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February 13, 2012
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David G. Savage: Why activists may not be in a hurry to have High Court rule on alternative marriage
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Menachem Wecker: Though Controversial, LL.M.'s Can Lead to Specialized Legal Jobs
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Julie Deardorff : Researchers say antioxidants may not be that effective and could do more harm than good
Mark Clayton: How did Anonymous hackers eavesdrop on FBI and Scotland Yard?
February 3, 2012
Edmund Sanders : Israeli official says Iran is creating missile that could reach East Coast of US
Victoria Kim: Immigrant-smuggling ring used black drivers to avoid racial profiling
February 2, 2012
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Reza Kahlili : Ex-CIA spy in Iran's Revolutionary Guard: What Obama doesn't grasp about striking deals with Tehran
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February 1, 2012
Brian Bennett: US officials see increasing threat of domestic attack from Iran
Emily Brandon: How to Take Advantage of New 401(k) Fee Disclosures
January 31, 2012
January 30, 2012
Paul Richter and Ramin Mostaghim: Misreading Teheran's limits -- deadly and economically devastating as they may be -- is a risk administration, Europe seem willing to take
Suzanne Bohan: Warning: Nap-deprived tots missing more than sleep, study finds
Meg Handley: Banks Revamping Rewards Programs to Woo Customers
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Yochonon Donn: In liberal New York City, fervently-Orthodox Jews may soon be getting a district to call their own
Jeannine Stein: An inflated ego and thinking you're 'all that' doesn't just make others sick of you, it can make you ill
Katy Hopkins: New budget rules may affect how much money you get for college
January 26, 2012
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Jeannine Stein: Mental illness struck one in five U.S. adults in 2010: Report
January 25, 2012
Richard Simon: House passes two bills endorsing the use of religious symbols at military memorials
Fred Weir: Putin: Multiethnic Russia cannot survive as a US-style 'melting pot'; must find its own way
Susan Johnston: 5 Sneaky Coupon Strategies Consumers Should Watch Out For
January 24, 2012
Carol Clark: The price of your soul: How your brain decides whether to 'sell out'
Caroline B. Glick: America lost most in 'Arab Spring'. Sadly, many voters still don't grasp the extent
Warren Richey: Drug criminal scores win in GPS ruling from conservative-leaning high court
Erika Bolstad: Black conservatives gather to talk about gaining strength
January 23, 2012
Melissa Dribben: Jewish voters to play a key role in Florida's Republican primary
Jordan Rau: In quest to grow, Catholic hospital system will announce this morning its break from church
Ali Safi: U.S. envoy gives Taliban terms for peace talks
January 19, 2012
January 18, 2012
January 17, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney Jr.: No-kidding red lines: U.S. response to an Iranian nuke may be bluster, but Israel's won't be
David G. Savage: They sued their principals after slandering them online --- now the cases are headed to the Supreme Court
David Francis: Where to Invest in 2012: With stocks expected to rebound, opportunity abounds for investors
January 13, 2012
Ben Lynfield: Israeli lawmakers move to annex Jewish Judea, one museum at a time
Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz: Thriving through touch: Gentle massage helps older people with low mobility improve in mind and body
January 12, 2012
Warren Richey: Landmark Supreme Court ruling a 'resounding win' for religious groups
Warren Richey: Supreme Court says no to new rule on eyewitness testimony
John Fauber : Statins found to raise diabetes risk in postmenopausal women
Katy Hopkins : Consider This Before You Pay for an Online Degree
The Kosher Gourmet by Joseph Erdos: This mushroom and barley soup has an intense -- almost nutty -- flavor that mixes robust with Middle East. It has creaminess without cream
January 11, 2012
Shari Roan: Millions of atrial fibrillation sufferers at risk for devastating, but preventable, stroke
Tom Hussain: Pakistan -- recipient of more than $21 billion in civilian and military aid -- speeds pursuit of Iranian pipeline, defying US
David G. Savage: High court signals it won't be loosening TV's 'indecency' rules
Stephen Ceasar: Oklahoma's Islamic law amendment can't go into effect, court rules
January 10, 2012
Reza Kahlili: From an ex-CIA spy: US must exploit new split in Iran's Revolutionary Guard
Karen Kaplan: Study: Nicotine replacement products ineffective when used in real-life situations
January 9, 2012
Michael Doyle: Put through legal hell over dream home, couple fought back hard --- all the way to Supreme Court
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Jewish World Review
May 27, 2009
/ 4 Sivan 5769
Empathy and impartiality
By
Debra J. Saunders
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http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
How will the GOP react to President Obama's pick to replace
Justice David Souter on the U.S. Supreme Court? Who cares? It doesn't matter
what Senate Republicans think of Sonia Sotomayor. The GOP does not have the
votes to stop her. Only Democrats or Sotomayor herself can torpedo the
admission of Sotomayor to the Big Bench.
The fascination with the GOP's response to Sotomayor illustrates
that Democrats are desperate to make Republican criticism, not Sotomayor,
the issue. It's true: Republicans can raise questions about Obama's nominee,
but only Democratic answers will determine her fate. So far, they seem to be
standing by Obama's preference for a justice with "empathy" probably
because voters don't see empathy as a bad thing.
And what's not to like in a compelling against-the-odds personal
success story? Me? Of course, I would rather not see a very liberal judge on
the team, but I also think that a duly elected president has won the power
to pick Supreme Court justices. A nominee with Sotomayor's credentials
should be assumed competent. The Senate should reject only clearly unfit
candidates for this lifetime position.
Now, that's not what Obama thought when he was a senator. "I
would support the filibuster of some" of Bush' picks for the federal bench,"
he wrote in his memoir, "The Audacity of Hope," "if only to signal to the
White House the need to moderate its next selections." And: "It behooves a
president and benefits our democracy to find moderate nominees who can
garner some measure of bipartisan support."
His support for moderation notwithstanding, Obama voted against
Chief Justice John G. Roberts (who won 78 Senate votes) and Justice Samuel
A. Alito Jr. (58 votes). Ditto Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-San Francisco, who
complained that she did not know where Roberts stood on abortion. Be it
noted that top Democrats have voted against qualified candidates.
Veep Joe Biden wrote in his memoir, "Promises to Keep," that he
felt he could fight the (ultimately failed) nomination of Robert Bork
because, "An ideologically driven nominee who was chosen for his willingness
to overturn settled precedent would invite a divisive and unnecessary
fight."
Let the record show that top Democrats recognize the legitimacy
in opposing overly ideological judges on the Big Bench.
In a 2001 speech at the UC Berkeley School of Law, Sotomayor
wondered whether impartiality is achievable and confessed that she hoped
"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."
The issue is not that Sotomayor self-identifies as a "wise
Latina woman," but what she meant when she said, "I wonder whether by
ignoring our differences as women or men of color we do a disservice both to
the law and society." Is she simply being honest about personal biases? Or
does she believe that women and minorities the speech included a
gratuitous dig at Justice Clarence Thomas should rule according to their
demographic?
As for precedent: On Tuesday, the California Supreme Court
upheld Proposition 8 which limited marriage to a man and a woman. Chief
Justice Ronald George wrote that that the court's "role is limited to
interpreting and applying the principles and rules embodied in the
California Constitution, setting aside our own personal beliefs and values."
Justice Carlos Moreno, the lone dissenter, however, cited the
court's "traditional constitutional function of protecting persecuted
minorities from the majority will."
Someone on the Senate Judiciary Committee ought to ask
Sotomayor: Who's right? I want to hear that answer.
Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in the media and Washington consider "must-reading". Sign up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here.
Comment JWR contributor Debra J. Saunders' column by clicking here.
Debra J. Saunders Archives
© 2009, Creators Syndicate
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