Washington, D.C. – Today, following
the vote in the U.S. Senate to confirm the nomination of Judge Sonia Sotomayor
to be the next Supreme Court Associate Justice, U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand
issued the following statement:
“The breadth and depth of Judge
Sotomayor’s experience makes her uniquely qualified for the Supreme Court. Her keen understanding of case law and the
importance of precedent is derived from working in nearly every aspect of our
legal system — as a prosecutor, corporate litigator, civil rights advocate,
trial judge and appellate judge. Judge
Sotomayor will bring to the Supreme Court more federal judicial experience than
any justice in one hundred years and more overall judicial experience than any
justice in seventy years.
“Judge Sotomayor will bring the wisdom
of all her experiences to bear as she applies the rule of law, and will grace
the Supreme Court with the intelligence, judgment, clarity of thought and
determination of purpose that we have come to expect from all great justices on
the Court.
“Judge Sotomayor’s record is a testament to her
strict adherence to precedence – her unyielding belief in the rule of law and
the Constitution. I have always strongly
supported Judge Sotomayor’s nomination and firmly believe she will prove to be
one of the finest justices in American history.
“Today,
I am honored, humbled and proud to join my colleagues in the U.S. Senate to
confirm the historic nomination of Judge Sonia Sotomayor to be our next Supreme
Court Associate Justice and the first ever Latina on our nation’s highest
court.”