Litigation

Sonia Sotomayor: Thoughts and Links

By Charlie Hall

The news in Washington today is President Obama’s nomination of Sonia Sotomayor, a New York-based federal appellate judge who would become the nation’s first Hispanic U.S. Supreme Court justice.

Before offering a few thoughts on today’s announcement ceremony (for C-Span video, click here), here are some valuable media links:

New York Times; Washington Post; USA Today; Wall Street Journal; Slate; Law.com.

Some quick blog links: scotusblog;  National Review Bench Memos; How Appealing; Blog of Legal Times; Volokh Conspiracy. A good summary of blog articles can be found at Beltway Blips.

Also, the Justice at Stake Supreme Court Watch resource page will give regular updates on Judge Sotomayor’s confirmation process and special-interest group activities for and against her nomination.

Today’s announcement: tremendous stress seemed to be placed on Sotomayor’s intellect and commitment to the rule of law. Without backing away from the notion of “empathy”–a value Obama cited for Supreme Court nominees that conservative opponents have criticized sharply–other qualities took center stage at today’s announcement.

Obama began his remarks by saying that every nominee needs a “rigorous intellect, a mastery of the law,” as well as a “recogntiion of the limits of the judicial role; a judge’s job is to interpret the law, not make the law.”

And Obama stressed Sotomayor’s “brilliant legal career,” citing her graduation from Yale Law School, and adding that she had more years on the bench, as well as more varied experience as both a trial judge and appellate judge, than any sitting Supreme Court justice had when they were nominated. As a final bonus, Obama noted that Sotomayor had been nominated by a Republican, George H.W. Bush, to her trial judgeship, and by a Democrat, Bill Clinton, to the appellate bench.

Only having established this context did  Obama expand on his comments about empathy, saying that a clear understanding how rulings affect real lives is a necessary addition to intellect and adherence to the law. He did not explicitly respond to conservative critics who said that “empathy” is a synomym for liberal activism or touchy-feely jurisprudence that could put social agendas above the law.

For her part, Sotomayor also stressed her commitment to the rule of law. saying, “I firmly believe in the rule of law as a foundation for all our basic rights. … The Founding Fathers laid down principles that have endured for two centuries. … It is a profound privilege to play a role in applying those principles to the challenges and circumstances we face today.”

Full post as published by The Gavel on May 26, 2009 (boomark / email).