When the Obama nomination for Supreme Court was announced, I was well aware that media would latch on to the story and explore every facet of the nominees’s work during their lifetime and to cover the story in top headlines for 3 or 4 days straight. I believe it is useful, because for those individuals like myself that know very little about the great legal minds of our day and age, I need to know what she had accomplished and what qualified her. Admittedly, I had hoped that Obama would not pick a judge per se, and instead would have picked a figure that of course understood law, but could diversify the make-up of the Court in a non-racial way. I thought it may be a refreshing perspective to have a Supreme Court Justice that had not served prior as a judge in a lower court, and it is perfectly feasible as it has been done for other appointments throughout history.
The fact that
Sotomayor is the Latina nominated for Supreme Court and one of 4 women to receive the honor of nomination is another step forward for race and gender issues in America today; it will most definitely provide diverse thought to the Court. Her nomination is not only a proud moment for Latina/0 people or the
Bronx, but also for America. Based on her extensive record, It is clear that she was
not solely nominated to make history, but because she was qualified and well-suited for the job.
As I observe and digest the information about Sotomayor, one thing that annoys me is the response of the
GOP. Ever since the election of President Obama, I have felt that the Republicans are persistent objectors for the sake of being persistent objectors. In an interesting
article, it seems that Republicans admit her Senate confirmation hearing will most likely go without issue. This does not seem to deter Republicans from scheming to block her nomination.
Why is that? It would seem if both sides recognize that she has the credentials and the capabilities to judge in the highest court of the land, then the Republicans should admit Obama made a prudent decision. History tells us that they will not. Since Obama took office, the Republicans have criticized everything that Obama has done.
It is getting old. The reason that the average American becomes so disillusioned with the government is because of manueveurs such as this – finding a molehill to turn into a mountain for the sake of political leverage.
I believe that discourse spurred along by true passion and a difference in beliefs is one things. However, in the case of Sotomayer, she seems qualified on paper, and early reports following the nomination said that she did not have a history of making statements or decisions on
“wedge issues”.
She is neither unqualified, not an apparent advocate for any one major issue as far as her work in the legal system is concerned. Quit manifesting division and start living in the opportunity of cooperation. This desire to not cooperate only creates more problems, not solutions.
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My take on it is that you’re right on. But we can attribute this MORE to the GOP “base” than the GOP itself.
Those ignorant, mal-informed, “I-bleed-red-thus-I’m-a-true-American” people out there. They’re the ones who are anti-Sotomayor… the GOP knows there’s no reason to vote against her save that Obama nominated her, but instead of saying that, instead of suggesting that maybe we actually can run this country bi-partisanly SOME-EFFIN-TIME… they’ll encourage the ignorant base to shout and scream.
It’s daggone shame
While I do agree that Republicans tend to make mountains out of molehills with regard to practically every issue Obama attempts to tackle, I wonder what Democrats would do if the situation were reversed? Probably the same exact thing. It’s politics. More specifically, it’s the American brand of politics.
It’s rather Utopian to suggest that either side would openly admit that the opposing party was correct (unless there was some self-serving purpose to such act).
With regard to politicians being motivated by political leverage, what else is new? Further, I think it is disappointing that Americans have to sift through the array of information to find the real merits of current-day politics. But it is also my opinion that it is our duty as citizens to stay informed about our government as possible regardless of the difficulty.
Very good blog post, and great blog in general!