Obama Picks Sotomayor for Supreme Court

President Obama has nominated Judge Sonia Sotomayor to replace Justice Souter on the Supreme Court.  Judge Sotomayor was on the short list of candidates assembled by pundits and the press.  She was appointed to the Second Circuit in 1997 by President Clinton.  Her prior appointment to the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York came in 1992 by the first President Bush.  Judge Sotomayor graduated from Princeton University in 1976 with a bachelor of arts in history and from Yale in 1979 with a law degree.  She was editor of the Yale Law Journal as well.

Judge Sotomayor's most recent notable case is Ricci et al. v. DeStefano, which upheld New Haven's right to throw out promotional exams for firefighters when no black firefighters passed the test.  That case is before the Supreme Court awaiting a decision.

Coverage on the nomination is developing.  Here are stories in the Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times, the Washington Times and the New York Times.  The consensus in the news seems to be that democrats are pleased with the pick, and republicans are guarded.  There is some instant analysis in the Washington Post by political writer Chris Cillizza on how this nomination will draw Hispanic voters to the democrats.  More news on the nomination as it develops.  [MG]