The Battle Over Sotomayor: Day Two

Day two of Sonia Sotomayor storyline and not only have lines been drawn but the battle is underway.  Some interesting takes below. ABC’s Rick Klein in this morning’s "Note" writes about how a fight was inevitable no matter who was put forward: "Supreme Court nominations have gotten to the point now where there’s too much at stake for there not to be a fight, or at least a reasonable facsimile of one, to feed the media beast. Too many organizations raise and spend too many dollars for anything less to happen." But President Obama’s choice of Sotomayor has scrambled the typical with racial and gender politics — all in a compelling personal package, with perhaps just enough not said in her judicial opinions to create the kind of caricature you’d need to derail a nomination. There has to be a partisan fight — but since we’re looking at real-world consequences, this one may matter far more for what it means for the next battle. Until or unless there’s a bombshell, look for this fight to center on the timeframe, with Republicans arguing that conformation can’t be squeezed in before the August break. That leaves the party more time to figure out what exactly it wants to do — and whether it’s best to just move on. "An all-out assault on Sotomayor by Republicans could alienate both Latino and women voters, deepening the GOP’s problems after consecutive electoral setbacks," The Washington Post’s Shailagh Murray and Michael D. Shear report. "But sidestepping a court battle could be deflating to the party’s base and hurt efforts to rally conservatives going forward."  ABC’s Jake Tapper, on his blog "Political Punch", breaks down some controversial remarks made by Sotomayor some years ago that are now front and center:  "In 2001, Judge Sonia Sotomayor delivered the Judge Mario G. Olmos Memorial Lecture at the University of California, Berkeley, School of Law, where she said ‘I would hope that a wise Latina woman with the richness of her experiences would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male who hasn’t lived that life.’" These comments are prompting a barrage of criticism from conservatives accusing her of being a "reverse racist." When asked about the remarks, White House press secretary Robert Gibbs said in response, "I think if you look at the context of the longer speech that she makes, I don’t — I think what she says is very much common sense in terms of different experiences that different people have."