The race to the far right is now officially on in the hotly contested Republican Senate Primary. Rob Simmons says he would oppose the confirmation of Sonia Sotomayor, on the same day she will be confirmed by a huge majority of both Republican and Democratic votes in the Senate, citing only her upholding of judicial precedent in the Ricci case as his sole reason for voting against her:
"Despite Judge Sotomayor's impressive personal story, she denied justice to a group of Connecticut firefighters virtually without explanation," Simmons said in a statement. "They deserved better, and the Supreme Court agreed. Thus, I could not in good conscience reward her with a promotion at the expense of my constituents whose own promotions she unfairly denied."
So far, according to media reports, Republican Senators Alexander, Bond, Collins, Graham, Gregg, Lugar, Martinez, and Snowe have all indicated they plan to vote to confirm Sotomayor. But not the "moderate" Rob Simmons. Because he has a primary to win, and a rabid far-right Republican base to cater to.
Has anyone asked Rob Simmons whether he believes President Obama was born in the United States?
Update: A Courant editorial yesterday called the hardcore right-wing Republican opposition to Sotomayor - a group which now includes Simmons - "shameful" andd a "slap in the face to Hispanic voters":
But it's a disgrace that she received the favorable vote of only one - Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina - of seven Judiciary Committee Republicans when the panel reported her nomination to the floor last week. She is likely to receive the support of only a handful of Republicans when the full Senate votes. It's sad when a once-statesmanlike senator such as Orrin Hatch of Utah, who at one time respected executive appointment power and would vote to confirm the qualified judicial appointments of the president of the other party, has joined the partisan bushwhackers....
The deep partisan divide in Washington is growing more poisonous, as Republican opposition to the Sotomayor nomination and a broad range of Obama initiatives attest. GOP rejection of Judge Sotomayor is more than a slap in the face to Hispanics. It's one more blow to the idea that people of differing views and ideologies can, when it counts, work together for the common good. |
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