Thread: Sen. Sessions' Opening Statement at Sotomayor Hearings

From time to time my office distributes press releases and written statements on state and national issues, debate in the Senate, and legislation that I am working on. For your convenience, I post these documents on my site for your review.


SOTOMAYOR OPENING STATEMENT
Monday, July 13, 2009


SESSIONS’ OPENING STATEMENT AT JUDGE SONIA SOTOMAYOR’S SUPREME COURT CONFIRMATION HEARING

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Jeff Sessions (R-AL), Ranking Member on the Senate Judiciary Committee, delivered his opening statement today at the confirmation hearing for Judge Sonia Sotomayor. The remarks, as prepared, follow:

Before I begin, I want to thank Chairman Leahy for his openness and willingness to work together on the procedures for this hearing.

I hope it will be viewed as the best hearing this Committee has ever held.

Judge Sotomayor, I join Chairman Leahy in welcoming you here today.

This hearing marks an important milestone in your distinguished legal career. I know your family is proud, and rightfully so. It is a pleasure to have them with us today.

I expect this hearing and resulting debate to be characterized by a respectful tone, a discussion of serious issues, and a thoughtful dialogue, and I have worked hard to achieve that from day one.

I have been an active litigator in federal courts for the majority of my professional life. I have tried cases in private practice, as a federal prosecutor with the Department of Justice, and as Attorney General of the State of Alabama.

The Constitution and our great heritage of law are things I care deeply about—they are the foundation of our liberty and prosperity.

This nomination hearing is critically important for two reasons.

First, Justices on the Supreme Court have great responsibility, hold enormous power, and have a lifetime appointment.

Just five members can declare the meaning of our Constitution, bending or changing its meaning from what the people intended.

Second, this hearing is important because I believe our legal system is at a dangerous crossroads.

Down one path is the traditional American legal system, so admired around the world, where judges impartially apply the law to the facts without regard to their own personal views.

This is the compassionate system because this is the fair system.

In the American legal system, courts do not make the law or set policy, because allowing unelected officials to make laws would strike at the heart of our democracy.

Here, judges take an oath to administer justice impartially, which reads:

“I . . . do solemnly swear that I will administer justice without respect to persons, and do equal right to the poor and to the rich, and that I will faithfully and impartially discharge and perform all the duties incumbent upon me . . . under the Constitution and laws of the United States. So help me God.â€

Hope the American people will follow these hearings closely?

We follow almost everything closely and what does it get us? A bunch of self-obsessed, power hungry, greedy, idiotic politicians voting for their pals and campaign donors.

He was right on all points. But, how many of these idiot politicians are going to vote against her? I think it was clear from the first airing of the "Latina woman" comment that this woman is a racist. And, given to defending her causes. If she was white she would have been tossed within a week. Since she is a "Latina woman" we have to eat this garbage?

We all need to be faxing and emailing our Congressmen on this issue. Republican or Democrat, or fence-sitter.

College Records:

Does the Supreme Court nominee have to provide a copy of her
undergraduate and law school records to the Senate?

Well said Senator Sessions! WE all need to heat up those fax machines and phone lines on this one!

I could care less what this Sotomayor says during her nomination hearings. Rather, I'm more inclined to review what she has been saying over the past 20 years. That's more indicitive of her beliefs and idology than what she will be prepared to say this week. Besides, as a "wise latina woman," I suspect she will say whatever she has to in order to get that nomination.

Doesn't the Senate Judiciary Committee have a duty to the American people( all Americans, an not just one specific group) to deny this woman's nomination if there is any doubt whatsoever in her ability to remain impartial, cast aside personal beliefs regarding race as it pertains to her judicial role, and most of all, her ability to follow the Constitution? After all, they have only one chance to get this right! There is no going back once confirmed!

Shouldn't we error on the side of the Constitution and the American people? In other words, any benfit of the doubt should be given to the American people, not Sotomayor! No one Justice is greater than the Constitution and the people that document was meant to govern.

Of course, very few of those serving on Senate Judiciary Committee will ask the questions that need to be asked, thus casting aside that duty to the American people. I certainly hope i'm wrong! I do commend Senator Jeff Sessions (R-AL), thus far, as he appears as if he may be willing to ask the tough questions this woman needs to be asked.

Other than that, I don't know....

NoBueno wrote:

I could care less what this Sotomayor says during her nomination hearings.

Yep, she has had plenty of time to receive coaching and forumulate canned responses to anticipated questions. The woman has probably been spending a lot of late nights study for these confirmation hearings - that would explain the bags under her eyes. Unfortunately I have to question exactly how many of her responses will come from the heart and how many will come from her memorization abilities.

I'm with you NoBueno, not interested in Sotomayor's canned, memorized, and coached responses to easily anticipated questions.

It's akin to being given the questions to the final exam and then patting yourself on the back when you score an A on the final...

Sotomayor knows exactly what they are going to ask and has had plenty of time to prepare on how to answer. I'm not implying she was given the questions before hand (political system is not that corrupted...yet).

However, even she knows the controversial nature of her past statements and realizes they will be the focus of questioning. Any questions not pertaining to her controversial statements will be softball questions for which she can wing it. It doesn't take an Ivy league law degree to figure that out!

Of course, most of the answers she gives will likely contradict what she has been saying over the past 20 years. Not because she wants them to, but because they have to in order for her to get confirmed.

Calls needed to Senate in opposition to Sotomayor nomination!!! Please join in!

http://www.alipac.us/ftopicp-923855.html#923855

I emailed everyone on ALIPAC's list this morning. And, told Lindsey Graham what I thought of his "Unless you have a meltdown" comment. What an idiot! All he did was tell me he's another prostitute for Obama in an attempt to assure himself a future in government.