I fear she will legislate from the bench.

I am always amazed when I see someone state that jurists legislate from the bench. Please explain.

Ruling on complex laws regarding employment testing is "Legislating from the bench".

Ingterfering in a state's election vote counting to select someone from your own political party for president is not.

Clear enough?

Over ruling the majority of Washingtonians who wanted a gun ban is not legislating from the bench either. Its protecting rights....I think I get it now...thanks....

...er, I think you will find that the constitution affords a few rights that legislators - or even a mojority of voters - cannot just change arbitrarily. Upholding it is a weird conception of "legislating from the bench..."

What if that majority had wanted to "repatriate" all Asian people to Asia?

On the committee, yes she will be. Off the committee, Republicans will savage her in ways not seen since Hillary Clinton.

Exactly what Roberts, Alito, Thomas and Scalia have been doing all session. I cannot believe that the right brings up this canard with the rulings that these four have pushed down all year.

The last 20 years of judicial confirmations shows that it is the Democrats who savage the Supreme Court nominees of an opposing-party President. Meanwhile, Senate Republicans gave Clinton's appointments comparatively kid-glove treatment. The nastiness of Bork's and Thomas's nomination fights should be familiar to all of us; The questioning of Alito was such that his wife left the committee hearing in tears. By contrast, Ginsburg's nomination and confirmation hearings were a virtual love-fest, with both sides tripping over themselves to praise her. Breyer's confirmation was relatively easy, as well. Voting results aren't a perfect proxy for the rancor of a nomination fight, but they are the only numerical substitute I can think of: Republican Appointees Bork: 42-58 Kennedy: 97-0 Thomas: 52-48 Roberts: 78-22 Alito: 58-42 Democratic Appointees Ginsburg: 97-3 Breyer: 87-9 Of course, Supreme Court nominations are among the highest-stakes political fights out there, and I have no problem with the gloves coming off. But the liberal groupthink that Republicans will mistreat poor little Sonia is without historical basis and is typical of the infantile "Republicans are just mean" mindset you seem to hold. To the contrary, it has been the Democrats who have made nominations into bitter fights and have launched the most vicious nomination oppositions.

Republicans blocked Lyndon Johnson's nomination of Abe Fortas for Chief Justice. Of course Republicans only keep score starting AFTER their accountability ends, so that event does not count.

Just as Republicans only track George W. Bush's "Keeping America Safe" record starting on September 12, 2001.

Philadelphia Steve:

Republicans blocked Lyndon Johnson's nomination of Abe Fortas for Chief Justice. Of course Republicans only keep score starting AFTER their accountability ends, so that event does not count.

Just as Republicans only track George W. Bush's "Keeping America Safe" record starting on September 12, 2001.

Congrats -- you found one case of mass conservative opposition to a Supreme Court nominee in the last 40 years. That doesn't much change the main point -- that, over the last 20 years, it is the Democrats who have, with only one exception (Kennedy) launched concerted and sometimes vicious opposition to Republican Supreme Court nominations, whereas Republicans were deferential to Clinton's Supreme Court picks. Which point was made to demonstrate the ridiculousness of your argument that Republicans will trash and stonewall Sotomayor because that's what they always do.

When Orin Hatch chaired theSenate Judiciary committee, he sat on more than 110 judicial nominees submitted by President Clinton. There was no hearings or even committee votes. Just a refusal by a Republican Chair to permit even a vote on judges.

And every single Conservative in America loved it, and cheered him on. Including yourself.

Or was that different?

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