Judge Sonia Sotomayor for Supreme Court: ysabetwordsmith

Today I got this notice from MoveOn about President Obama's nominee for the Supreme Court. While it's nice to see a woman of color nominated, I am most impressed with one of her practical qualifications: she has served several different roles in the justice system.

Today, President Obama nominated Judge Sonia Sotomayor to be the next
U.S. Supreme Court justice. Of course, the Right is already fighting against
her confirmation--so we need to get the facts out about her impressive
qualifications and background.

Below is a list of 10 key things about Sonia Sotomayor that you might not
know. Can you check it out and send it to 10 friends today? If each of us
forwards the list, we can start to get the word out about Judge Sotomayor,
and help to ensure that she gets a speedy and fair confirmation process.

Ten Things To Know About Judge Sonia Sotomayor

1. Judge Sotomayor would bring more federal judicial experience to the
bench than any Supreme Court justice in 100 years. Over her three-decade
career, she has served in a wide variety of legal roles, including as a
prosecutor, litigator, and judge.

2. Judge Sotomayor is a trailblazer. She was the first Latina to serve on
the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit and was the youngest member
of the court when appointed to the District Court for the Southern District
of New York. If confirmed, she will be the first Hispanic to sit on the
U.S. Supreme Court.

3. While on the bench, Judge Sotomayor has consistently protected the
rights of working Americans, ruling in favor of health benefits and fair
wages for workers in several cases.

4. Judge Sotomayor has shown strong support for First Amendment rights,
including in cases of religious expression and the rights to assembly
and free speech.

5. Judge Sotomayor has a strong record on civil rights cases, ruling for
plaintiffs who had been discriminated against based on disability, sex
and race.

6. Judge Sotomayor embodies the American dream. Born to Puerto Rican
parents, she grew up in a South Bronx housing project and was raised from
age nine by a single mother, excelling in school and working her way to
graduate summa cum laude from Princeton University and to become an
editor of the Law Journal at Yale Law School.

7. In 1995, Judge Sotomayor "saved baseball" when she stopped the owners
from illegally changing their bargaining agreement with the players,
thereby ending the longest professional sports walk-out in history.

8. Judge Sotomayor ruled in favor of the environment in a case of
protecting aquatic life in the vicinity of power plants in 2007, a
decision that was overturned by the Roberts Supreme Court.

9. In 1992, Judge Sotomayor was confirmed by the Senate without
opposition after being appointed to the bench by George H.W. Bush.

10. Judge Sotomayor is a widely respected legal figure, having been
described as "...an outstanding colleague with a keen legal mind,"
"highly qualified for any position in which wisdom, intelligence, collegiality
and good character would be assets," and "a role model of aspiration,
discipline, commitment, intellectual prowess and integrity."

Judge Sotomayor is an historic, uniquely qualified nominee to the Supreme
Court. Let's get the word out and make sure we get a prompt, fair
confirmation on her nomination.

Thanks for all you do,

--Nita, Kat, Daniel, Ilyse and the rest of the team

Sources for each of the 10 things:

1. White House Statement, May 26, 2009.
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51451&id=16226-302037-W9kBZGx&t=11

2. White House Statement, May 26, 2009.
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51451&id=16226-302037-W9kBZGx&t=12

3. Cases: Archie v. Grand Cent. Partnership, 997 F. Supp. 504 (S.D.N.Y.
1998) and Marcella v. Capital Dist. Physicians' Health Plan, Inc., 293
F.3d 42 (2d Cir. 2002).

4. Cases: Flamer v. White Plains, 841 F. Supp. 1365 (S.D.N.Y. 1993), Ford
v. McGinnis, 352 F.3d 382 (2d Cir. 2003), and Campos v. Coughlin, 854 F.
Supp. 194 (S.D.N.Y. 1994).

5a. "Sotomayor's Notable Court Opinions and Articles," The New York Times,
May 26, 2009.
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51454&id=16226-302037-W9kBZGx&t=13

5b. Cases: Bartlett v. N.Y. State Board, 970 F. Supp. 1094 (S.D.N.Y.
1997), Greenbaum v. Svenska Hendelsbanken, 67 F.Supp.2d 228 (S.D.N.Y.
1999), Raniola v. Bratton, 243 F.3d 610 (2d Cir. 2001), and Gant v.
Wallingford Board of Education, 195 F.3d 134 (2d Cir. 1999).

6. "Sonia Sotomayor: 10 Things You Should Know," The Huffington Post,
May 26, 2009.
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51452&id=16226-302037-W9kBZGx&t=14

7. "How Sotomayor 'Saved' Baseball," Time, May 26, 2009.
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51455&id=16226-302037-W9kBZGx&t=15

8. "Sotomayor's resume, record on notable cases," CNN, May 26, 2009.
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51453&id=16226-302037-W9kBZGx&t=16

9. "Sotomayor's resume, record on notable cases," CNN, May 26, 2009.
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51453&id=16226-302037-W9kBZGx&t=17

10a. Judge Richard C. Wesley, a George W. Bush appointee to the Second
Circuit.
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51451&id=16226-302037-W9kBZGx&t=18

10b. "Sotomayor is Highly Qualified," The Wall Street Journal, May 9,
2009.
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51456&id=16226-302037-W9kBZGx&t=19

10c. Honorary Degree Citation, Pace University School of Law, 2003
Commencement.

fayanora

May 27 2009, 04:43:39 UTC 12 years ago

New comment

The Religious Right is truly neither.

browngirl

May 27 2009, 12:22:50 UTC 12 years ago

She does sound pretty nifty. And look at how they're attacking her! Accusing her of being a single mother when she has no children in order to raise the specter of nasty stereotypes. Sheesh.

Some people...

ysabetwordsmith

May 27 2009, 17:11:29 UTC 12 years ago

... have no manners and are a disgrace to their parents.

Have they come out and called her a whore yet? That's a traditional way of discrediting a woman.

I hope she gets in despite them.

Not bad....

mtrose2

May 28 2009, 04:27:02 UTC 12 years ago

A part of me is tempted to congratulate Obama on killing two birds with one stone (a woman AND a minority, very nice). However, she does seem to be a good choice for the post. Fairly centrist, very sensible, has shown a demonstrated willingness to hold up individuals' rights even in unpopular scenarios, has legal experience from a fair number of perspectives. Summa cum laude from Princeton is no joke either. And I like what I've heard of her personally, too. It takes a lot of strength to work yourself up the ladder like that, and to handle being in the minority without letting it make you angry or bitter towards the majority.