Showing posts with label SCOTUS. Show all posts
Showing posts with label SCOTUS. Show all posts
Sunday, May 1, 2016
President Obama's Weekly Address 4/30/16: It’s Time for the Senate To Do Its Job
WASHINGTON, DC — In this week's address, the President repeated his call for Republicans in the United States Senate to give Chief Judge Merrick Garland a fair hearing and a vote. It has been 45 days since President Obama nominated Judge Garland to the Supreme Court. The President highlighted that Senate Republicans have said that Judge Garland is a man of experience, integrity and impeccable qualifications. Despite this, most Senate Republicans refused to do their job and give Judge Garland the consideration he deserves. The President made clear that the Supreme Court must remain above partisan politics, and that's why the President did his job in nominating Merrick Garland. Now, it's time for the Senate to do its job.
Saturday, March 19, 2016
President Obama's Weekly Address 3/19/16 : President Obama’s Supreme Court Nomination
WASHINGTON, DC — In this week's address, the President discussed his decision to nominate Chief Judge Merrick Garland to the Supreme Court of the United States. Chief Judge Garland has earned the respect of both Democrats and Republicans through his years of public service. The President made clear that even though we are in the midst of a volatile political season, we should treat the appointment of a Supreme Court justice seriously. The President repeated his call for Republicans in the United States Senate to give Chief Judge Garland a fair hearing and a vote. The President did his job. Now Senators should do theirs and quickly move to consider the President’s nominee.
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Who is Sonia Sotomayor?
by Eric Zimmermann
May 1, 2009
Court of Appeals Judge Sonia Sotomayor is name most talked about as Justice Souter's possible replacement.
What do we know about her?
Originally appointed to the federal court by President George H.W. Bush, Sotomayor was elevated to the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals by President Clinton. Born in 1954, she's a graduate of Yale Law School and served as assistant district attorney for New York County from 1979-1984.
In the next few days and weeks, we're likely to hear a lot more on Sotomayor's legal opinions, which will become fodder in a possible confirmation battle.
As a preliminary sketch, here are a few of the more colorful cases Sotomayor helped decide. NOTE: I am not a lawyer, so I can't speak to the constitutional significance of each of these decisions.
In 2004, a panel of judges including Sotomayor revoked the citizenship of Jack Reimer, then 96, when it came to light that Reimer had served in the German Army in WWII. Here's the twist: Reimer was originally drafted into the Russian Army, but was captured by the Germans in June 1941. He was forced to train as a guard and, prosecutors alleged, helped clear Jewish ghettos forcibly. Prosecutors alleged Reimer had misrepresented his wartime activities when he originally applied for a U.S. visa under the Displaced Persons Act.
Here's how Sotomayor ruled:
"As an initial matter, Reimer argues that it would be unjust to consider his wartime conduct 'assistance' in persecution, contending that he was obliged either to go along with the commands of his superiors or face death himself," Sotomayor wrote. "This argument, however, is plainly foreclosed by Fedorenko. There, the Supreme Court rejected the argument that those forced into the Nazis' service should not be held responsible for their conduct, reasoning that, if Congress had intended for visas to be withheld from only those who voluntarily assisted in persecution, it would have stated so in the [Displaced Persons Act]."
In September 2003, Sotomayor joined in a ruling that upheld the constitutionally of so-called "perp walks" for alleged criminals. As long as there is not an "an inherently fictional dramatization" involved in the scene, the court ruled, perp walks could continue.
"The image of the accused being led away to contend with the justice system powerfully communicates government efforts to thwart the criminal element, and it may deter others from attempting similar crimes," wrote Judge Fred Parker.
In 2004, Sotomayor joined a ruling that upheld a law targeted at the Ku Klux Klan that would ban mask-wearing in public.
"The masks that the American Knights seek to wear in public demonstrations does not convey a message independently of the robe and hood," the court decided. "That is, since the robe and hood alone clearly serve to identify the American Knights with the Klan, we conclude that the mask does not communicate any message that the robe and the hood do not. The expressive force of the mask is, therefore, redundant."
This is only a tiny glimpse of Sotomayor's legal philosophy. Stay tuned as operatives on both sides of the fight dredge up past opinions of all the possible nominees.
What do we know about her?
Originally appointed to the federal court by President George H.W. Bush, Sotomayor was elevated to the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals by President Clinton. Born in 1954, she's a graduate of Yale Law School and served as assistant district attorney for New York County from 1979-1984.
In the next few days and weeks, we're likely to hear a lot more on Sotomayor's legal opinions, which will become fodder in a possible confirmation battle.
As a preliminary sketch, here are a few of the more colorful cases Sotomayor helped decide. NOTE: I am not a lawyer, so I can't speak to the constitutional significance of each of these decisions.
In 2004, a panel of judges including Sotomayor revoked the citizenship of Jack Reimer, then 96, when it came to light that Reimer had served in the German Army in WWII. Here's the twist: Reimer was originally drafted into the Russian Army, but was captured by the Germans in June 1941. He was forced to train as a guard and, prosecutors alleged, helped clear Jewish ghettos forcibly. Prosecutors alleged Reimer had misrepresented his wartime activities when he originally applied for a U.S. visa under the Displaced Persons Act.
Here's how Sotomayor ruled:
"As an initial matter, Reimer argues that it would be unjust to consider his wartime conduct 'assistance' in persecution, contending that he was obliged either to go along with the commands of his superiors or face death himself," Sotomayor wrote. "This argument, however, is plainly foreclosed by Fedorenko. There, the Supreme Court rejected the argument that those forced into the Nazis' service should not be held responsible for their conduct, reasoning that, if Congress had intended for visas to be withheld from only those who voluntarily assisted in persecution, it would have stated so in the [Displaced Persons Act]."
In September 2003, Sotomayor joined in a ruling that upheld the constitutionally of so-called "perp walks" for alleged criminals. As long as there is not an "an inherently fictional dramatization" involved in the scene, the court ruled, perp walks could continue.
"The image of the accused being led away to contend with the justice system powerfully communicates government efforts to thwart the criminal element, and it may deter others from attempting similar crimes," wrote Judge Fred Parker.
In 2004, Sotomayor joined a ruling that upheld a law targeted at the Ku Klux Klan that would ban mask-wearing in public.
"The masks that the American Knights seek to wear in public demonstrations does not convey a message independently of the robe and hood," the court decided. "That is, since the robe and hood alone clearly serve to identify the American Knights with the Klan, we conclude that the mask does not communicate any message that the robe and the hood do not. The expressive force of the mask is, therefore, redundant."
This is only a tiny glimpse of Sotomayor's legal philosophy. Stay tuned as operatives on both sides of the fight dredge up past opinions of all the possible nominees.
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