Posted on 06/02/2009 7:11:53 AM PDT by JoeProBono
As the first Hispanic nominee to the U.S. Supreme Court, Sonia Sotomayor has been praised as a trailblazer in her field but race-based hiring practices will likely loom large at her confirmation hearings. With 17 years of experience as a federal judge and top grades from Princeton and Yale, Sotomayor's qualification to sit on the nation's highest court will not likely be an issue in the Senate hearings, which will likely occur in July. But she will face tough questioning about her 2008 decision as part of a three-judge panel to rule against a group of white firefighters in New Haven, Connecticut who say they were denied promotions because of their race. Sotomayor's decision could be overruled by the Supreme Court this month, shortly before she appears for review before the Senate Judiciary Committee, and conservative activists see an opportunity to mobilize opposition against a candidate who otherwise is expected to be confirmed, barring extraordinary circumstances.
"The stars have lined up to make this an incredibly important issue," said Wendy Long, chief counsel of the conservative Judicial Confirmation Network. The case has stirred up lingering resentments centered around race-based hiring practices designed to remedy decades of discrimination. Opinion polls show increasing support for so-called "affirmative action" programs even as many question the fairness of such programs. Sotomayor's 2001 comment that a Latina judge "would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male who hasn't lived that life" has also given ammunition to conservatives hoping to use race to derail her nomination.
(Excerpt) Read more at reuters.com ...
Everytime it is allowed to come up for a vote by the people, affirmative action is always defeated for a race neutral policy...
She’s not the first Hispanic candidate nor will she be the first Hispanic justice.
There, Reuters said it so it MUST be true!!! No matter if the GOP loses and she gets confirmed they'd better go down fighting and not play the "moderate" game or else they'll have no credibility going forward.
Yeah, but she’ll be the first New York Puerto Rican Latina Jimmy Durante lookalike.
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