Sonia Sotomayor Hearings: A Forum For Scared, Old, White Dudes To Air Their Feelings

The Senate Judiciary Committee hearings on Sonia Sotomayor’s nomination for the Supreme Court are under way, and, being that the Republicans have nothing to attack her with based on her record, today’s opening statements sounded more like a therapy group for America’s newest oppressed minority: Rich, white men.

Senator Jeff Sessions (R-AL) kicked off the discussion with his opening statement in which he said:

I will not vote for, and no senator should vote for anyone who will not render justice impartially.

Call it empathy, call it prejudice or call it sympathy, but whatever it is, it’s not law. In truth, it’s more akin to politics and politics has no place in the courtroom.

Here’s Senator Sessions telling the room what they should be looking to decide at the end of the hearings:

Sessions’ views align with those of many of his Republican colleagues, as their main criticism is that Sotomayor’s judicial philosophies do not gel with the Constitution, which promises an equal trial to all Americans. She has repeatedly been called a reverse racist, along with her buddy Barack Obama, by every right-wing mouthpiece in America from Bill O’Reilly to John McCain.

Senator Graham (R-SC) chimed in with the opinion that if he had said something like the famous “wise Latina” comment about himself, he and most of his colleagues would have lost their jobs, making it clear that he sees a double standard operating today in which whites now play the role of oppressed minority. A minority that is losing its voice in the national dialogue.

Here’s Senator Graham airing his feelings to the room.

But ultimately, he told Sotomayor that she’s a shoe-in for the nomination as long as she “doesn’t have a meltdown.” (That’s not a fiery Latina crack, is it?) Between the fact that America now has a black president, a woman Secretary of State, and a potential Latina on the Supreme Court and the spontaneous combustion of their family values platform, it’s come to Jesus time for the Republicans and today’s opening statements felt like it.