There wasn’t much news in the Supreme court this week. The long holiday weekend, and the corresponding recesses for lawmakers contributed to the dearth of developments. There were however a few minor happenings.
One of the few solid developments was that the time of Sotomayor’s confirmation hearings have been set. For weeks the day has been known: July 13th. This week it was announced that the hearings will start at 10 am. So on Monday at 10 am, we will start to learn if Sonia Sotomayor will sit on the bench of the Supreme Court.
In other “news” the American Bar Association has deemed that Sonia Sotomayor is well qualified to be a Supreme Court Justice.
Being that the nomination hearings are so close, here’s a what to watch for once they begin:
Very little if any opposition from Senate Democrats. Not many Democrats have been publicly critical of Mr. Obama’s choice. There might be some lay-up questions from Democrats, questions that are designed to allow Ms. Sotomayor to explain some of her more controversial positions on her own terms. The fireworks will definitely come from the Republicans.
There is bound to be some discussion on the nominee’s views on race. Controversy is sure to stem especially from her comments on wise Latina women. The recent Ricci case is also likely to pop up.
Speaking of the Ricci case, Republicans might want to talk about the fact that Ms. Sotomayor has been reversed by the Supreme Court . This line of questions would speak directly to Ms. Sotomayor’s qualifications as a jurist.
Many of Sotomayor’s supporters point to the fact that she has already endured the confirmation process and passed. While this is certainly true, her nomination and confirmation to the Federal Circuit may have been the result of a political compromise. A line of questioning based on this idea might come up.
Perhaps the most prevalent topic will be Sotomayor’s judicial philosophy. In the past, nominees have generally been reluctant to answer questions on how they might rule in specific situations. As a result of this dynamic, questioning is more philosophy based than issue based. Make no mistake, philosophical questions are quite important. When Senators ask these types of questions they will likely ask Sotomayor about her comments regarding judicial activism and legislating from the bench. Other philosophical questions likely to pop up would concern Sotomayor’s stated position on the role of empathy in judicial decisions.