Sotomayor calls Kavanaugh out of touch with hourly workers

Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh is accustomed to relentless personal attacks from the Left, which began with his nomination to the nation’s highest court. But this week the ad hominem insults came not from cable news pundits or Democrats, but from his own colleague on the bench. Justice Sonia Sotomayor took the stage once again at the University of Kansas School of Law. personal pickaxe And Kavanaugh as an out-of-touch elitist.

Me too long criticized Increasing the number of public statements made by judges regarding controversial issues and cases, Including Justice Sotomayor. But this appearance represented a new level of vileness in attacking a colleague who was effectively blinded by his own privilege.

In her comments, Sotomayor cited Kavanaugh’s comments in Noem v. , an ongoing case regarding ICE’s ability to briefly detain people during immigration raids. Vasquez expressed his concurrence in the Perdomo case.

“In this case, I had a colleague who wrote that these were just temporary stoppages. This is coming from a guy whose parents are professionals. And he probably doesn’t really know anyone who works hourly. For those hours they take you, no one is paying that person. And that makes the difference between a meal for him and his kids that night and maybe just a cold dinner.”

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He later noted that his background gave him experience and knowledge that colleagues like Kavanaugh clearly lacked:

“Life experiences teach you to think more broadly and see things that others may not. And when I find a moment where I can express that on behalf of people who have no other voice, then I am given a very rare privilege.”

This is Sotomayor’s “wise Latin” on the bench. While then-Judge Sotomayor was in the Second Circuit, then-Judge Sotomayor declared that her life experiences offered a “difference” not shared by her colleagues. In a 2001 lecture at Berkeley law school titled “A Latino Judge’s Voice,” she heralded the difference that “our gender and our national origins can and will make … in our judgment.”

In his recent comments, he suggests that his interactions with hourly employees allowed Kavanaugh to see things he couldn’t in those situations. The claim that he “sees things others cannot see” suggests that Kavanaugh’s privileged, isolated existence has blinded him to the true merits of the cases before him.

Justice Sotomayor also told students and faculty that she has friendships with most, but not all, of her colleagues:

“I can say that I have an absolutely civil relationship with almost all of them. And I can say that I have a friendship with most of them.”

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I wouldn’t expect Kavanaugh to invite friends on social media after this speech.

It’s true that Kavanaugh attended elite schools. But so did Sotomayor, who graduated from Princeton and Yale Law School.

Justice Brett Kavanaugh dissented from a landmark Supreme Court decision striking down Trump’s emergency tariffs. (Susan Walsh/AP)

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Both of Kavanaugh’s parents were indeed lawyers, but it’s odd that Sotomayor would overlook the intriguing story of her mother, Martha. She was a history professor who went to law school while raising a family and eventually became one of the minority women on the state bench. This also appears to be the “gender origins” that Sotomayor has previously cited as key to her view on effective judging.

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But most striking was a backhanded claim from Sotomayor that Kavanaugh “doesn’t really know anyone who works hourly.” While he is allegedly more inclusive within his circle of friends, he has avoided and continues to avoid interaction with people who earn hourly wages. It’s obviously wrong, but more importantly it’s petty and unfair.

The attack shows that Kavanaugh, despite being a “wise Latino,” is a privileged sycophant on the Court. The truth is that many (if not most) blue-collar workers are more accepting of some aspects of Kavanaugh’s jurisprudence. At the very least, more than half the country is more likely to embrace his approach than that of Justice Sotomayor, who has been criticized for her comments at oral arguments on a variety of issues. abortion with puberty blockerto COVID restrictions.

Judge Kavanaugh was distinguished by public service, including work with the homeless.

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Justice Sotomayor has repeatedly raised eyebrows with her comments from the bench. We call on lawyers and students to join the political campaign Changing abortion laws.

In his favor, Justice Sotomayor also He defended colleagues like Justice Clarence Thomasexplained reasonable disputes among judges and opposing grounds Left to pack the field. He’s not someone I would consider gratuitously rude or cruel. I believe he values ​​collegiality and the Court as an institution. But this was another ill-advised moment during public events.

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There is a wide gap between the jurisprudence of these two judges. However, this difference arises from fundamental and principled differences in how courts should approach constitutional and statutory interpretation.

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But these comments were a disturbing departure from the tradition of collegiality and civility in the field. It was unfair and unwarranted. We hope that Justice Sotomayor will take the opportunity to retract her comment during her speaking tour.

That would be the “smart” thing to do.

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