The Sunshine Empire

With the two week long wake of Michael Jackson, the endless Republicans sex scandals, and the wonder that is soon to be former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin, the political world seems to have forgotten that the confirmation hearings for Judge Sonia Sotomayor begin tomorrow.  For all the complaining from Republicans that the same time period used for the confirmation hears of Chief Justice John Roberts was suddenly a microscopic amount of time, they seem to have quieted down as well.  The only big counter arguments for Republicans seem to come down to the Ricci decision just handed down by SCOTUS which overruled a decision she took part in with a three judge panel, and her foolish “wise Latina” comments.   Through all of this one thing must be understood.  As much as I feel Judge Sotomayor is qualified, much like Alito and Roberts, there is no constitutional requirement that the President pick the most qualified person to the court.  But what of the objections?

The first is the Ricci decision.  Commandment number one of Republicans is that thou shall not engage in judicial activism.  In the Ricci case even though the Supreme Court was right to overturn, Sotomayor simply reaffirmed the lower court ruling.  When it comes to judicial activism Sotomayor acted as any Republican would prefer and the Supreme court was the one engaging in activism.  Now there is word that the firefighter at the center of the case is expected to testify during the confirmation hearings.  For all of the complaints from conservatives over the Anita Hill appearance during Clarence Thomas’s hearing, it seems that this is nothing more than an attempt at the same.  The other is the “wise latina” comment.  Now as much as I slightly disagree with her point it’s nothing different that Samual Alito’s comments about his immigrant background shaping his decisions.  So what we are left with is a Presidential appointment of a qualified judge that will not change the balance of power, so Republicans should act with caution.  They feel they have the first signs of momentum attacking the fact that the stimulus has not worked overnight, so the political danger of attacking a qualified Latina could counteract whatever they feel they have going for them.  That being said I don’t plan to watch the hearings since Joe Biden is no longer on the Judiciary committee, so the entertainment factor is gone.