Sotomayor Observations

Quote of the Day: "Hey, has anybody asked Sotomayor which newspapers she reads?" - Jim Treacher

So, I haven't really been paying too much attention to the Sotoymajor hearings. I'm just not in the mood to watch Patrick Leahy hug her during their recesses or listen to Chuck Schumer tell me how "down-to-earth" she is. I mean, I enjoy our legal system, but let's face it, this is all fluff. She's gonna make it through. The deepest thought I've had about the whole show was when I tried to decide whether or not Russ Feingold was hot.
But then there was Lindsey Graham. (Don't worry, not gonna talk about how hot he is.) For a moment, I saw some hope. Graham turned into the stellar lawyer I hear he is and backed Sotomayor into corners using all sorts of obvious tricks and tactics. Sotomayor had a bit of a "deer in the headlights" look. It was good TV, but better yet, he was asking tough questions (and being a bit of a condescending jerk but whatev) and it was beautiful. He brought up Sotomayor's association with the Puerto Rican Legal Defense and Education Fund - a group with which she spent 12 years. According to Graham, the group has likened denying a woman the right to have an abortion (using tax-payer funds!) to slavery. Of course, Sotomayor said she had no idea this was the case.

If I recall correctly, a man named Samuel Alito took all sorts of crap from Senator Ted Kennedy about a group called Concerned Alumni of Princeton, a group which he was very loosely involved with (meaning I'm too lazy to look up and remember the details, I just remember it was a supposedly sexist/racist group but his having to do with it wasn't that big a deal). Kennedy was belligerent in his questioning and accusations. He was combative. Alito's wife cried. But in the end, I guess you could argue, Alito was allowed to pass, too.

As I said, I know Sotomayor will go through. I've heard so much media talk of "This is not the GOP's battle to pick" and I'm so tired of everyone looking at everything that way. I don't want to go off on a tangent about "right" and "wrong" but I'm sick of people thinking down party lines. What happened to standing up for what you believe in? What happened to holding someone accountable for their words and/or actions? How is that we're so willing to put a woman who is for all intents and purposes a racist, who spent twelve years heavily involved with a group that is at best wacky, on the highest court in the land because "this is not the GOP's battle to pick?" I don't give a crap! It's the American people's battle and I think if most people paid any attention or had the slightest idea of some of the things this woman has done or said, they wouldn't want those who represent them to vote for her, red state or blue state. While I appreciated Graham's tough questioning, it's almost as if he did and will let her off the hook. I know the thing's not over, but it's as predictable as a watching golf.

Because I can possibly make everything about Sarah Palin, I keep seeing this headline, "Palin drops a bombshell." When you click the links, or stay tuned for the breathlessly reported story, you get something like "Palin to campaign for Democrats!" First of all, O-M-G. Is that really a "bombshell?" Hell, I voted for Zell Miller (D, GA) in 2000. Did I just drop a bombshell on you people? Second of all, the "bombshell" term actually refers to the following quote made by Palin, herself, "I will go around the country on behalf of candidates who believe in the right things, regardless of their party label or affiliation." If there was ever any doubt in your mind that the media twists things to fit some sort of agenda... And as for the people who buy into the spin, back to what I said in my long Palin post a few weeks ago. We sit around and argue for change, for new ways of doing things, out with the old, in with the new. If Palin stumps for Conservative Democrats who hold your same values, is that a bad thing? Isn't the goal to get people in office who can offer up that change, not focus on little R's and D's by their names?

But back to the topic at hand: I will say this, if Judge Sotomayor is listening, we could totally bring out your eyes and take care of that little shine thing with a quick trip to the MAC counter (though I'm not sure that will get you anywhere with Senator Graham, could help with some of the others)! But let's face it, you're already gonna be the prettiest lady on the Supreme Court, so your call. Just sayin'.

(And re: last paragraph, I'm kidding, people!! Besides, she's much more of a Lancome type, I'm thinking.)