Sens. Saxby Chambliss and Johnny Isakson announced Thursday they will vote against the confirmation of federal Judge Sonia Sotomayor to a seat on the U.S. Supreme Court. But there’s something weird about this.
At the same time they are planning to vote against Sotomayor’s confirmation, Georgia’s senators indicate they will vote for the confirmation of Beverly Martin, currently a U.S. District Court judge in Atlanta, to a seat on the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
“You just don’t hear any negative comments about the way she handles herself in the courtroom and her ability to make the right decisions,” Chambliss said.
There’s something going on here I just don’t understand. When you look at the resumes of the two judges, there’s almost no difference between Martin and Sotomayor. They are both women. They both have commendable academic backgrounds and achievement. They both can cite extensive experience as a federal judge. They are both considered highly qualified by the legal community. They were both nominated by President Barack Obama.
For the life of me, I just can’t put my finger on what reason would possibly motivate Chambliss and Isakson to vote for Martin but not Sotomayor. The two candidates have such similar qualifications and experience as to be virtually indistinguishable. What am I missing here? Why would two Republican senators arbitrarily vote for one woman for a higher court judgeship and reject the other one?
Oh, wait a minute. I’ve just been informed that Martin is a white woman of Anglo-Saxon heritage. Sotomayor is apparently a Hispanic of some sort. Who would ever have known?
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