AN EXTRA MONTH WON’T HELP…. This morning, Sen. Susan Collins of Maine became the fourth Republican senator to endorse Judge Sonia Sotomayor’s Supreme Court nomination, further reinforcing the fact that a GOP filibuster would be pointless and Sotomayor will be confirmed.
The question then becomes a matter of timing. The White House and Senate Democratic leaders see no reason to delay a confirmation vote, and intend to vote on Sotomayor before the Senate breaks for recess. At this point, most Senate Republicans don’t see the value in pushing the matter off until September, either.
But for the GOP base, that’s not good enough. (via Right Wing Watch)
“…[C]onservatives will not be happy if the GOP rolls over with regard to Obama’s politically motivated goal of getting Sotomayor confirmed before the August recess,” said Curt Levey, head of the conservative group Committee for Justice.
While some conservatives say that GOP senators effectively laid out inconsistencies in her testimony, activists want the slow-news month of August — when Congress is on recess — to build a campaign opposing her nomination.
Charmaine Yoest, head of the anti-abortion group Americans United for Life who testified against Sotomayor, said that an extra month would be helpful to her cause.
“The more time we have to educate people, the more we would continue to emphasize to people that a vote for her is a vote for abortion on demand without any restrictions whatsoever,” Yoest said.
These groups really seem to believe that Sotomayor’s confirmation is in doubt, and if they could just have a little more time, they can rally the troops and defeat the nomination.
I haven’t the foggiest idea how or why they’ve reached this conclusion. It will be interesting, though, to see whether Republican senators try to go along with their demands.
