I’m in rare agreement with John Hinderaker in finding Sonia Sotomayor’s explanation for her infamous “wise Latina” line less than plausible.
I want to state up front, unequivocally and without doubt, I do not believe that any ethnic, racial or gender group has an advantage in sound judging. I do believe that every person has an equal opportunity to be a good and wise judge regardless of their background or life experiences.
What — the words that I use, I used agreeing with the sentiment that Justice Sandra Day O’Connor was attempting to convey. I understood that sentiment to be what I just spoke about, which is that both men and women were equally capable of being wise and fair judges.
Of course she was disagreeing with Sandra Day O’Connor. Of course she was arguing that someone with her background would be more able to empathize with women, minorities, and the underprivileged than your average rich white boy who grew up to be a judge. Why deny the obvious, especially when it’s so obvious as to be banal?
What’s more fascinating to me than this controversy, though, is that so many bloggers and Twitterers are closely following the hearings as if they were other than a mere formality on the road to all-but-certain confirmation. As Senator Lindsey Graham put it to her yesterday, “Unless you have a complete meltdown, you’re going to get confirmed.”
Why pretend otherwise?
Photo: Reuters Pictures
