Notes on the Sotomayor HearingsHazing
In his opening remarks for the Senate Judiciary Committee's hearings into the confirmation of Judge Sonia Sotomayor to the US Supreme Court, Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) remarked to the Judge that "Unless you have a complete meltdown, you're going to get confirmed." As the hearings thus far have confirmed, those who took Graham's remark to mean that Graham and his fellow Republicans were going to in any way go easy on the nominee need to bone up on their Republican tradecraft. Having admitted that Sotomayor's confirmation will not serve the actual purpose of a hearing, Graham and the other Republican committee members have decided to stage instead a hazing, a trying experience that Sotomayor must get through in order to join the Washington power club. Either that, or they think they might be able to inspire the meltdown of which Graham spoke.
Said meltdown is more likely to be indulged in by the casual observer than by the poised and confident Judge Sotomayor. Those with the interest and ample free time to watch or listen to the actual hearings have thus far been treated to the following exchange ad nauseum:
Republican member: (Reference to “wise Latina” remark.)
Judge Sotomayor: (Offering of context for remark and quotation of similar remarks from Justices O'Connor and Alito)
(Repeat until hearings conclude.)
There have been multiple references to the ironies inherent in the fact that senior Republican Jeff Sessions (R-AL), who was rejected for Federal judgeship by the then-Republican controlled Judiciary Committee for racist remarks back in the '80's is now the ranking Republican on the same committee. Less attention has been paid to the ironies inherent in the paradox of democracy-- that by definition it has to include people, even entire state majorities of people, who are addled enough to think that a cracker ass bigot like Sessions was morally qualified to serve as a United States Senator.
