*** Official Wednesday Sotomayor confirmation hearing thread 1 ***

[MiniMe]

Wednesday Confirmation hearing for Supreme Court

Hearing starts at 9:30 am edt

cspan link: http://www.cspan.org/Supreme-Court-Sotomayor-Senate-Confirmation-Hearings.aspx

The good news is that there should only be 1 republican left in the first round, and several dems, the bad news is that there will probably be a 2nd round of questioning. The 2nd round will be 20 minute rounds for each Senator.

[OmmmSweetOmmm]

1. Thanks MiniMe! I believe SENATOR Franken will be the first one up this AM! What a country!

[cali]

3. no, Franken won't be first up. it goes by seniority. he'll be last.

[OmmmSweetOmmm]

5. I thought Leahy had said yesterday at the end of the hearing that Franken would be up first.

We'll see soon enough. OK, it's Cornyn. :puke:

[L. Coyote]

2. Why doesn't C-SPAN call her "Judge Sonia Sotomayor ..."

The banner should carry her title.

[MiniMe]

4. Leahy calls the hearing to order

[alsame]

6. "You certainly demonstrated your patience." I'll say! nt

[MiniMe]

7. Cornyn up first

I counted wrong, there will be 2 repubs in the first round.

[MiniMe]

8. Starts right off with the "wise Latina" quote right off

[devilgrrl]

9. Jesus! Is that all they have???

:crazy:

:wtf:

[chelsea0011]

14. Yes. They all feel bad that they can't call themselves wise white men

who would bring better perspectives to government than any black or Latina. They are all sooooooooo stupid.

[alsame]

10. .....

:banghead:

Asked and answered, several times.

[MiniMe]

12. Love it, she brings up the Alito imigrant Italians quote up

And Cornyn is still being an ass

[Hepburn]

43. Could Cornyn be ANYTHING but an ass? N/t

[Javaman]

76. Sadly he's my state senator and to answer your question: no, he can't. nt

[L. Coyote]

13. If law students are TOOOO STUUPID to understand a speech .... LOL!

Moran!

[BlooInBloo]

11. Goooood halftime adjustments by Team Sotomayor.

[L. Coyote]

15. WOW, this is a not-so-subtle lecture to the Republican Senators

Yes, society changes, but only because old racists die!! :rofl:

[MiniMe]

16. I really like the Judge so far

She is doing a great job

[abluelady]

17. It is Too Bad Schools are Out

What a wonderful education our youth could get watching these hearings. It truly would be an eye opener to see how stupid so many of our elected officials are. I will never understand how people don't see what they look like. Why do these people repeat over and over the same stupidity? I am embarrassed for them. But Judge Sotomayor does show what brains look like.

[MiniMe]

18. Apparently Cornyn doesn't understand what a judge's role is

The judge is educating him

[BlooInBloo]

22. "role"

[MiniMe]

26. Ugh, fixed. Thanks

Had a typo there and corrected it incorrectly :banghead:

[helderheid]

101. My kids have been listening with me :)

[rvablue]

102. Good for you helderheid. I remember watching hearings when I was in grade school and junior high!

This is a wonderful thing for them to witness for themselves.

They may not understand everything that's going on, but it plants the seeds of civic involvement for the future!

[Myrina]

19. I think the GOPs are rephrasing the same question in an attempt

... to cause Judge Sotomayor to have that 'melt down' that they assume is the only way to stop her Confirmation.

There can't be any other reason why they've wasted 2 days on 1 non-subject - except that its all they've got.

[MiniMe]

20. Yup. They are tearing apart her speeches and going phrase by phrase

"what did you mean here" or "what were you thinking when you wrote this" :banghead:

[KharmaTrain]

21. John Cornyn...Rushpublican Hack and...

Carry on...

[chelsea0011]

24. I read somwhere from someone who knows you that blah, blah

[MiniMe]

23. Cornyn uses the "L" word

Your "liberal" views

[alsame]

25. I like her comeback - liberal means equal opportunity for all.

[chelsea0011]

27. Just having to study for an exam doesn't qualify as facing hardships

[MiniMe]

28. Brings up Ricci again

the Judge patiently explains again. Says the Supreme Court set a new standard. Ugh, is that so hard to understand you ass?

Last sentence are my words, not hers.

Thankfully, Cornyn's time is up

[chelsea0011]

32. Is Ricci going to testify tomorrow?

[MiniMe]

38. Not sure what the witness schedule is, but he is scheduled

[Hepburn]

44. What the hell does his testimony count for?

Whine, whine, whine....I don't like the law she was bound to follow. She should have ignored precedent.

WTF gives with that bullshit? :shrug:

[MiniMe]

64. He is a republican witness

So I'm sure they will be going over how many ways he was wronged. :banghead:

[pdxmom]

29. Wasn't Cornyn just asking her why she didn't use empathy in forming

her opinions? They need to make up their minds whether empathy is a good thing or not.

[alsame]

33. Only empathy for conservative white males is good. Just ask

Pat Buchanan.

[MiniMe]

30. Cardin up

[Dawgs]

31. Oh shit!! Sessions just put on the record that the NRA and Southern Baptists are concerned.

:rofl:

[abluelady]

34. Remember, he has to Appease His Base, n/t

[Are_grits_groceries]

42. Those loons stay concerned 24/7.

They never let down their guard about anything. They are probably concerned that the sky is blue and Democratic.

[Hepburn]

45. LMBO....

....who the fuck cares! :rofl:

[MiniMe]

46. Well, Sessions himself is "troubled"

He said it again and again before every question yesterday. "I'm troubled"

[Iwillnevergiveup]

93. If Jefferson Beauregard is "troubled"

that's reason enough to end the hearings and confirm her TODAY!

[marmar]

58. Which makes me like her even more.......

nt

[MiniMe]

35. Cardin asking a good series of questions

[4lbs]

36. The coverage of the hearings so far by the networks has been lame.

Notice:

CNN and MSNBC air Repuke Senator grilling of the judge, but when a Democratic Senator comes on, they cut away for "analysis" by their studio talking heads.

What the heck is up with that?

For example, today, they showed the entire 30 minute session of Cornyn, but when the Democratic Senator from New Hampshire followed, CNN cut away to their roundtable discussion. MSNBC did the same for the first 10 minutes of that session.

If anyone affiliated with the networks is watching, how about you just "shut up and show it" ?

That means, show the ENTIRE hearing, cutting away only when the hearing is on break or done for the day.

[MiniMe]

37. Agreed, but the dem Senator is from Maryland

Wish it was on cspan 1 or 2. But the web feed from cspan has been good.

[4lbs]

39. Ah thanks. I would have known that.... if they had actually shown him when he came on.

The hearing was originally on C-SPAN, but they cut away when the House of Reps got under way.

Which was weird, since this is a Senatorial Comittee hearing, it should have been on C-SPAN 2, but nope.

Looks like the only way to view the hearing in it's entirety, raw and uncut, is via the web.

This is a shame, since I don't feel like being near a computer for the next 4 hours. I'd rather watch it on TV.

[4lbs]

56. It happened again! They showed the entire questioning session by Repuke Senator Coburn but

as soon as Democratic Senator Sheldon Whitehouse came on, CNN and MSNBC cut away.

I want to watch this thing on TV, not on the web.

[MiniMe]

61. It will be interesting to see what they do next, no more repubs

until the next round. LOL. I'm pretty sure that they will show Franken, just because Tweety likes him if for no other reason.

[4lbs]

67. Franken may be the only Democratic Senator CNN and MSNBC show all day! (n/t)

.

[BlooInBloo]

65. Yep. They favored republicans yesterday, too.

[rvablue]

103. Cable has really helped to kill FACTUAL news. I remember, before the wide proliferation of cable,

when the networks preempted the soaps and carried the hearings live and uninterrupted.

Those were the days.

[MiniMe]

40. Coburn up

Apologizes to Sotomayor for interruptions

[S_E_Fudd]

41. How about this Coburn as something people can understand...

You are a f*ckin moron!!!

How about that!

[BlooInBloo]

47. Hey Coburn! Ask her this: if someone cuts me off and I turn down a one-way, can I shoot the guy?

And none of that legal argle-bargle!

:rofl:

[OmmmSweetOmmm]

48. lol!

[MiniMe]

52. Only if they are an illegal alien

:rofl:

[S_E_Fudd]

49. How did a man that stupid get through medical school...?

eom

[glowing]

51. Isn't he a vet..

Did you catch where she was trying to "shoot him" LOL.

Now, hammering about foreign law.. Like laws in other countries would be so hard to think about adopting.. Isn't it the US that is always trying to export our laws or ideals?

These idiots are just bird calling.

[Renew Deal]

53. Your statement is out of bounds legally.

Not only should the court not use foreign law to come to a decision, but judges shouldn't be "adopting" foreign law. Only congress can do that.

[glowing]

68. But is it unusual to pull something from international law when looking at

different rulings.. such as maritime issues.. which can get fuzzy. As long as you can bring a decision back to the constitution.. why not look at international thinkings.

Oh, I guess he's a OB-Gyn.. I wouldn't let that man near my stuff.

[4lbs]

73. The same reason McCain, who finished near the bottom of his class, still got to fly and crash Navy

fighter jets.

[Renew Deal]

50. Coburn is asking some interesting questions

Sotomayor can't answer some of them the way the are asked. I think Coburn went a little overboard on gun questions, but it's interesting stuff.

I've noticed that Coburn is only interested in hot button issues.

[cal04]

54. Whitehouse, thank goodness

some sanity!
thank you MiniMe for the thread
:hi:

[Renew Deal]

55. I hope these guys ask some interesting questions.

The dems haven't been easy on her so far, which is good.

[MiniMe]

57. Glad you are here.

Getting back to the old days of DU when we blogged the hearings for the cube rate. :hi:

[Spazito]

59. Whitehouse is very impressive...

He was great yesterday and I am sure he will nail the issues again today and do it in a way that leaves the repub Senators looking like the assholes they are.

[4lbs]

60. Wish I could see it, but CNN and MSNBC aren't showing his questioning

I don't watch to watch the freaking thing online either.

I'm trying to record the entire multi-day hearing on DVD-R so I can watch it later.

Whenever a Repuke Senator is questioning her, they show the entire 30 minute session.

But when a Democratic Senator comes on, CNN and MSNBC break away for other things!

It sucks big time.

[Spazito]

63. I am streaming it from the CNN video site...

there aren't the pundit breakaways there. Here is the link:

http://www.cnn.com/video/flashLive/live.html?stream=stream2&iref=lb100

[4lbs]

66. Yeah, but I can't record it straight to DVD-R, so I can play back the hearings on any old DVD player

Thus, streaming it on the web is a no go.

[Spazito]

69. Ahhh, okay...

It is disgusting, imo, that the 'liberal' media seems to deliberately avoid covering the hearing when Democrats are the ones asking the questions. Whitehouse is doing a superb job, asking excellent, probing legal questions and it is a shame that so few can hear/see it.

[4lbs]

71. They probably expect few "fireworks" from a Democratic Senator.

The interesting thing is that, during the Clarence Thomas hearings, when CNN was still owned and properly run by Ted Turner, they showed the ENTIRE hearing, with all the interrogations from every Senator. They even split up the hearing into daytime and nighttime so that as many people could watch as much of the hearing as possible, without it being filtered like it is now.

Ted Turner needs to regain control of CNN and return it to it's glory days.

[Spazito]

74. Yes, CNN changed dramatically right after Turner sold it...

It used to be the 'go-to' channel for REAL breaking news and covered REAL news in more depth than the 6 o'clock news on the other channels could do. Now, it is a race to the bottom for ratings based on propagandized infotainment. Appalling, really appalling, imo.

[bridgit]

62. I think she's doing good, it's just embarrassing to watch repubicans...

trying to re-certify their divisive, racist ideology

[MiniMe]

70. 15 minute break. Should be Klobachar when we come back

I think then Specter, then Franken.

[4lbs]

72. She's a Democrat. I have little faith that CNN and MSNBC will actually show her on TV.

I'm beginning to think that Franken will be the ONLY Democratic Senator we see questioning her on TV (TV, not the web) in pretty much his entire 30 minutes.

[4lbs]

85. Wow! They're actually showing it! However, it's Noon Eastern time and most people are likely eatin

g lunch.

Oh, and there's Chris Matthews butting in on the questioning session. :mad:

[alsame]

75. CNN interviewing Cornyn now - he's still 'troubled'. LOL. nt

[Hepburn]

78. They are just interviewing the worst of the Repukes....

...gee, another example of the LIBRUL media...:eyes:

[L. Coyote]

77. Obviously, this is all about Liberal and Conservative politics

Sessions is trying to create some controversy where none exists. Pathetic.

[alsame]

79. She's 'clearly an activist'. What an ass. Now Pat Buchanan is

on to agree.

[4lbs]

88. An "activist" whose rulings the majority of the time were in line with Republican-appointed judges

on the 2nd Circuit Court.

So, if she's an "activist" so are those Repuke-owned judges that were on the Circuit Court panel with her.

[MiniMe]

92. They act like she is the only one making these decisions

She is part of a panel.

[alsame]

97. Exactly. They are just throwing out the buzzwords for their base. nt

[MiniMe]

80. Meeting is back now

[cal04]

81. two Senators then lunch

wish I was a fly on the wall in the closed door session
Your mother has a lot to say, LOL
The chairman's tempted

[MiniMe]

82. I think it would be funny, as long as the repubs couldn't ask questions

[cal04]

83. that's probably who she has a lot to say to

I'd love to see her question them

[Gregorian]

84. I like her. She has deep compassion. I didn't think I'd ever see this in the court system.

She's talking about how those who end up in court have already been shaped by what has happened to them in their life. Good educational system. Good family.

This is dead on how I feel about the condition in which we find ourselves in this country.

[BlooInBloo]

86. And msnbc cuts off a female Senator actually asking Sotomayor questions...

in favor of sideline commentary from old white male Senators.

EDIT: It makes sense, of course, since everybody knows that the only people worth listening to are white men.

[alsame]

87. CNN has it. nt

[Spazito]

89. Wow, I just loved Judge Sotomayor's response and her...

discussion of the role of the prosecution, I especially loved her reference to the old television show "Perry Mason" to make a wonderful point about the pursuit of justice.

She is more and more impressive every time she answers the questions put to her whether they be from Democrats or republicans, imo.

[Hepburn]

91. OK....an admission on my part:

I was hooked on Perry Mason as a kid. I NEVER missed any show. It became of such interest to me, as a kid in the 1950s, I started to read anything I could about the law. In HS in the 1960s, I would be truant so I could go to court and watch cases being tried. I dressed in a suit so it would look like I belonged there ~~ maybe in college or something and not merely some teen female HS student.

So, I have to credit Perry Mason for being one of the reasons I went to law school ~~ that show got me so hooked on the law, I pursued anything I could about anything legal. So, I truly LOVED it when Judge SS refered to the show!

:hi:

[Spazito]

95. Me too! Perry Mason was my absolute FAVORITE show...

and was the beginning of my fascination/respect/love for the study of the law! I found myself grinning from ear to ear when she said "Perry Mason" and then went on to tie, so eloquently, the words spoken in a specific episode to real-life cases and the true meaning of the law.

:hi:

[Hepburn]

96. Absolutely!

To me, a highlight of the hearing! :hi:

[Seedersandleechers]

90. CNN taking a break

Arggggggggg

[LSK]

94. wow! amazing!!! Klobuchar sounds like she actually READ HER CASES!!!!

Impressive!!!!

:sarcasm:

[Spazito]

98. Thanks, MiniMe, for starting these threads on the hearing!

It is MUCH appreciated!

[MiniMe]

100. You're welcome. I like blogging the hearings with other DUers

:hi:

[MiniMe]

99. Lunch break until 2pm, then Specter and Franken

Then they will go into a private hearing, and come back for the second round. See you at 2, we'll start a new thread then.