Republicans Not Satisfied With Sotomayor's 'Latina' Explanation

sotomayor latina

Sotomayor also says Roe v. Wade is ‘settled law,’ says she understands importance of gun rights; Judy Chu becomes first Chinese-American woman in Congress

Although Sonia Sotomayor will likely get through her Supreme Court confirmation process without too much trouble, it doesn’t mean Republicans are going to be happy with her explanation for that controversial "Latina" comment she made that’s caught on tape.

Obama’s high-court nominee told the Senate Judiciary Committee yesterday she didn’t pick her words properly, but she was trying to inspire women and Latinos to enter into law. In 2001, during a speech at Berkeley, she said: "I would hope that a wise Latina woman, with the richness of her experiences, would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male who hasn’t lived that life."

But Politico reports that Republicans plan to keep questioning her on her real feelings behind such a comment — and on the role of gender and ethnicity in the law, despite the fact Sotomayor stressed that her legal opinions are not tainted by such factors. Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-SC, pointed out that had a white male nominee made mention of how his skin color made him a better judge, his nomination would be dead in the water.

"Part of it goes to her honesty," said Sen. Jon Kyl, R-AZ. "What she said here would mislead the ordinary person who hadn’t read the speech … I just find it hard to chalk it all up to just a bad choice of words."

So far in the hearings, Sotomayor hasn’t given us much insight into her personal views on hot-button issues like abortion. But she did tell Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-CA, that she believed regulation of abortion must account for the woman’s health, and said she considers Roe v. Wade "settled law." USA Today notes that she said she did not consider a 2007 Supreme Court decision that upheld a ban on partial-birth abortion "a rejection of its prior precedents (on abortion rights). The health and welfare of a woman must be a compelling consideration." She also talked a bit about legal issues surrounding the War on Terror, eminent domain and gun rights.

If confirmed, Sotomayor would be the court’s first Hispanic judge. Democrat Judy Chu in California is making her own history today. Chu won the special election for the 32nd Congressional District seat to become the first Chinese American woman in the House of Representatives. She’s filling the spot vacated by Hilda Solis, who was picked to be Obama’s labor secretary, and beat her own Republican cousin in the race.