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Gingrich on Sotomayor: Racist 'too strong'

by Michael Muskal

Newt Gingrich, the former Republican House speaker 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.

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."

Gingrich had joined with conservative radio personality Rush Limbaugh in calling Sotomayor a racist after a speech she gave in 2001 was widely circulated. In it, 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."

See the full report on Gingrich and Sotomayor at the Los Angeles Times and here in the Swamp:

Conservatives have 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 law, not personality, in reaching decisions.

"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."

The use of the word "racist" rankled some Senate Republicans. Top Republicans, including Alabama's Sen. Jeff Sessions, the ranking minority member of the Judiciary Committee, said they 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 Souter, who is retiring.

Cheney's Role In CIA Briefings Unusual, But Legal

As vice president, Dick Cheney led CIA briefings with senior members of Congress on Bush-era harsh interrogation program, a news report says. Intelligence experts say Cheney's role, while highly unusual, was within legal parameters — and underscored his stake in the program.