White House: Sotomayor’s swift survey response builds case for timely confirmation hearings

July 19th, 2009 Hearings fail to sway Sessions to Sotomayor's sideWASHINGTON — The top Republican on the Senate committee reviewing Sonia Sotomayor's nomination said Sunday her testimony did not settle his concerns about elevating her to the Supreme Court. "I was troubled by a number of the things the nominee has said, a number of the rulings she has made," said Alabama Sen.

July 19th, 2009 Senate GOP chief: Sotomayor won't get my voteWASHINGTON — The Senate's top Republican says he admires Judge Sonia Sotomayor's personal story but is not going to vote for her confirmation to the Supreme Court. Sen. Mitch McConnell says that he is "a big fan of her career" and biography.

July 14th, 2009 Sui what? Legalese in Sotomayor hearing explainedWASHINGTON — What does a Latina judge from the Bronx have in common with a white male lawyer from Alabama? Latin and legalese. The ancient language of the law flows easily among practitioners, among them Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor, Alabama Sen.

July 13th, 2009 Historic Sotomayor confirmation hearings under wayWASHINGTON — In the glare of bright lights, Sen. Patrick Leahy called to order confirmation hearings for Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor that she hopes will make history and knows will be closely followed by millions.

July 13th, 2009 Senate starts on Sotomayor's historic nominationWASHINGTON — Sonia Sotomayor enters confirmation hearings for her historic nomination to the Supreme Court with reason to be confident about the outcome — Democrats have the votes in the Senate to make her the court's first Hispanic and third woman justice. Hearings in the Senate Judiciary Committee begin Monday with opening remarks from the panel's 12 Democrats and 7 Republicans, followed by Sotomayor's own statement that is expected to emphasize her compelling rise from poverty in New York City.

July 12th, 2009 Obama phones Sotomayor on eve of hearingsWASHINGTON — President Barack Obama has called his Supreme Court nominee, Sonia Sotomayor, to wish her luck at her confirmation hearings. The White House says Obama called the appellate court judge from the Oval Office on Sunday.

July 6th, 2009 Sotomayor's relatives hope to attend hearingsMAYAGUEZ, Puerto Rico — Puerto Rican relatives of Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor — the New York-born federal appeals judge who is vying to be the first Hispanic justice on the high court — hope to attend her confirmation hearings in Washington. "If they invite us, we will travel," said Jose Garcia Baez, a lawyer who is one of a number of Sotomayor's Puerto Rican cousins living on the west coast of the U.S.

June 29th, 2009 White House: Court ruling shows nominee not biasedWASHINGTON — Spinning a Supreme Court decision in its favor, the White House said Monday that the justices' reversal of a ruling that high court nominee Sonia Sotomayor endorsed as an appeals court judge proves that she follows judicial precedent. The high court ruled that white firefighters in New Haven, Conn., were unfairly denied promotions because of their race.

June 4th, 2009 Senate panel to get nominee's writings, speechesWASHINGTON — The White House says it will deliver a huge dossier of Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor's writings, speeches and unpublished rulings to the Senate Judiciary Committee. It's all part of her response to a questionnaire that asks about personal and financial details, potential conflicts of interest and the process that led to her nomination.

June 4th, 2009 WH contacted Sotomayor before Souter announcementWASHINGTON — 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.

June 4th, 2009 White House delivers Sotomayor files to SenateWASHINGTON — The White House delivered a huge portfolio of Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor's writings, speeches and rulings to Capitol Hill Wednesday, with details about the federal judge that will shape the debate over seating her on the court. The massive parcel of documents came in response to a questionnaire the Senate Judiciary Committee sends all federal court nominees.

June 4th, 2009 Backers press for summertime vote on SotomayorWASHINGTON — Senators are looking closely at the records and writings of Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor, Republicans seeking any detail that might slow her march toward confirmation and Democrats trying to bolster their case that she's a moderate who puts the law above her beliefs and biases. There's little doubt that Sotomayor, President Barack Obama's first high court nominee, will be confirmed by the Democrat-controlled Senate.

June 2nd, 2009 Sotomayor to make her Capitol Hill debutWASHINGTON — Appeals court judge Sonia Sotomayor is getting her first chance to make an impression on senators who will vote on her nomination to the Supreme Court, with a marathon set of Capitol Hill meet-and-greets that kicks off what could be a long debate. Sotomayor's schedule Tuesday is packed with roughly half-hour meetings — known as "courtesy calls" — that are as important for the courtly tone they set for the debate as they are for offering a few moments of candid conversation with the nominee.

May 6th, 2009 White House defends FEMA nomineeWASHINGTON — The White House says its nominee to run the Federal Emergency Management Agency deserves immediate Senate confirmation, not "political posturing" from a Republican senator standing in the way. President Barack Obama nominated Craig Fugate (FYOO'-gayt) two months ago.

April 22nd, 2009 Senate hears from FEMA and immigration nomineesWASHINGTON — The president's nominees to lead the nation's disaster response and immigration enforcement agencies are headed to Capitol Hill for confirmation hearings in the Senate. Federal Emergency Management Agency nominee Craig Fugate faces questions from the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee about hurricane preparedness and response.