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WASHINGTON – Judge Sonia Sotomayor on Tuesday countered Republican charges
that she would let her background dictate her rulings as Americans signaled a
favorable first impression of President Barack Obama's first Supreme Court
choice. A new Associated Press-GfK poll suggested that Americans have a more
positive view of her than they did of any of former President George W. Bush's
nominees to the high court. Half backed her confirmation.
As Sotomayor made her Senate debut with a series of private meetings,
Republicans said they would prefer holding hearings on her nomination in
September, which could cloud the speedy summertime confirmation Obama wants.
Sotomayor, who would be the high court's first Hispanic and its third woman,
told senators she would follow the law as a judge without letting her life
experiences inappropriately influence her decisions.
"Ultimately and completely, a judge has to follow the law no matter what their
upbringing has been," Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., the Judiciary Committee
chairman, quoted the nominee as saying in their closed-door session.
Republicans are questioning how she would apply the law, noting her remark in
2001 that she hoped her decisions as a "wise Latina" would be better than those
of a white male who hadn't had the same experiences. Obama has said she
misspoke; some Republicans have called the comment racist.
Leahy, hoping to shepherd a smooth and quick confirmation for Sotomayor, asked
her what she meant by her 2001 comment and said the judge told him: "Of course
one's life experience shapes who you are, but ... as a judge, you follow the
law."
Sen. Jeff Sessions of Alabama, the top Republican on the committee, said
Sotomayor used similar words with him as well, but he appeared to come away from
the meetings unconvinced about her approach and whether she would be an
"activist" who tried to set policy from the bench.
"We talked about the idea and the concept of personal feelings and ... how that
influences a decision, and how it should not," Sessions said, declining to
elaborate on the private discussion. Sessions, who is to meet Wednesday with
Leahy to discuss scheduling Sotomayor's confirmation proceedings, said he
thought hearings should wait until September — more than a month after Obama and
Senate Democrats had hoped to have Sotomayor confirmed.
The exchanges came as Sotomayor rushed from one hotly anticipated meeting to
another on Capitol Hill — 10 in all — visiting senators who will decide her
future. She meets 10 more Wednesday.
In public, the nominee and senators were all grins and polite exchanges.
Sotomayor chatted with Leahy about his grandchildren and smiled demurely as
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid praised her. Sessions called their talk "a
delight."
But behind closed doors, they touched on the weightiest matters of the law and
judging.
Democrats praise Sotomayor's life story as the New York-born daughter of Puerto
Rican parents who was reared in a housing project and went on to Princeton and
Yale before ascending to the highest legal echelons.
"We have the whole package here," said Reid, D-Nev. "America identifies with the
underdog, and you've been an underdog many times in your life, but always the
top dog."
In the new poll, half said she should be seated on the court while 22 percent
opposed her confirmation. About a third had a favorable view of Sotomayor while
18 percent viewed her unfavorably.
Questioned about affirmative action, 63 percent support it for women and fewer,
56 percent, favor affirmative action for racial or ethnic minorities. The poll
did not define affirmative action.
She was looked upon more positively than any of three Supreme Court nominees
Bush put forward over four months in 2005: Chief Justice John Roberts, Justice
Samuel Alito and Harriet Miers, who withdrew from consideration.
Roberts, the most popular of the three in polling at the time, was supported for
confirmation by 47 percent, and 25 percent had a favorable impression of him.
Sotomayor's 2001 speech has inspired sharp rhetoric from some Republicans. Radio
host Rush Limbaugh and former House Speaker New Gingrich have both branded
Sotomayor a racist, and Limbaugh said choosing her for the high court would be
like nominating former Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke.
Leahy called the criticism "among the most vicious attacks that have been
received by anybody" and said given the tone, it would be irresponsible to wait
until September for hearings that will give her a chance to respond.
Democrats hope to begin the sessions next month, which would meet Obama's goal
of having her confirmed before the Senate departs in early August for a
monthlong vacation.
But Reid said while Democrats want to hold hearings "as quickly as we can," they
would not seek to impose "arbitrary deadlines."
He sidestepped questions about her past decisions, telling reporters that he's
never read any of the hundreds she's written during her 17 years as a federal
judge. And, he added, "if I'm fortunate before we end this, I won't have to read
one of them."
Democrats hold 59 votes in the Senate — more than enough to win Sotomayor's
confirmation — but short of the 60 it would take to advance the nomination
should Republicans try to block it. Leading Republicans including Sessions have
said they don't see doing so, but they are facing calls from conservative
leaders to try to prolong the process by engaging in a long debate on the Senate
floor.
While GOP senators have steered clear of tough language, they have in their own
way questioned whether Sotomayor would bring a personal agenda to the bench.
"We need to hold our fire until we examine all of these opinions and writings,"
said Sen. Jon Kyl of Arizona, the No. 2 Republican. "The one clear thing that is
becoming an issue ... is the question of the basis for making decisions."
Leahy told reporters he asked the judge whether he could repeat publicly what
she told him privately during their meeting about how her personal experiences
would shape her rulings.
Leahy quoted Sotomayor as saying, "There's not one law for one race or another.
There's not one law for one color or another. There's not one law for rich, a
different one for poor. There's only one law."
The White House, choreographing Sotomayor's interactions with the Senate, called
the first meetings productive. |
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