‘Another Step Closer to a More Perfect Union’: President Obama Says He’s ‘Very Happy’ with Senate Vote to Confirm Sotomayor
EmailDescribing himself as ‘pleased and deeply gratified’ with the news that the US Senate voted to confirm Judge Sonia Sotomayor as the 111th Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, President Obama Thursday afternoon said that the Bronx-born judge exemplifies the nation’s tradition of justice, equality and opportunity, what he called “the very ideals that have made Judge Sotomayor’s own uniquely American journey possible” and ones “the Senate has upheld today in breaking yet another barrier and moving us yet another step closer to a more perfect union.”
Asked by a reporter if he was happy with the final vote tally of 68-31 in favor of the confirmation of the first Latina to be nominated to sit on the High Court, and only the third woman, President Obama declared himself “very happy.”
Standing in the Diplomatic Reception Room in the East Wing of the White House, the president said that in the past 10 weeks since he announced Sotomayor as his nominee, Senators have assessed Sotomayor’s fitness; scrutinized her record as a prosecutor, litigator, and judge; and “gauged her respect for the proper role of each branch of our government, her commitment to faithfully apply the law to the facts at hand, and her determination to protect our core constitutional rights and freedoms.”
And with today’s vote, the Senate declared Sotomayor to have “the intellect, the temperament, the history, the integrity, and the independence of mind to ably serve on our nation’s highest court,” the president said.
Mr. Obama said that “Equal Justice Under the Law” is not merely a phrase inscribed above the door of the Supreme Court. Rather, it’s “a description of what happens every single day inside the courtroom…a promise that, whether you’re a mighty corporation or an ordinary American, you will receive a full and fair hearing. And in the end, the outcome of your case will be determined by nothing more or less than the strength of your argument and the dictates of the law.”
“This is a wonderful day for Judge Sotomayor and her family, but I also think it’s a wonderful day for America,” he said.
-jpt
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Great Day!
Posted by: Ryan C | August 6, 2009, 4:24 pm 4:24 pm
Obama wants you to snitch on your neighbors if they disagree with him.
Maybe that’s his idea of a perfect union.
He’s got to be the most polarizing president ever.
Posted by: max | August 6, 2009, 4:41 pm 4:41 pm
Let’s see the names of all 31 republicans that didn’t vote for her. They put her through the wringer and went as negative as they could (surprised?). But the party of negative no didn’t prove anything except they are a bunch of cynical crybabies!
Posted by: gee | August 6, 2009, 4:57 pm 4:57 pm
Looks like the remedial reading she took at Princeton finally paid off!
Posted by: Stu Pidd | August 6, 2009, 4:57 pm 4:57 pm
“Let’s see the names of all 31 republicans that didn’t vote for her. They put her through the wringer and went as negative as they could (surprised?). But the party of negative no didn’t prove anything except they are a bunch of cynical crybabies!”
Ouch, my eyes, the hypocracy.
Posted by: KR | August 6, 2009, 4:58 pm 4:58 pm
Does anyone know what Obama defines as a more perfect union?
Posted by: LEE | August 6, 2009, 5:02 pm 5:02 pm
“Does anyone know what Obama defines as a more perfect union?”
Ask Gibbs.
Posted by: Party Hack | August 6, 2009, 5:04 pm 5:04 pm
Max, no, I think Bush was the most polarizing president ever
Posted by: Medellin | August 6, 2009, 5:13 pm 5:13 pm
is it weird that whites, and even most blacks, have moved passed the racism that you must vote solely based on race and you “sell out” if you don’t back a person of your own ethnicity/race? Yet from the votes I saw the only consistent voting pattern-besides party line voting- was anybody with a Hispanic surname voting “yes”. But when a white person is nominated you get many “yes” votes from whites and many “no” votes from white. Likewise with Clarence Thomas you had black voting no. Weird.
Posted by: Ed | August 6, 2009, 5:29 pm 5:29 pm
“Max, no, I think Bush was the most polarizing president ever”
____________________________________
30% approval rating when he left office – pretty abysmal. He succeeded in uniting people against him.
Posted by: danita | August 6, 2009, 6:24 pm 6:24 pm
“another step closer to a perfect union” sounds kind of scary when you put it that way. Who’s defination of perfect is he talking about anyway? Mine or his? btw, obama’s approval rating is 50% and falling fast.
Posted by: notanobamafan | August 6, 2009, 7:39 pm 7:39 pm
The problem some people have with Sotomayor are her opinions outside of the courtroom.
Inside the courtroom, she has a sterling record of professionalism.
But Republicans think she talks too much about being Latina during her free time.
I thought Republicans WANTED a judge who wouldn’t bring her personal opinions into the courtroom…. but then they turn around and attack her because her opinions outside of the courtroom… because they can find no evidence of bias in the thousands of rulings she has had over her career.
Bizarre!
Posted by: Barfly | August 6, 2009, 7:53 pm 7:53 pm
notanobamafan, I suppose some people might think “a more perfect union” would mean fewer minorities and women on the supreme court.
I guess it is a difference of opinion.
It shouldn’t scare you. But, really, how can we stop you from being scared of Justice Sotomayor?
The best advice I can give you start with small steps… like making eye contact with women or smiling at a Latino. Then, move on to bigger stuff, like trying some Latin-influenced food, listen to a CD, maybe watch a movie about Mexico, etc. Then, try doing something nice for a Latino. Start with a second, or better yet, third generation…. and then just work your way up to it. Someday, you will be able to walk down the street with confidence.
Eventually, you might reach the point where the idea of a Latina on the Supreme Court will not scare you. You may never love my definition of a more perfect union… but you can learn to live with it. You have to. It’s what America is all about.
Good luck!
Posted by: barfly | August 6, 2009, 7:59 pm 7:59 pm
Max…
I think your were kind of polarized before the election.
The GOP is a radical party. It has been for years. Radicals are always polarized. It’s the nature of the thing.
Why do you think Republicans excoriate their “moderates” by calling them RINOs? This was the charge leveled against John McCain… and the reason he picked Palin.
This is why so many Republicans voted against a moderate like Sotomayor.
Posted by: barfly | August 6, 2009, 8:09 pm 8:09 pm
I think it’s great we have another woman on the Supreme Court. The diversity will be a good thing.
Posted by: Jenny | August 6, 2009, 9:51 pm 9:51 pm
Obamacrat for Palin, you have misquoted the President. He never said anyone was stupid, he said the police in Gates’ case had ‘acted stupidly’.
When people misquote I can only assume one of two things, they want to mislead or they aren’t careful when they read.
On the subject of the economy, I hope you know that the economic downturn is world-wide, that every country is struggling with high unemployment. That is the good thing about reading world news, it is easier to see the big picture.
Posted by: Lydia | August 7, 2009, 12:37 am 12:37 am
The best advice I can give you start with small steps… like making eye contact with women or smiling at a Latino. Then, move on to bigger stuff, like trying some Latin-influenced food, listen to a CD, maybe watch a movie about Mexico, etc. Then, try doing something nice for a Latino. Start with a second, or better yet, third generation…. and then just work your way up to it. Someday, you will be able to walk down the street with confidence.
Eventually, you might reach the point where the idea of a Latina on the Supreme Court will not scare you. You may never love my definition of a more perfect union… but you can learn to live with it. You have to. It’s what America is all about.
Good luck!
Posted by: barfly | Aug 6, 2009 7:59:57 PM
****
omg!! barfly, you rock. LMAO:)
Posted by: Alyson | August 7, 2009, 1:19 am 1:19 am
La Raza rulz! Viva Sotomayor!
Posted by: Pico | August 7, 2009, 10:38 am 10:38 am
To Obamacrat/palin Obama is not a racist. He reacted to the arrest of his friend. One cannot be so judgemental until you walk in the shoes of a black man who is taught from childhood to fear the police and in some cases good reason. Both Mr. Gates and Mr. Crowley reacted incorrectly. They both have big egos and two egos collided. Mr. Gates was in his own home and proved it but when he asked for officer Crowley’s badge and no.that is where the feathers flew. Both should know better and I think now they realize this. If they are willing to work together…why can’t we?
Posted by: talmag | August 7, 2009, 10:54 am 10:54 am
Bill of Rights: “We the people, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility…”
As a wise latina woman, I am happy that Sotomayor is in.
Glad she got put “through the ringer”, though. If our elected officials had just approved her, without question, without reading all the documents, would that have been okay for everyone? Not me. Glad they did it so there can be no “hey, she didn’t tell us about this” or “wait a minute, we didn’t know about that” kind of stuff later on. The process to approve a Supreme Court Justice is a good one of checks and balnces.
Posted by: Rican | August 7, 2009, 1:09 pm 1:09 pm
Max, no, I think Bush was the most polarizing president ever”
____________________________________
30% approval rating when he left office – pretty abysmal. He succeeded in uniting people against him.Posted by: danita | Aug 6, 2009 6:24:32 PM=====================================
Seriously? Why was that do you think considering he was tied to Congress, which in fact has been controlled by the Democrats since late 2006, which as of today has been 2.5 yrs.
You know, you guys can keep blaming Bush, but the fact of the matter is that Congress, not the President, is the one passing these BS bills. Like the first stimulus package-wasn;t that bill designed by Pelosi and her clan? Hmmmmmmmmmmmm
2.5 yrs Pelosi, Reid, Dodd, Frank, etc..etc..etc.. have controlled Congress and it has not gotten better but rather worse, with each passing day!
Posted by: KMDay | August 7, 2009, 1:23 pm 1:23 pm
I must admit that Obama spoke tactlessly when refering to the white officer who arrested Gates. For goodness sake he is the commander in chief for the poor white officer. Even if the officer errered in excecuting his duty, the public news briefing was not the platform to reprimand the officer’s action. He should have simply said I cant comment, until I have more detail. There is no denying that statistically a higher percentage of burglaries are commited by blacks, hence suspicions are bound. So the nutty professor should have been calmer. I am black, and I know that more crime in my neighbourhood is committed by young to middle aged blacks. So when I am stopped by police, I am polite and provide details required by the officers, be they black or white. What does one gain by being difficult, you actually inconvinience yourself.Crime statistics determine which profile is more prone to be stopped. Its a fact.
Posted by: IDTSMITH | August 7, 2009, 1:30 pm 1:30 pm
“Seriously? Why was that do you think considering he was tied to Congress, which in fact has been controlled by the Democrats since late 2006, which as of today has been 2.5 yrs.”
What does Bush’s approval rating have to do with Congress?
Also I know the right wing is not too bright but while the election in which the Democrats took over was in 2006, the new session of Congress does not start until Jan the next year.
Posted by: Ryan C | August 7, 2009, 4:40 pm 4:40 pm
Great, what an outstanding selection for the Supreme Court…a morbidly obese, divorced, physically challenged person raised on welfare in the Bronx…
She can’t effectively handle her own life and now she will be deciding the fate of others…
I have an idea, how about appointing our best and brightest…this court will soon turn into the supreme joke…
Posted by: tmw | August 8, 2009, 5:49 pm 5:49 pm