Sen. Graham Announces Support For Sotomayor As Republicans Continue To Weigh Votes

Main Category: Women's Health / Gynecology
Also Included In: Litigation / Medical Malpractice
Article Date: 24 Jul 2009 - 4:00 PDT

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Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) on Wednesday said he intends to vote for Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor, making him the fifth Republican senator to endorse the nominee, USA Today reports. Meanwhile, Senate Minority Whip Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.) became the 10th Republican to say that he will vote against her confirmation. During Sotomayor's confirmation hearings last week, both Graham and Kyl "grilled her extensively," USA Today reports (Kiely/Brettschneider, USA Today, 7/23). According to Politico, Republicans privately estimate that Sotomayor could receive upward of 70 votes (Kady, Politico, 7/23). The Senate Judiciary Committee is scheduled to vote on the nomination Tuesday, followed by a full Senate vote late next week or the first week of August (Stanton, Roll Call, 7/22).

According to CQ Today, Graham's support could encourage other conservatives to back Sotomayor (Perine, CQ Today, 7/22). Graham said that Sotomayor "is definitely more liberal" than any Supreme Court nominee a Republican president would have chosen but that she also is "one of the most qualified" nominees in decades. He added, "I do believe that elections have consequences, and it's not like we hid from the American people during the campaign that the Supreme Court nomination was at stake. The American people spoke" (USA Today, 7/23). Graham also said that he believes that Sotomayor "follows precedent" and "would not be an activist judge" (CQ Today, 7/22). He continued, "On balance, I do believe that the court will not dramatically change in terms of ideology with her selection," adding, "On some issues, quite frankly, (she) may be more balanced in her approach" (Hirschfeld Davis, AP/Boston Globe, 7/22).

Kyl said, "Unfortunately, I have not been persuaded that Judge Sotomayor is absolutely committed to setting aside her biases and impartially deciding cases based upon the rule of law," adding, "And I cannot ignore her unwillingness to answer senators' questions straightforwardly" (Politico, 7/23).

Broadcast Coverage

NPR's "All Things Considered" on Wednesday reported on Graham's support of Sotomayor (Shapiro, "All Things Considered," NPR, 7/22).

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