Hat Tip Newser
“I would hope that a wise Latina woman with the richness of her experiences would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male who hasn’t lived that life,” said Sonia Sotomayor 2002 , according to Senatus. But, a wise judge doesn’t say such inflammatory things either. It’s out of context also, and here is the entire speech, with some equivocation, but it’s still pretty bad.
And then there’s the sick Ricci vs DeStefano case: “Ricci is a fireman who happens to be dyslexic but still managed to come sixth out of 77 candidates who took an exam to become a lieutenant. But the city of New Haven, Connecticut - home of Yale, where Judge Sotomayor studied law - threw out the test because none of the 19 black firefighters who took it qualified for promotion.”
“After no one was promoted, Ricci and 17 other non-black firefighters, including one Hispanic, sued the city alleging racial discrimination. Sotomayor was one of seven judges (six were against) who wrote a one-page judgement throwing the test results out and denying Ricci his promotion.” Toby Harnden Telegraph, UK. Really sick. Watch for this being overturned by SCOTUS. She said she has a compelling life story. What about Frank Ricci?
And, also, one of the most transformational figures of the 20th century, who commanded the Supreme Court during desegregation, was a second generation Norwegian…a very white male: Chief Justice Earl Warren. Given that history, how was it even possible for Judge Sotomayor to make such a racist remark? He was alive while she was at Princeton (1972-76). So, it’s not as if he were some mythical figure. The one possibly racist thing that Warren did was to order Japanese-American citizens sequestered in camps after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. He regretted that decision, but it was based on national security issues, from his viewpoint as then Governor of California.
Another quizzical phenomenon, according to American Magazine, is that even though both Obama and Sotomayor were raised by single moms, they are reputed (?) to be both pro-abortion. They both claim their mothers as the most important person in their lives. However, it doesn’t seem to be that cut-and-dry, in her case. Her views on abortion are not entirely clear, even though “Operation Rescue” issued a plea for a filibuster today. She did write in favor of Bush’s Mexico City Policy, that withheld federal funding for abortions. She’s also Catholic, so, if confirmed, would make the 6th Catholic SCOTUS Justice. It’s really unclear what her real position on abortion is.
That being said, however, I do not think that abortion is the real issue here. A few days ago, Obama made is “dueling speech”, and in that speech, he delineated his concept of expanding Presidential powers, so that he, along with an appointed “team” might make “Indefinite Preventative Detention.” For those of you who know how to read through the fog, that means, he and his gang can arrest you and put you in jail without any charges, if they think you might be a “terrorist.”
Justice Souter, who is retiring, was one of the Justices strongly in favor of limiting Executive powers. So, the appointment of Sotomayor may be a “quid pro quo” for Obama’s female and Hispanic base, but he may also speculate that she would favor him on expanding Executive powers. There’s really nothing in her record to indicate that, as she has not served on the federal Executive branch.
Getting back to Earl Warren, Eisenhower appointed him as a political favor. However, when it came to desegregation, Eisenhower did not agree. Once Eisenhower said to him “These people are not all bad. All they are concerned about is to see that their sweet little girls are not required to sit alongside some overgrown Negro boy.” (Justice for All, Jim Newton p. 314) Warren hated him for saying that. The reason Warren took an interest in desegregation was because he was the loving father of 6 children, and didn’t want children to suffer.
Eisenhower tried to keep out of the fray, but finally ran out of options when the Arkansas governor tried to outflank him. Eisenhower, the general, couldn’t stand that. He ordered the federal troops in September 1957 to enforce desegregation in Little Rock.
One thing is certain: according to The N Y Times, she’s popular amongst Baseball players, because in 1995 she intervened in a strike in favor of the players. That’s her Ace in the hole.
Supreme Court Justices are life time appointments. Once confirmed and sworn in, they can not be removed.
