Is Sotomayor a centrist?

[Nym90]

I realize you have no idea what I want, and as we said earlier upthread, shouldn't make such assumptions. Especially since I said I didn't agree with the decision; however I can see the logic. It could really go either way.

The bottom line is the City had an interest in avoiding lawsuits. It can certainly be argued that the individual rights of the employees outweighs the City's right to avoid lawsuits, but it is far from cut and dry.

[CARLHAYDEN]

I realize you have no idea what I want, and as we said earlier upthread, shouldn't make such assumptions.

The bottom line is the City had an interest in avoiding lawsuits. It can certainly be argued that the individual rights of the employees outweighs the City's right to avoid lawsuits, but it is far from cut and dry.

Anyone can be sued for anything.

Doesn't mean they will prevail.

Under your "reasoning" the way to stop the city from doing anything you con't like is to threaten to sue them.

[CARLHAYDEN]

Oh, and a quote from Sotomayor:

"“I willingly accept that we who judge must not deny the differences resulting from experience and heritage but attempt, as the Supreme Court suggests, continuously to judge when those opinions, sympathies, and prejudices are appropriate"

[Nym90]

I realize you have no idea what I want, and as we said earlier upthread, shouldn't make such assumptions.

The bottom line is the City had an interest in avoiding lawsuits. It can certainly be argued that the individual rights of the employees outweighs the City's right to avoid lawsuits, but it is far from cut and dry.

Anyone can be sued for anything.

Doesn't mean they will prevail.

Under your "reasoning" the way to stop the city from doing anything you con't like is to threaten to sue them.

It depends on how you interpret Title VII. I agree that law should be changed, or at least clarified.

[Nym90]

If a test has been validated as job related, it doesn't matter who passed and who failed.

Correct. Hence this quote from the article. "The company that made the New Haven Fire Department exam acknowledges that its test does not include any questions that measure a test-taker's ability to supervise or lead other firefighters in the line of duty. "

[??????????]

I wonder if she can even live up to the oath she swears to.

"I, [NAME], do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will administer justice without respect to persons, and do equal right to the poor and to the rich, and that I will faithfully and impartially discharge and perform all the duties incumbent upon me as [TITLE] under the Constitution and laws of the United States. So help me God.''

[CARLHAYDEN]

Look, Sotomayor knew the opinion in Ricci was contrary to established law.

That's why she deliberately tried to bury the case in a one paragraph dismissal.

She hoped that if the issues weren't addressed in the opinion, the Supreme Court would ifnore the appeal.

If she thought the opinion was valid, she would have issued a normal ruling stating and addressing the issues before the court.

[Joe Republic]

I wonder if she can even live up to the oath she swears to.

"I, [NAME], do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will administer justice without respect to persons, and do equal right to the poor and to the rich, and that I will faithfully and impartially discharge and perform all the duties incumbent upon me as [TITLE] under the Constitution and laws of the United States. So help me God.''

If she does, she'd be the first in a looooong time.

[CARLHAYDEN]

If a test has been validated as job related, it doesn't matter who passed and who failed.

Correct. Hence this quote from the article. "The company that made the New Haven Fire Department exam acknowledges that its test does not include any questions that measure a test-taker's ability to supervise or lead other firefighters in the line of duty. "

Apparently you have never been involved in the selection process.

First, is the objective portion where a knowledge of the subject matter is involved.

Then, among those with technical qualifications, those with supervisory skills are selected in an interview process.

This is necessary because supervisory skills are not easily measured by written tests.

So, merely passing the written tests was not result in an automatic promotion!

What does technical knowledge have to do with anything you might ask.

Well, if a "supervisor" instructs a firefighter to hose down a Class C of D fire with water, there can be some rather unpleasant consequences, to cite one example.

Also, its rather difficult to gain the respect of subordinates when you subject matter knowledge is sketchy at best.

[Frodo]

There is a ray of hope for pro-life activists if Sotomayor is confirmed to the bench:
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On Sotomayor, Some Abortion Rights Backers Show Unease

By CHARLIE SAVAGE
Published: May 27, 2009

WASHINGTON – In nearly 11 years as a federal appeals court judge, President Obama’s choice for the Supreme Court, Sonia Sotomayor, never directly ruled on whether the Constitution protects a woman’s right to an abortion. But when she wrote opinions that touched tangentially on abortion disputes, she often reached outcomes favorable to abortion opponents.

Now some liberal leaders are quietly expressing unease that Judge Sotomayor may not be a reliable vote to uphold Roe v. Wade, the landmark 1973 abortion rights decision. In a letter to supporters, Nancy Keenan, president of the National Abortion Rights Action League, urged them to pressure senators to demand that Judge Sotomayor reveal her views on privacy rights before any confirmation vote.

“Discussion about Roe v. Wade will—and must—be part of this nomination process,” Ms. Keenan wrote, adding. “As you know, choice hangs in the balance on the Supreme Court as the last two major choice-related cases were decided by a five-to-four margin.”

Because Judge Sotomayor was the choice of a president who supports abortion rights at a time when Democrats hold a substantial majority in the Senate, both sides in the debate have tended to assume she could be counted on to preserve the Roe decision. Immediately after Mr. Obama announced his selection on Tuesday, leaders of several other abortion-rights groups immediately spoke out in support of Judge Sotomayor, and several conservative groups opposed to abortion rights immediately attacked her, saying they were convinced that the president would not nominate someone who opposed abortion rights.

But in his briefing to reporters on Tuesday, the White House spokesman, Robert Gibbs, was asked whether Mr. Obama asked Judge Sotomayor about abortion or privacy rights. He replied that Mr. Obama “did not ask that specifically.”

Presidents have miscalculated in their assumptions about the views of Supreme Court nominees on abortion before. When President George H.W. Bush nominated David H. Souter in 1990 to fill the seat that Judge Sotomayor would now assume if confirmed, he was known as a “stealth nominee” with no paper trail on abortion.

[Lincoln Republican]

If Sotomayor were a white male anglo saxon with the same education, experience, record, and political leanings she has she would not be getting anywhere near the Supreme Court.

She is a liberal, is Hispanic, and is a woman.  That's why she got the nod.

Mind you, she does has a very impressive education resume.

[Nym90]

If Sotomayor were a white male anglo saxon with the same education, experience, record, and political leanings she has she would not be getting anywhere near the Supreme Court.

She is a liberal, is Hispanic, and is a woman.  That's why she got the nod.

Mind you, she does has a very impressive education resume.

Which explains why every white male anglo saxon member of the current Court had less education, experience, and record at time of nomination.

[CARLHAYDEN]

If Sotomayor were a white male anglo saxon with the same education, experience, record, and political leanings she has she would not be getting anywhere near the Supreme Court.

She is a liberal, is Hispanic, and is a woman.  That's why she got the nod.

Mind you, she does has a very impressive education resume.

Which explains why every white male anglo saxon member of the current Court had less education, experience, and record at time of nomination.

Well, there is one bright spot in the selection of the loud-mouthed, hate filled left-wing bigot.  Obama could have selected Judge Wood of SG Kagan, who share the left-wing views but are less prone to stupid statements like consulting her prejudices before making a decision (I quoted Sotomayor) or playing petty games when trying to bury a decision (I cited Ricci).

I understand that there is a plan to fund cameras to trail Sotomayor when she travels around speechifying, as it is anticipated she will make some more outrageous statements, which can be laid at Obama's doorstep.

[Ogre Mage]

President Obama should be commended for nominating a highly qualified Latina judge for the Supreme Court.  Which is more than Bush could say about Harriet Miers. 

[CARLHAYDEN]

A very interesting development is what I call, 'the dog that didn't bark in the night,' courtesy of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.

Where is the discussion of law review articles?

These can be very revealing as they indicate the orientation of the writer, as opposed to court decisions where the facts and law may somewhat inhibit the wilder fantasies of the jurist.