One by one, Sotomayor is winning over senators

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FILE - In this June 4, 2009 file photo, Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor meets with Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn. on Capitol Hill in Washington. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, FILE)


Sotomayor noticed a bicycle figurine on a shelf in the office of Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) and chatted about her love of cycling. She spoke in Spanish to Cuban-born Sen. Mel Martinez (R-Fla.). She talked about losing her father at an early age with Sen. Dick Durbin, whose dad also died when he was young. She gossiped with Democratic senators who support her about how to handle potential critics.

"I told her the most important thing is to be yourself because she's such a powerful presence and such a powerful person," said Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), her unofficial adviser during the confirmation process. "When you meet her person to person, sitting across a table a couple of inches apart, her personality -- you know, it's shining, it's strong, comes through."

Rejected Supreme Court nominee Robert Bork bombed in the "courtesy calls" in 1987, coming across as pompous and cold. Anthony Kennedy used them to schmooze his way to a smooth confirmation.

Former President George W. Bush withdrew his nomination of Harriet Miers shortly after an awkward dispute she had with Sen. Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania, then the Republican chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee. At issue was what she had said during their private talk about the right to privacy, an underpinning of the high court's 1973 Roe vs. Wade decision establishing abortion rights.

By most accounts, Sotomayor has made no such missteps, leaving senators with a positive first impression even as some of them voice serious concerns about her nomination.

http://www.suntimes.com/news/nation/1621189,CST-NWS-soto14.article

[BlooInBloo]

1. (shrug) It was over before it began. She'll be confirmed by a wide margin.