?