WH contacted Sotomayor before Souter announcement

[Terri]

By JULIE HIRSCHFELD DAVIS
Associated Press
June 5, 2009

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The White House contacted Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor about serving on the high court four days before Justice David Souter announced that he would retire, the judge revealed Thursday, as she sent a Senate panel a massive portfolio of personal details and writings that will shape the debate on her confirmation.

The five boxes of files delivered to Capitol Hill gave senators a fuller picture of Sotomayor's background and record, as well as of how President Barack Obama came to nominate his first Supreme Court choice. They came in response to a questionnaire the Senate Judiciary Committee sends federal court nominees.

Sotomayor, who would replace Souter on the court if confirmed, first got a call from White House Counsel Gregory Craig on April 27, then had near-daily contact with his office after Souter announced his retirement May 1.

More (http://www.gopusa.com/news/2009/june/0605_sotomayor1.shtm l)

[Terri]

Sotomayor's speeches detail life, uncertainties (http://www.gopusa.com/news/2009/june/0605_sotomayor_speec hes1.shtml)

By LAURIE KELLMAN
Associated Press
June 5, 2009
WASHINGTON (AP) -- She likes to eat pig intestines and watch "Law & Order." She felt like an alien in the Ivy League. She reads fictional courtroom dramas and hands down imaginary rulings on the lawyers' objections therein.

Judge Sonia Sotomayor's self-portrait, revealed in scores of speeches and writings released Thursday, portrays a "daughter of the Bronx" who rose from a lower middle-class background to the academic and legal elite -- but felt panicked on the cusp of each step up.

Even after six years as a federal district court judge, Sotomayor recalled feeling anxious when President Bill Clinton appointed her to the federal appeals court.

[Terri]

Sotomayor dealt with media access, copyright issue (http://www.gopusa.com/news/2009/june/0605_sotomayor_cases .shtml)

By JESSE J. HOLLAND
Associated Press
June 5, 2009

WASHINGTON (AP) -- As a federal judge, Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor dealt with two important media issues -- copyrights and access -- and was reversed by higher courts when she ruled that freelance writers need not be compensated for online use of their published work, documents released Thursday show.

As a federal trial judge, Sotomayor ruled in 1997 that newspaper publishers were not violating copyrights by putting their freelancers' work into electronic databases.

A group of writers had sued a number of publications, including The New York Times, Sports Illustrated and Newsday, complaining that their work was being used on the companies' online sites without compensation.

More (http://www.gopusa.com/news/2009/june/0605_sotomayor_cases .shtml)

[Love my Texas]

Another thing about Sotomayor other than her briefs and voting record. As follows from Judicial Watch, if you are interested:


Judicial Watch's investigation of Obama's Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor continues. This week, our investigations team unearthed some interesting and disturbing information related to Sotomayor's connection to the radical organization, Puerto Rican Legal Defense Fund (PRLDF). Sotomayor served on the Board from 1980 until 1992, which is a significant period of time.
According to The American Spectator (http://click.icptrack.com/icp/relay.php?r=4283259&msgid=145937&act=30PO&c=157205&admin=0&destination=http%3A% 2F%2Fspectator.org%2 Fblog%2F2009%2F05%2F 26%2Fsotomayors-radical-legal-group): "Among radical left-wing groups, [the PRLDF] has a fairly garden-variety agenda. A captive of identity politics, it pushes for enforced multiculturalism, diversity, bilingual public education, race-based gerrymandering of electoral districts, race-based employment quotas, tenants' rights, and illegal immigrants' rights."
Check out some of the group's activities during Sotomayor's tenure as the "top policy maker" on the PRLDF's Board of Directors:

In 1988, the Puerto Rican Legal Defense Fund engaged in a battle with the New York City Police Department over its "racist" promotion exam, ultimately presiding over a radical redesign to allow more minorities to achieve a passing grade. According to The New York Times (http://click.icptrack.com/icp/relay.php?r=4283259&msgid=145937&act=30PO&c=157205&admin=0&destination=http%3A% 2F%2Fwww.nytimes.com %2F1989%2F01%2F13%2F nyregion%2Fdespite-revisions-few-blacks-passed-police-sergeant-test.html%3Fpagewant ed%3Dall): "The new test, a four-part exam prepared with the help of an expert designated by the Puerto Rican Legal Defense Fund...involved changes in format, including the addition of open-book questions and a video portion."
In 1990, the PRLDF attacked then-New York Mayor David Dinkins after the mayor labeled three Puerto Rican "nationalists" who shot five members of Congress in 1954 "assassins (http://click.icptrack.com/icp/relay.php?r=4283259&msgid=145937&act=30PO&c=157205&admin=0&destination=http%3A% 2F%2Fwww.nytimes.com %2F1990%2F06%2F16%2F nyregion%2Fpraising-mandela-dinkins-shakes-fragile-coalition.html)." The radicals were members of a violent Puerto Rican terrorist group FALN (Fuerzas Armadas de Liberación Nacional). The PRLDF said the mayor's comments "lacked sensitivity." Reuben Franco, President of the PRLDF said: "[Mayor Dinkins] doesn't recognize that to many people in Puerto Rico, these are fighters for freedom and justice, for liberation, just as is Nelson Mandela, who himself advocated bearing arms."
In 1981, the PRLDF filed a complaint against New York City Mayor Thomas Dunn following a City Hall directive requiring staff to speak English while on the job. In 1990, the organization also opposed a law to require merchants to post an English sign in the storefront explaining the nature of business.Trust me, this is a very small sampling of a very large universe of radical activity by PRLDF during Judge Sotomayor's tenure. I've reviewed her responses to the U.S. Senate questionnaire in preparation for her nomination. The judge does not disclose much at all about her significant work the PRLDF. We aim to help fill in the gaps. And I will have much more for you in the coming weeks as we continue to delve deeply into Judge Sotomayor's history and affiliations.