Questioning the Judge

Okay, President Obama has nominated his first candidate for appointment to the Supreme Court. Judge Sonia Sotomayor of the U. S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. According to the requirements of the U. S. Constitution, she is more than adequately qualified and the president has every right to nominate her. Of course being that this is the new president’s first choice as a Supreme Court Justice, the Republicans will make it interesting to get her approved.

I have heard the talk of racial overtones by various comments made by Judge Sotomayor and I have seen her remarks made on camera about the Court of Appeals being the place where policy is made. Those two issues bother me a little as they seem to be overlooked by the mainstream media; however, these incidents are not what bothers me.

My problems with Judge Sotomayor stem from other factors. I look at the comments made during her introduction, her rulings and the rate of which her rulings have been overturned by the High court.

During her introduction by President Obama she made a statement about how she feels it is her responsibility to take into account how her ruling will affect those she rules for and against. In reality this is completely irrelevant to the legal decision-making process when determining how to rule on a case. The rulings should come based on how the law applies to the situation regardless of how that ruling affects those who are involved in the case.

Another problem stems from the wide range of area covered by her rulings that appear to indicate that her rulings tend to be based more on her beliefs and concerns rather than the interpretation of the law and whether those laws and prior rulings are constitutional. Personal feelings and beliefs must not be a part of the decision-making process when determining the application of law to a case.

Lastly, the unsettling fact that many of her controversial decisions have been overturned by the United States Supreme Court, the very institution she seeks appointment to. What is most disturbing is that in the most contentious rulings she did not make statements supporting her stand. Making a decision that affects the lives of many with little to no justification is a very unsettling habit.

Overall, it does seem that overall Judge Sotomayor is more of a moderate than Justice Souter, who she looks to replace. But it is important to remember that a republican president appointed Justice Souter, a republican president who either misjudged his appointee or was more concerned with his appointee’s qualifications rather than his political leanings. It seems that current justices are chosen more for their political stance.

Finally, the last real issue that actually bothers me is that once again we are getting a judge from the federal bench with an Ivy League pedigree. As I wrote in my “Quick Points” blog, President Obama had a chance to choose someone with a degree outside the Ivy League and from somewhere other than the federal bench. Instead, we have another job description/pedigree to go along with those already on the bench – well, except for Justice Stevens. Guess all those law students outside Harvard, Yale, and Columbia will have to dash their dreams of serving on the nations highest court.

All Rise (Again),
Bill