New Justice A-Coming

Okay, so maybe I overreacted in my previous post.

Don't get me wrong. I still think she is deplorably affected by this postmodern, wishy-washy, multiculti nonsense about race relations and minority rights. I am not at all convinced she understands how evil affirmative action is.

But she is clearly not a nutcase. She gave impressive and intelligent answers to all questions asked of her, even the ones from the committee's new joker (Al Franken) who asked her about Perry mason. I hope Mr Franken has since been informed that the legendary lawyer is a fictional character.

Sotomayor will be confirmed some time before the August recess, with a comfortable margin. Democrats are united behind her and many Republicans are likely to support her too. The Republican defection is not surprising. For political reasons, the GOP cannot afford to waste ammunition on Sotomayor. She is a low-value target because she is simply replacing the ultraliberal and eccentric David Souter. Her appointment to the court will not change the political ideology of the court too much. If anything, she is likely to bring about a more balanced chemistry in the whole court. More importantly, Republicans just do not want to shoot down a Hispanic female judge in an era when they are working hard to make inroads in the Hispanic community.

Here's a balanced assessment of the situation by Marcia Coyle (National Law Journal) and Tom Goldstein (Scotusblog.com) on The News Hour with Jim Lehrer on PBS.