Pat Dollard

Tweet

“If I use the same standard that Sen. Obama used, then I would not vote for you, quite frankly.”

POLITICO:
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) gave a harsh assessment of Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor Wednesday afternoon, criticizing her ideology, questioning her temperament and saying he had little intention of voting for her.

In a critical news conference following his 30-minute closed-door meeting with Sotomayor, Graham said that he would have great difficulty supporting her — and that he let her know it.

“I was very direct,” Graham told reporters gathered outside his office. “I have to decide how to play this game, quite frankly. If I use the same standard that Sen. [Barack] Obama used, then I would not vote for you, quite frankly.”

Graham’s comments were the most critical so far during Sotomayor’s dozen visits to key Senate offices over the past two days.

While Republicans do not have the votes to block Sotomayor, Graham’s tough criticism is an important moment in the process because he is considered one of the top Republican legal minds in the Senate. His statements may clear the way for other Republicans to follow suit with tougher stances.

Graham argued that Obama had voted against Justices John Roberts and Samuel Alito because they differed with him on ideology, and that going by that standard, he would not be inclined to support the presumably far more liberal Sotomayor.

“He used a standard, I think, that makes it nearly impossible for a person from the opposite party to vote for the nominee,” said Graham.

“When I look at her record, her ideology, I’m deeply troubled,” he added.

Graham also said he asked Sotomayor directly about the “wise Latina” remark she once delivered in a speech. He would not say how she responded.

In his post-meeting news conference Graham also raised questions about Sotomayor’s temperament. He said that while she was friendly in the meeting, he could not simply ignore reports from other lawyers she’s dealt with that she has a fiery temper.

“I think she does have the intellectual capacity to do the job,” Graham said. “But there’s a character problem. There’s a temperament problem that they — during the time they’ve had to be a judge, that they were more of an advocate than an impartial decider of the law. And I’ve got to find out, in my own mind” about her temperament.

With such lingering questions about Sotomayor’s record, Graham said, hearings should be held in September after the August recess.