Sotomayor Confirmation Seems a Lock, as 3 GOP Senators Say They'll Vote for Her
With news today that three Republican senators plan to vote to put Sonia Sotomayor on the U.S. Supreme Court bench, her confirmation appears virtually certain–and likely to occur with a landslide vote.
The three GOP members who plan to cast their ballots for the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals jurist are Sens. Mel Martinez of Florida, Richard Lugar of Indiana and Olympia Snowe of Maine, reports McClatchy Newspapers.
“Sotomayor won virtual assurance yesterday of becoming the nation’s first Hispanic justice, when Republicans announced at the end of her testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee that they do not intend to block a vote on her nomination,” says a Washington Post article on the planned pro-Sotomayor vote by the three Republican senators.
Among those who continue to oppose Sotomayor are Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the Senate’s Republican leader. He has described her as demonstrating “an alarming lack of respect for the notion of equal justice” and “an insufficient willingness to abide by the judicial oath,” the McClatchy article notes
Democrats–who hold a decisive 60-seat majority in the senate–are expected to vote overwhelmingly to confirm President Barack Obama’s nominee. So the defection of the three Republicans virtually assures her not only of a seat on the supreme court but a significant margin of victory, it continues.
Four days of confirmation hearings concerning Sotomayor’s nomination wrapped up yesterday. The senate’s confirmation vote is expected to take place in early August.
Additional coverage:
Blog of Legal Times: “After Four-Day Hearing, Sotomayor Picks up Support”
