President Obama announces Judge Sonia Sotomayor as U.S. Supreme Court Nominee in the East Room of the White House.

By Pamela Gentry, Senior Political Analyst

 May 26, 2009 – President Barack Obama’s selection of Judge Sonia Sotomayor will place the first American with Puerto Rican heritage on the path to the U.S. Supreme Court. 

Sotomayor’s childhood and the obstacles she faced may connect with the American people.  Her humble background with working class immigrant parents could be one of the reasons Sotomayor was a standout pick from the list of 40 names – that was narrowed to four over the past weeks according to White House officials.

I was able to confirm at least one African American made “a list” but not the final four.

But it looks like the selection of Sotomayor is going over well with Black lawmakers. Chairwoman of the Congressional Black Caucus, Barbara Lee (D-Calif.) released a statement applauding the nomination. 

 “As the first Latina nominated to the Supreme Court, Judge Sonia Sotomayor brings brilliance and a common sense understanding of how the law practically works in the lives of all Americans and has repeatedly shown a commitment to the Constitutional values that are the bedrock of our nation,” Lee said.

House Majority Whip James Clyburn (D-S.C.) called Sotomayor a “superb pick.”

 “The President has demonstrated that he is dedicated to nominating justices who have life experiences that will enable them to both sympathize and empathize with all Americans,” Clyburn said.

The East Room was packed Tuesday morning for the announcement. This was one of the largest turnouts by White House senior and support staff I’ve witnessed. 

It was a who’s who of the Latino and Black communities.  Among the guests I spotted civil rights activist Rev. Al Sharpton, NAACP president Benjamin Todd Jealous, executive director of the Urban League Mark H. Morial and Wade Henderson, CEO of the Civil Rights Conference of Civil Rights.

Sotomayor graduated from Princeton University and Yale Law School and worked as a city prosecutor and corporate litigator before donning the black robe.  Both of her early career moves developed the skills White House officials point to as her added asset to the high court:  Once Justice David Souter retires no other justice remaining on the court has trial law experience.

“I stand on the shoulders of countless people, yet there is one extraordinary person who is my life aspiration. That person is my mother, Celina Sotomayor.”  Following roaring applause, Sotomayer added,  “My mother has devoted her life to my brother and me. And as the president mentioned, she worked often two jobs to help support us after dad died. I have often said that I am all I am because of her, and I am only half the woman she is.”

The president praised the 54-year-old jurist for her accomplishments. “It’s a career that has given her not only a sweeping overview of the American judicial system, but a practical understanding of how the law works in the everyday lives of the American people,” Obama said. 

Sotomayor, born in the South Bronx, comes to this nomination from Second Circuit where she was appointed by President Clinton.  Her first appointment to the District Court of southern District of New York was by President George H.W. Bush.

May 21, 2009 – President Barack Obama will outline his plans to deal with closing the prison in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba today with the hope of avoiding any set-backs to keeping his campaign promise of closing the detention facility.

On Wednesday the U.S. Senate voted 90-6 to strip the $80 million the president requested for funding the close of the controversial prison by early 2010.

The president is expected to outline his plan in a speech Thursday morning most likely directed at the recent actions by the Senate to withhold funding.

 White House press secretary Robert Gibbs told reporters, “He will go through some of the decisions we have to make regarding how to close down Guantanamo.”

One of the major stumbling blocks has been the uncertainty of where prisoners will be housed when the facility is shut down. Members of Congress have been openly critical of any suggestions that prisoners be moved inside the U.S. borders and housed in their backyards.   Gibbs said, “The president hasn’t decided where some of the detainees will be transferred.”

The Senate went so far as to remove the money from the $91.3 billion bill to fund the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and also barred the administration from using any money to  bring detainees into the states through Sept. 30.

Obama is getting resistance from both sides of the aisle and warnings from the FBI that detainees could pose a threat if brought stateside.  

 “They [Congress] need and deserve a more detailed plan,” Gibb told reporters.

Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), said he doesn’t support transferring suspected terrorists to prisons in the states and FBI director Robert Mueller agrees.  Mueller told the House Judiciary Committee Wednesday that detainees could be a triple threat if they support terrorism, help finance attacks, or recruit and radicalize others in the prison system.

What do you think; should the facility be closed and detainees brought to prisons in the United States? 

President Barack Obama makes his first appearence at the podium in the White House briefing room.

By Pamela Gentry, Senior Political Analyst

May 1, 2009 – The president decided to stop by the daily press briefing Friday to let everyone know he had spoken with Associate U.S. Supreme Court Justice David Souter regarding his plans to retire from the bench.

Souter’s announcement was the topic of the briefing from the beginning – so reporters, including myself, were shocked to get answers about the resignation directly from the president and in such short order.

The president interrupted press secretary Robert Gibbs’s briefing to report he had just spoken to Souter and then read a brief statement.  He praised Souter for being a “fair-minded” and “independent judge.” 

“He came to the bench with no particular ideology.  He never sought to promote a political agenda.  And he consistently defied labels and rejected absolutes, focusing instead on just one task — reaching a just result in the case that was before him,” Obama said.
 
And what kind of judge will Obama look for to replace Souter?  Obama said, “I will seek somebody with a sharp and independent mind and a record of excellence and integrity.  I will seek someone who understands that justice isn’t about some abstract legal theory or footnote in a case book; it is also about how our laws affect the daily realities of people’s lives — whether they can make a living and care for their families; whether they feel safe in their homes and welcome in their own nation.”

As a former constitutional law professor, the president  added, “I will seek somebody who is dedicated to the rule of law, who honors our constitutional traditions, who respects the integrity of the judicial process and the appropriate limits of the judicial role.  I will seek somebody who shares my respect for constitutional values on which this nation was founded and who brings a thoughtful understanding of how to apply them in our time.”

Now we’ll have to wait and see who the president identifies as meeting the criteria to fill a seat on the highest court in the land.  Early speculation is he’ll select a woman, even more speculation is that he’ll select the first Latino to the bench. No one really knows, but I recall the same beltway chatter when President Bush was looking for his two appointments;  Bush named two men to the bench.

Do you think the president should make his selection using race or gender as a requirement?

April 1,  2009 – President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama began their eight day, five country trip to Europe Tuesday and it looks like the schedule is jammed packed. 

The president’s trip will focus on two important meetings: the G-20, where the world’s economic powers will come together and the NATO summit.  But those two highlights are just part of their VIP schedule while over the pond.

Today will begin with a one-on-one meeting with Prime Minister Gordon Brown, separate meetings with Russian and Chinese leaders and meetings with several European leaders to discuss the war in Iraq.

The day will end with the president and first lady’s private audience with Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace. This alone will mark his trip as “historic” and place a page in history books around the world. 

The president left the country with some good news from a Washington Post-ABC News poll released Tuesday.  It seems his approval rating is still pretty good:  66 percent of the folks polled said they approve of the way Obama is handling the job of commander-in-chief and 66 percent said they approve of the way he’s handling the economy.

Michelle Obama also faired really well with the American people according to this poll; she received her highest favorable rating yet at 76 percent. 

The president is expected to receive a warm and enthusiastic welcome in Europe – in part because of early key policy decisions by his administration.  Since taking office he’s addressed global warming, promised to close Guantanamo Bay, and laid out plans of ending the war in Iraq; all reversals of President Bush’s policies.

Move over Britney Spears, the famous Madame Tussauds Wax Museum in London is putting the final touches on the president’s statue in preparation for his visit.  I was impressed. Not only is the resemblance striking, but they even nailed his hair cut.

 President Obama is getting good marks at home and abroad, how do you think he’s doing?

By Pamela Gentry, Senior Political Analyst

March 10, 2009 – President Obama lifted the ban on funding embryonic stem cell research and lifted the hopes of millions of African Americans suffering with diabetes, cancer, and Parkinson’s disease.  

Fulfilling one of his campaign promises, Obama told a crowd of 150 advocates, scientists and lawmakers, “With the executive order I am about to sign, we will bring a change that so many scientists and researchers, doctors and innovators, patients and loved ones have hoped for, and fought for, these past eight years.”

Black lawmakers applauded the president’s move.

“We know that our population is aging.  Debilitating chronic diseases like cancer, Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, and diabetes are becoming far more common,” said Rep. Barbara Lee (D-Calif.), chairwoman of the Congressional Black Caucus. ”Diabetes in particular is a huge problem, and like many other diseases, disproportionately affects minority communities. Expanding the number of embryonic stem cell lines available for research will assist scientists in developing therapeutic treatments and cures for diabetes and many other diseases.”

Obama said the policy shift from the Bush administration was needed to “restore scientific integrity to government decision making.” In 2001, Bush put a policy in place that would not allow funding for a number of stem cell lines derived from embryos. By doing so, he crippled researchers’ ability to move a great deal of research forward.

Critics charge the use of stem cells is “morally wrong” because it encourages the destruction of a human life.  Some even believe it could lead to treating human beings as products that can be harvested for scientific experimentation.  The president promised strict ethical guidelines on any research funded with federal dollars.

“We will support it only when it is both scientifically worthy and responsibly conducted.  We will develop strict guidelines, which we will rigorously enforce, because we cannot ever tolerate misuse or abuse,” he vowed.

“And we will ensure that our government never opens the door to the use of cloning for human reproduction.  It is dangerous, profoundly wrong, and has no place in our society, or any society,” Obama said.

Along with the executive order to lift the ban on stem cell research, the president also issued a memorandum calling for scientific evidence as the litmus test for research and not political ideology.