Sotomayor '76 Becomes First Hispanic, 11th Princetonian Justice on Supreme Court

The United States Senate, by a vote of 68 to 31, confirmed Sonia Sotomayor '76 as the nation's first Hispanic Supreme Court justice this afternoon. She joins fellow Princetonian Justice Samuel Alito '72 on the high court, who was confirmed in 2006 by a vote of 58 to 42.

The confirmation vote was largely along party lines. Senator Kit Bond '60, the lone Princetonian undergrad in the Senate, was one of just nine Republicans to vote for Sotomayor. Bond announced yesterday that he would support President Obama's nominee in a speech on the Senate floor. Some excerpts from Bond's speech:

"If some are saying that a Democratic president should not have a liberal justice, does that mean a Republican president shouldn't have a conservative justice? I've supported justices with whom I disagreed."..."The Senate has reviewed her nomination and has asked her its questions. There's been no significant finding against her. There's been no public uprising against her. I do not believe that the Constitution tells me that I should refuse to support her merely because I disagree with her on some cases. I will support her; I'll be proud for her, the community she represents, and the American Dream she shows is possible. I will cast my vote in favor of the nomination of Judge Sotomayor, and I urge my colleagues to do the same."

(image source: nytimes.com)