Posted by Ilya Somin:
*New York Times* Profile of Sotomayor:
http://volokh.com/archives/archive_2009_05_24-2009_05_30.shtml#1243454809
Today's New York Times has [1]a detailed front page article describing
Judge Sotomayor's life story. For the most part, the article is a good
account of what is indeed an inspiring tale of achievement in the face
of considerable disadvantage. Unfortunately, the Times ignores or
minimizes most of the negative aspects of Sotomayor's record. For
example, it manages to quote relatively innocuous passages from
[2]Sotomayor's 2001 speech, "A Latina Judge's Voice," without
mentioning it's most controversial passage: the statement that "I
would hope that a wise Latina woman with the richness of her
experiences would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a
white male who hasn�t lived that life." In fairness, that statement
was the focus of [3]an earlier NY Times article by legal reporter
Charles Savage, published prior to her appointment. Today's lengthy
article also ignores Sotomayor's dubious decisions in important
[4]property rights and [5]free speech cases.
However, the Times does reveal one especially damning fact about
Sotomayor that I was not previously aware of. It turns out that she is
a Yankees fan:
Melissa Murray, who worked for the judge from 2003-4 and is now a
law professor at the University of California, Berkeley, recalled
going to a Yankees game with Judge Sotomayor. The judge, a Yankees
fan, bought tickets in the bleachers, which Ms. Murray said the
judge preferred as a more �authentic experience,� and she appeared
to be known to several in the crowd.
Judge Sotomayor's fondness for the "authentic" bleacher seats at the
old Yankee Stadium leads me to wonder whether she approves of [6]the
massive public funding for the new Yankee Stadium, which has more
luxury boxes but fewer total seats than its predecessor.
References
1.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/27/us/politics/27websotomayor.html?hp=&pagewanted=all
2. http://volokh.com/posts/1242399411.shtml
3. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/15/us/15judge.html?_r=1
4. http://volokh.com/archives/archive_2009_05_24-2009_05_30.shtml#1243364120
5.
http://open.salon.com/blog/paul_levinson/2009/05/02/sotomayors_bad_1st_amendment_decision_should_disqualify_her
6. http://volokh.com/archives/archive_2006_08_13-2006_08_19.shtml#1155864420
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