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President Obama
picks Hispanic judge, Sonia Sotomayor for Supreme Court
Written by the staff of Hispanicsurf.com
 May 30,2009 -- On
Tuesday, President Obama picked Sonia Sotomayor, 54, a federal appeals court
judge from New York City, and nominated her to the U.S. Supreme Court.
If confirmed by the Senate, the 54-year-old federal appeals court judge
would be the first Hispanic to sit on the highest US court, and overall, the third
woman.
The president says he made his pick for a lifetime appointment to the
Supreme Court after a rigorous selection process. "I have decided to nominate an inspiring woman who I believe will make
a great justice, Judge Sonia Sotomayor of the great state of New York,"
Obama said in a ceremony in the East Room of the White House.
With
the new nominee at his side, the president went before an audience in
the White House East Room and talked about the qualities he looked for
in a Supreme Court justice. He said strong intellect and an
understanding of the role of the judiciary are key. But he says Sonia
Sotomayor brings more to the court. "Over a distinguished career that
spans three decades, Judge Sotomayor has worked at almost every level
of our judicial system, providing her with a depth of experience and a
breadth of perspective that will be invaluable as a Supreme Court
justice," he said.
Ms Sotomayor said she was “deeply moved” by the nomination.
The president also cited what he described as her compelling life's
journey. The child of parents who moved to New York from Puerto Rico,
she grew up in government subsidized housing in one of the toughest
parts of the city. "Sonia, what you have shown in your life, is it does
not matter where you come from, what you look like, or what challenges
life throws your way, no dream is beyond reach in the United States of
America," added President Obama.
Sotomayor is a woman that has a life
story that you can't make up. She was born in the public projects, in the shadow
of Yankee stadium, to a single parent, her mother, Celina who was born in Puerto
Rico. Struggling to make ends meet she still manages to go to Catholic
school, get a scholarships to the best schools in the country, Princeton and
Yale and graduate top of the class while she is dealing with type I
diabetes. She spent five years as a prosecutor with the Manhattan district
attorney’s office before entering private practice.
One of her brightest moments as a district judge came in 1995 when Sotomayor issued the preliminary injunction against Major League Baseball, preventing MLB from unilaterally implementing a new collective bargaining agreement and using replacement players. Her ruling ended the 1994 baseball strike
after 232 days, the day before the new season was scheduled to begin.
"Some
say that Judge Sotomayor saved baseball," Obama said on Tuesday during
his speech.
There is debate whether she did or didn't, but one thing for sure,
her quick and decisive action helped halt a strike that
had eliminated the last month and a half of
the 1994 regular season as well as the entire postseason.
Judge Sotomayor would replace Justice David Souter, a George H.W. Bush
nominee.
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