Sofia D. Marin
Newswire21.org

Supreme Court nominee Judge Sonia Sotomayor is heading toward confirmation despite vociferous debate among the Senate's leading Democrats and Republicans.

While the GOP rallied opposition against Sotomayor, calling her an activist who fails the test of impartiality, Democrats on Tuesday were confident that Sotomayor would be approved as the first Hispanic and third female Supreme Court justice in history.

Lawmakers are expected to vote on Sotomayor's nomination by the end of this week before leaving for their August recess. 

While Sotomayor's nomination has garnered bipartisan support, some Republicans charge that selecting her as a high court justice would set a dangerous new standard of "empathy" rather than impartiality in deciding cases.

"Empathy is a very fine quality," Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said on the Senate floor before the formal debate. "But when it comes to judging, empathy is only good if you're lucky enough to be the person or the group that the judge in question has empathy for. In those cases, it's the judge, not the law, which determines the outcome."

Republicans also point to a handful of rulings in which they argue she showed disregard for gun rights, property rights and job discrimination claims by white employees.

But Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said Sotomayor has proven to be an impartial judge who follows the law through her work as both a district judge and circuit judge.

In fact, an exhaustive review of all 1,994 constitutional cases decided by the Second Circuit during the decade of Judge Sotomayor's service found that Sotomayor is solidly in the mainstream of her colleagues. The Brennan Center for Justice report released last month found she voted with the majority of the court in 98.2 percent of constitutional cases.

"She's developed a 17-year record as a moderate, mainstream judge," Reid said. "I'm disappointed not more of my colleagues on the other side of the aisle are likely to vote for this outstanding nominee."

Political Crossfire
Caught between fears of alienating Hispanic voters and threats by the National Rifle Association to downgrade its rating of senators who vote for Sotomayor, some Republicans are facing a tough decision about how to vote for President Obama's first court nominee.

Despite the risks, six Republicans have said they will vote for Sotomayor, including Sens. Susan Collins (Maine), Lindsey Graham (S.C.), Richard Lugar (Ind.), Mel Martinez (Fla.), Olympia Snowe (Maine) and Lamar Alexander (Tenn.), who joined in support of Sotomayor's nomination last week. Nearly all 60 Senate Democrats and Independents are expected to back Sotomayor when the chamber votes on her confirmation at the end of this week.

"[Sotomayor's] political and judicial philosophy may be different from mine, especially regarding Second Amendment rights," Alexander said in a floor statement. "[But] courts were never intended to be political bodies composed of judges ‘on your side’ who would reliably tilt your way in controversial cases."

"I will vote to confirm her because she is well qualified by experience, temperament, character, and intellect to serve," he said.

If confirmed, Sotomayor would succeed retiring Justice David Souter, a liberal named by a Republican president.