There seem to be indications that the Republican party is ready to block Sotomayor's confirmation. I am not really sure how it is going to do this. Its party discipline is on the decline, and I can't imagine that Collins or Snowe will block her (especially considering that they confirmed her in 1998). Neither do the Republicans have the votes, nor do they have the motive to raise hell over her nomination. From initial reports she writes narrow decisions and is not an outspoken pro-choicer. Furthermore, a battle against the first Latino SC judge won't play politically.
Given all that, why nominate her now? Obama has excellent public approval and a lot of goodwill. If you believe, as I do, that Sotomayor will sail through the confirmation, why not choose someone more controversial now and save the safe bet for later? Is he saving capital for health care later this year?
Blackbird singing in the dead of night
12 years ago
1 comment:
Because the republicans are reeling and need to do something to stay relevant. They started planning their opposition to the nominee before they even knew who the nominee was. The republicans are in the minority everywhere right now, so their job is to oppose everything the majority does in the hopes of gaining traction on something and making sure that the other team doesn't "win" too much.
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