Hey, remember when Big John Cornyn was rebuking the crazy wing of the Republican Party for making race-based attacks on Sonya Sotomayor? Apparently, he’s figured out that this put him in the minority of the GOP, because he’s now joined them.
Since the introduction last week of Sonia Sotomayor, Republican senators wary of attacking the first Latino Supreme Court nominee have lashed out at conservatives in their party who branded the would-be justice a racist and have even predicted a smooth confirmation.
But several of those same GOP senators said Sunday that they would now make race a focus of the Sotomayor nomination fight — and they were far less eager to criticize conservatives such as Rush Limbaugh and Newt Gingrich for their racially tinged critiques.
Fanning out across network television talk shows, the senators in essence pledged to ask a fundamental question: Can a woman who says her views are shaped by her Puerto Rican heritage and humble beginnings make fair decisions when it comes to all races and social classes?
“We need to know, for example, whether she’s going to be a justice for all of us or just a justice for a few of us,” said Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas), a member of the Judiciary Committee, speaking on ABC’s “This Week With George Stephanopoulos.”
Days earlier, Cornyn said in a radio interview that it was “terrible” for conservatives to be attacking Sotomayor as a racist. He did not reiterate those sentiments Sunday and pledged that he and other Republican lawmakers would investigate Sotomayor’s past comments and rulings to judge her fairness.
Always good to see people about whom one has a low opinion live up to that opinion one has of them. I like the way Kevin Drum phrases it:
Oddly enough, Cornyn has never expressed any concerns about whether a white male judge who rules against affirmative action can be a justice for all of us or just a justice for a few of us. I suppose it just slipped his mind.
I think it’s just a matter of Cornyn remembering who the “us” is and who the “them” is. After all, as others have noted, identity politics is something that happens to white people, not something that is done by them. I’m glad our junior Senator has cleared up where he stands on this.
UPDATE: BOR has more.
Oddly enough, Cornyn has never expressed any concerns about whether a white male judge who rules against affirmative action can be a justice for all of us or just a justice for a few of us. I suppose it just slipped his mind.
This right here is the part about all of this that is pissing me off the most. It’s like the implication is that if you’re white, you have no race, and everyone ELSE is something else. Not once during the Roberts or Alito nominations did anyone even MENTION that they were white males. Argh!!!!
(And if you want some real head-splitting fun, go check out the stuff G. Gordon Liddy said about her. The best was when he referred to the entire Spanish language as “Illegal American”.)
Gosh, I can’t figure out why the GOP is having such a hard time with Latino voters. Can you?
Oddly enough, Cornyn has never expressed any concerns about whether a white male judge who rules against affirmative action can be a justice for all of us or just a justice for a few of us. I suppose it just slipped his mind.
__________________________________________________________________
It didn’t slip his mind at all. He is a Republican. White males were “divinely destined” to rule above all others. With “divine discretion” of course as to “who gets what” in our society.
Supposedly it says so somewhere in the Bible according to Republicans. Definitely it says so in the unwritten platform of the Republican Party. The party that welcomes all. Just as long as all of the all including women stay in their place.
Pingback: Thursday Morning Press Clips « Texas Republic News Blog
Right on target with the “white male” comment… 😉 Don’t we all live and communicate based on our filters for the most part? I’m not sure I ever remember Clarence Thomas being asked how he would rule on Affirmative Action cases due to his being black…. oh, I forget – this is a WOMAN we’re talking about here – AKA – Fair Game!