This is the liveblog for the confirmation hearings of Judge Sonia Sotomayor as Associate Justice of the Supreme Court. Judge Sotomayor is testifying today. The hearings began at 9:30 am EDT.
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A Few Rules:
No pictures! - not a one. Some Kossacks may still be working with 9600 baud modems and they will be old enough to put a boatload of hurt on you if you slow them down with pootie pictures.
Please only post transcriptions as replies to the second comment.
New diaries should be posted when the comments are around 200.
Link to the USS Enterprise (so you can do the right thing and rec that up)
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All other commentary should take place below them.
The following are the various shuttles for this liveblog series:
1. GreenSooner
2. DemocraticOz
3. cynic
4. TBD
If you are launching a shuttle, please put it up when the previous shuttle hits around two hundred posts.
(Yeah, I like the Star Trek series and NO, I am NOT a trekkie who dresses up like Worf)
Some Useful Links
MSNBC
CNN
C-Span
A brief summary of the story so far:
Sessions harped on the fact he was 'troubled' by her speeches, especially the comment about Sandra Day O'Connor. Sotomayor basically deflected it with: we just need to recognize we come in with personal prejudices. Since Sessions spent all his time harping on this one stupid thing, using Ricci as the prop, no light was shed on how she thinks.
Kohl lobbed her a softball on Ricci: Was it not true that 11 out of 22 judges had a hard time deciding? Her answer was interesting: Not because it was hard but because it was precedent as we saw it.
On Roe: After Casey which affirmed Roe principles, it is settled law. (Subtext: my opinion is irrelevant so I am not going to share it.)
On Cameras in the courtroom: I am OK with it, but we have to talk
On Affirmative action: 14th amendment gives equal protection, but there are times when the State has to assert a compelling interest to make things happen right.
Sequence of things to come:
11:30 - 12:00 - Hatch
12:00 - 12:30 - Feinstein
Update Ricci is back!