Sotomayor a racist? Newt Gingrich takes it back

Sotomayor a racist? Newt Gingrich takes it back
The former House speaker had joined Rush Limbaugh in calling Sonia Sotomayor a racist. Gingrich now says his words were 'perhaps too strong and too direct,' but Limbaugh defends the characterization.
By Michael Muskal
Copyright © 2009, The Los Angeles Times
1:41 PM CDT, June 3, 2009
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/la-na-sotomayor-gingrich4-2009jun04,0,4223310.story


Newt Gingrich, the former speaker of the House of Representatives who has become a leading conservative critic, today backed away from his comments that Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor was a racist but continued to question whether her philosophy qualified her to become the first Latina on the top court.

Gingrich had joined with conservative radio personality Rush Limbaugh in calling Sotomayor a racist after comments she made in 2001 comparing the judgment of Latinas and white men were widely circulated. Limbaugh today said he would not retract his use of the word, pitting him against a political ally.

In her 2001 speech in California, Sotomayor said: "I would hope that a wise Latina woman with the richness of her experiences would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male who hasn't lived that life."

Conservatives seized on the quote to argue that Sotomayor, 54, is an activist liberal judge who would place racial and ethnic characterizations above the law in her decisions. In private meetings with senators, Sotomayor has insisted she would follow the law, not personality, in reaching decisions.

But the remarks became part of the debate over whether she should be elevated from the federal appeals court to the Supreme Court. Led by Gingrich and Limbaugh, conservatives called Sotomayor a racist.

In a letter to supporters and a posting on his website, Gingrich said the use of the word “racist should not have been applied to Judge Sotomayor as a person, even if her words themselves are unacceptable."

"My initial reaction was strong and direct -- perhaps too strong and too direct," Gingrich said today. "The sentiment struck me as racist and I said so. Since then, some who want to have an open and honest consideration of Judge Sotomayor's fitness to serve on the nation's highest court have been critical of my word choice."

But Gingrich's change of heart did not sway Limbaugh on his radio program today.

"I'm not retracting it," Limbaugh said. "Nobody's refuted it.

"Now they may say 'Don't say it, Rush. Dial it back a little bit.' But nobody's saying I'm wrong. Nobody's saying I'm making it up. I mean, when she says that she'd do a better job than a white guy, what is it? It's racism. It's reverse racism, whatever, but it's still racism. She would bring a form of racism, bigotry to the court," Limbaugh said.

The use of the word "racist" rankled some Senate Republicans. Alabama Sen. Jeff Sessions, the ranking minority member of the Judiciary Committee, said Republicans wanted a fair hearing and cordial airing of Sotomayor's views.

In television interviews today, Sessions said he was "very glad" that Gingrich had decided to step back from the term. "I think that will help us have a real good discussion about the serious issues that the nation faces and that the court faces," Sessions said.

But Sessions added he was still concerned about Sotomayor's past statement because it raised questions. "It's inevitable that your personal views would affect your decision-making," Sessions said. "And to me, that's directly contrary to our great history of blind justice in America."

Sotomayor today had her second day of meetings with top senators in preparation for hearings on her nomination to replace Justice David H. Souter, who is retiring.

michael.muskal@latimes.com