Unless you are living in a box somewhere, you no doubt know that the confirmation hearings for Sonia Sotomayor, the first Hispanic woman to be nominated to the Supreme Court are getting underway in the Senate. I was able to catch up a bit on the news while driving yesterday evening and I must say, the tip toe dance routine that the hearings appear to be is quite amusing. I am not much for watching Congress at work, but if I didn’t have to work and was able to find someplace to watch these hearings, I think it would be fun.

The top Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee, Patrick Leahy, opened the hearings with a warning to Republicans. From The Associated Press:

“Those who break barriers often face the added burden of overcoming prejudice,” Leahy said, recalling how the Supreme Court’s first black, Jew and Catholic all faced racial and religious bias during their confirmation hearings. “Let no one demean this extraordinary woman.”

I would tend to disagree that criticizing Sotomayor does not mean Republicans are prejudiced against her because of her sex, race, etc. I do believe Republicans have an obligation to question her about some of the remarks she has made and they have a right to ask her to clarify those remarks. For Democrats to say they should be careful is rather two-faced. I seem to recall more than one occasion where the Democrats went after conservative nominees with everything they had.

As for the Sotomayor hearings, Republicans are faced with wanting to question her on the statement she made in a speech, that a wise Latina woman would reach a better judgment in a case than would a white man and about her rulings on the 2nd Amendment. At the same time, they have to be careful to not alienate Hispanic groups. The top Republican on the committee summed it up this way.

Republicans fully acknowledge the sensitivity of their task. Sen. Jeff Sessions of Alabama, the committee’s top Republican, started the day by saying his side had to strike a balance between coming across as a “potted plant” and overreaching.

Personally, I do not believe wanting to question Sotomayor about her statements or rulings is a sign that Republicans are prejudiced against Hispanics or women. To imply it is, well that is quite a stretch.

A Republican in whom I have very little confidence made a statement that I wonder about. South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham summed it all up this way.

“The Hispanic element of this hearing is important, but I don’t want it to be lost – this is mostly about liberal and conservative politics.”

In the next breath, Graham acknowledged the political reality of the battle: His party, seeking to define itself out of the political wilderness, is bound to lose.

He predicted Sotomayor would be confirmed barring “a complete meltdown” – and said he thought one was unlikely. In fact, he signaled he’ll likely cast his vote for the judge, because, after all, “President Obama won the election, and I respect that.”

Yes, Barack Obama did win the election and he did it in a very convincing manner. That does not mean the Republicans or conservatives have to roll over and play dead.  I again bring to your memory the way Democrats opposed with furor, several of the nominees put forth by then President George W. Bush. They had no qualms about doing so and made no apologies for it.

There is every indication that Sonia Sotomayor would be a moderate justice and I believe she  deserves a fair hearing and judgment by the Senate and by the American people. Asking her very pointed questions about her statements and past rulings is one way of doing that. To do anything else would be an injustice to her and to the seat to which she aspires.

Tags: George W. Bush, Hispanic, Jeff Sessions, Latina, Lindsey Graham, Patrick Leahy, President Obama, Senate Judiciary Committee, Sonia Sotomayor, Supreme Court, United States Senate

This entry was posted on Tuesday, July 14th, 2009 at 6:25 am and is filed under News/Politics. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.